Aretha Wilson is a Canadian former model who slashed actor Leonardo DiCaprio’s face and neck with a broken glass at a Hollywood Hills party in June 2005, fled to Canada, and spent five years as a fugitive before being extradited to the United States. In late 2010 she pleaded no contest to assault with a deadly weapon and was sentenced to two years in California state prison, after which she was to be handed to federal immigration authorities for deportation.1CBS News. Leonardo DiCaprio Wins Guilty Plea From Slasher Aretha Wilson
The 2005 Attack on Leonardo DiCaprio
On June 17, 2005, DiCaprio attended a private party at the Hollywood Hills home of Rick Salomon.2BBC News. DiCaprio Attacker Aretha Wilson Jailed for Two Years Wilson was accused of sneaking in uninvited.3CBC News. DiCaprio Attack Accused Gets Restraining Order
According to Eustace Hicks, a friend of DiCaprio’s who later testified for the prosecution, the actor was leaving the party when Wilson began cursing at one of his friends and then struck DiCaprio with a broken wine glass, hitting him in the face, neck, and ear.4CBS News Los Angeles. Woman Pleads No Contest in Attack on Leonardo DiCaprio The gashes required more than a dozen stitches and plastic surgery.5NBC Philadelphia. Two Years for Woman Who Slashed Leonardo DiCaprio’s Face DiCaprio filed a formal criminal complaint.6BBC News. Leonardo DiCaprio Attacker Aretha Wilson Pleads Not Guilty
Wilson later admitted taunting DiCaprio and his friends, but claimed he had approached her in a threatening manner after she made derogatory comments.7The Hollywood Reporter. Leonardo DiCaprio Slasher Cries Cover-Up Some reports suggested she may have mistaken him for an ex-boyfriend.
Five Years as a Fugitive in Canada
After the attack, Wilson returned to Canada, where she holds citizenship, and remained there for roughly five years.8CBS News. Aretha Wilson Sentenced to Two Years in Prison During that period she was placed under house arrest for about a year in Toronto in connection with an unrelated assault matter, and she spent 45 days in a Canadian jail cell.9CBS News. Leonardo DiCaprio Is Safe From Slasher Reporting at the time indicated she had already been on probation in Canada when the 2005 attack occurred.10Los Angeles Times. Woman Suspected of Attacking Leonardo DiCaprio Is Hit With Restraining Order
She was eventually apprehended and extradited to the United States, and had been held in Los Angeles County jail since July 2010.116abc. Woman Sentenced for Slashing DiCaprio
Plea, Sentence, and Prison Time
Wilson, then 40, initially pleaded not guilty to one count of assault with a deadly weapon at her August 11, 2010 arraignment.12CBS News Los Angeles. Woman Pleads Not Guilty to Attacking Leonardo DiCaprio In November 2010, rather than go to trial, she entered a plea of no contest to that single count. A conviction at trial could have carried up to seven years in state prison.13BBC News. Leonardo DiCaprio Attacker Aretha Wilson Pleads No Contest
On December 7, 2010, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg sentenced Wilson to two years in state prison.14CBS News. Leonardo DiCaprio Attacker Aretha Wilson Sentenced to Two Years in Prison She received credit for 354 days already served, most of it in Los Angeles County jail after extradition.15ABC7. Woman Sentenced for Slashing DiCaprio Her defense attorney, Freddy Sayegh, estimated that with time-served and good-behavior credits she would likely serve about six more months.16New York Daily News. Leonardo DiCaprio Attacker Aretha Wilson Sentenced to Two Years in Jail DiCaprio did not testify during the proceedings.
Deportation and Since
Under the terms resolving her case, Wilson was to be turned over to federal immigration authorities for deportation to Canada once she finished her prison sentence and any period of parole.1CBS News. Leonardo DiCaprio Wins Guilty Plea From Slasher Aretha Wilson Public reporting available on the case does not indicate whether DiCaprio pursued a separate civil suit for damages, and Wilson has not surfaced in press coverage since her sentencing.