Astronaut won't face attempted murder charge (original) (raw)

Lisa Nowak's 30-day leave of absence ends Thursday.BRUCE WEAVER/AFP/Getty Images

Florida prosecutors have rejected the attempted murder charge that Orlando police filed against astronaut Lisa Marie Nowak last month and will proceed with attempted kidnapping and two other criminal charges that stem from her infamous and bizarre actions.

She still faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted of one of the charges.

Nowak, 43, made worldwide headlines after she was arrested in Florida for allegedly assaulting a woman she perceived as a romantic rival for the affections of fellow astronaut William Oefelein.

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Nowak told police she had raced the clock to drive the 900 miles between Houston and Orlando, wearing a diaper to avoid bathroom breaks, to confront Colleen Shipman after her arrival at the Orlando International Airport.

Shipman told police Nowak was wearing a wig, trench coat and sunglasses when she confronted Shipman in her car and sprayed her with pepper spray through a partially opened window. Nowak, who had separated from her husband, told police she had only wanted to talk to Shipman, who is single. But Nowak was armed with a steel mallet, knife and BB gun at the time.

Florida prosecutors filed these formal charges against the once-celebrated astronaut Friday: attempted kidnapping with intent to inflict bodily harm or terrorize, burglary of a conveyance with a weapon (a felony with a possible life sentence) and battery.

Police first charged Nowak with similar offenses when she appeared before a magistrate on the morning of Feb. 6. She was preparing to leave the Orange County Jail on bond when the police filed an additional charge of attempted murder, requiring another appearance before the magistrate and delaying her release.

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'Overreaching' charges

Nowak's Orlando attorney,

, predicted then that the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's office would find it difficult to prosecute his client for attempted murder.

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"After having had some time and opportunity to review the allegations originally filed by the police, the State Attorney appears to recognize that the initial charges were overreaching," Lykkebak said in a prepared statement Friday. "Unfortunately, as demonstrated by the charges now filed, the state's current assessment still overstates the conduct."

Lykkebak told the magistrate last month, "What she did was spray (Shipman) with pepper spray — no more."

Nowak has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

"We believe that when all the facts are closely examined, this is a very different case," Lykkebak said Friday.

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Nowak returned to Houston Feb. 7 wearing an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet as a condition of her release pending trial. NASA placed Nowak on 30-day leave and removed her from flight status and other mission-critical duties.

"March 8 is the last day of that leave, but I cannot speculate on what her status will be after March 8," said James Hartsfield, a spokesman for the Johnson Space Center.

Prior to her arrest, Nowak was assigned to serve as the chief communicator between Mission Control and the crew of the shuttle Atlantis for its next flight, now scheduled for late April. She has since been replaced.

Oefelein returned to his duties at the Johnson Space Center this week after taking personal leave after Nowak's arrest.

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March 3, 2007

KIM COBB and MARK CARREAU