Shivangi Sinha
Celebrities live much of their lives in the public eye, but with fame often comes a terrifying dark side of being stalked. It is not just invasive, but it can quickly escalate into dangerous, even violent situations. Discovery+’s ‘Hollywood Demons: Stalking the Stars’ takes a dive into this phenomenon and examines the many disturbing crimes that have emerged from it. Among the cases explored is that of Joshua James Corbett, who broke into Sandra Bullock’s Los Angeles home in 2014 while she was inside, forcing her to hide in a closet as he roamed the property. It was a harrowing incident that got a lot of media attention, and the actor has spoken about the impact it had on her as well.
Joshua James Corbett Was Arrested at Sandra Bullock’s Home
On the morning of June 8, 2014, Sandra Bullock made a frantic 911 call from her home in Los Angeles, California, and reported that an intruder was inside her house. She told the police that she had locked herself in her bedroom closet for safety. Officers responded immediately and, upon arriving, found a man, later identified as Joshua James Corbett, walking down the stairs. He was unarmed but shouted “Sandy” repeatedly and pleaded with Bullock not to press charges against him. When police asked the A-lister what had happened, she explained that she had returned home around 1 am, taken a shower, and gone to bed.
She was later awakened by loud banging noises, initially believing the sounds were coming from her workout room. However, as the noises grew louder and closer, she became alarmed. She got up to lock her bedroom door, and as she did, she saw a man wearing a dark sweatshirt and dark pants walk past her room and head toward the stairs. Terrified, she remained hidden until help arrived. When Corbett was arrested, police discovered that he had a letter addressed to Sandra Bullock, a notebook filled with multiple entries directed to her, photographs of her clipped from magazines, and a Utah concealed weapons permit. In the letter, he referred to himself as Bullock’s husband and the father of her child. He had also expressed his love for her and claimed he was miserable without her.
In his notebook, he had written about the gates outside Bullock’s home, stating that he hoped she would one day open them for him. The police found out that he had lurked outside her house for three nights before he was able to gain entry through a patio door. The following day, on June 9, 2014, police searched Corbett’s residence and found a disturbing cache of weapons: several handguns, two fully automatic rifles, and a large amount of ammunition. They also found some writing in which he had allegedly detailed his plans to sexually assault the actor. He was charged with 26 offenses, two of which were for stalking and the burglary of Bullock’s home. The remaining stemmed from firearms-related offenses concerning weapons and ammunition. In his interview with the police, he was not aggressive and gave his verbal consent for the search of his house. He also apologized for making the actor cry.
Joshua James Corbett Killed Himself While the Police Were Outside His Door
Following his arrest, Joshua James Corbett was held on a $2 million bond and remained incarcerated. In May 2015, he pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him. His lawyer at the time stated that Corbett “really thought he was married” to Sandra Bullock but emphasized that his client no longer believed that to be true. The attorney also noted that the latter had been receiving treatment for mental health issues while in jail and had never intended to harm the actor through his actions. In 2017, Corbett changed his plea to no contest on one felony count each of stalking and first-degree residential burglary. In exchange, prosecutors dropped all charges related to weapons possession. He was sentenced to five years of probation, and a 10-year protective order was issued, prohibiting him from contacting or coming near Bullock.
He was also ordered to continue receiving treatment at a mental health facility as part of his probation terms. Just a year later, on May 2, 2018, Corbett was reported to be living in his home in La Crescenta, located in Los Angeles County, California. Around 7 am, police arrived at his residence to arrest him as he had failed to make it to a court date. However, he chose to barricade himself inside the house and made threats of violence. A SWAT team was called to the scene, and after a standoff that lasted approximately five hours, officers entered the home around 1 pm. Inside, they found that Corbett had died from self-inflicted injuries. The autopsy report later concluded that the cause of Joshua James Corbett’s death was “multiple lacerations” on both of his arms and one of his legs.
Read More: John Hinckley Jr: Where is Jodie Foster’s Stalker Now?
