Astronaut Diapers

Astronaut charged with attempted kidnap-murder

By Barbara Liston
Tue Feb 6

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - A married U.S. astronaut was accused on Tuesday of trying to kidnap and kill a rival for the affections of a male astronaut after she drove 950 miles wearing adult diapers to confront the woman.

U.S. Navy Capt. Lisa Nowak, who has three children, was released from jail in Florida after posting bail.

Nowak was initially arrested on attempted kidnapping charges on Monday in Orlando after assaulting Colleen Shipman, a U.S. Air Force captain, police said.

She was granted freedom on $15,500 bail on Tuesday morning on the kidnapping charge but her release was delayed when police filed a new charge of attempted first-degree murder -- rocking the elite world of NASA astronauts.

The murder charge could mean a life sentence in prison if she were convicted.

Police said Nowak, 43, a flight engineer who made her first trip into space in July to the International Space Station aboard shuttle Discovery, sped from Houston to Orlando wearing diapers so she would not have to stop at a bathroom.

Astronauts wear diapers during launches and landings.

Nowak disguised herself in a dark wig, glasses and trench coat to confront Shipman at Orlando International Airport but told police she "only wanted to scare" the woman into talking to her.

In two separate appearances in court, wearing a jail uniform, shackled at the waist and with her head bowed, Nowak said nothing about the charges of attempted murder and kidnapping, attempted burglary of a vehicle and battery.

"I would submit the police department is seeking a second bite of the same apple today," said Nowak's attorney, Donald Lykkebak, complaining to Orange County Circuit Judge Mike Murphy about the new charge.

After Nowak's second appearance in court, Murphy granted her release on bail totaling $25,500.

NASA's astronaut corps, featured in Tom Wolfe's 1979 book "The Right Stuff," is considered the elite of aerospace and science, populated by top pilots and space researchers from the United States and other nations.

RESTRAINING ORDER

Lykkebak said his client's commitment to her career and her service to the United States should be taken into account in determining bail.

"At times like this, judge, one's good works must count for something," he said.

But prosecutors said she was intent on murder.

Nowak drove to Orlando airport around midnight on Sunday, waited for Shipman's flight from Houston to arrive and then followed her to the parking garage armed with pepper spray, a steel mallet and a pellet gun, police said.

She also carried black gloves, a folding knife with a 4-inch (10-cm) blade, rubber tubing and trash bags, they said.

Nowak tried to get into Shipman's car and sprayed what may have been pepper spray through the window when Shipman refused to open the door, police said.

After the airport encounter, Shipman filed a petition for a restraining order against Nowak, alleging the astronaut had been stalking her for "approximately two months."

She called Nowak an acquaintance of her boyfriend and said Nowak had researched Shipman's personal information using her government contacts or computer.

Nowak told police she did not intend to harm Shipman.

In her statement, Nowak described her connection to male astronaut Bill Oefelein as "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship."

Nowak, who grew up in Rockville, Maryland, and attended the U.S. Naval Academy, became an astronaut in 1996 and waited 10 years for her first space flight.

She was scheduled to be a lead commentator on the next shuttle flight, a key role for an astronaut on the ground.