NASA To Review Astronaut Screening Process

Space Agency Will Evaluate Its Psychological Screening Following Love Triangle Arrest

(CBS/AP)  NASA said Wednesday it would review its psychological screening process after an astronaut's arrest on charges she tried to murder a woman she believed was her romantic rival for a space shuttle pilot's affections.

The space agency will review the selection process for astronauts and the amount of screening they get after they are chosen, reports CBS News correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi. Currently, there is no annual psychological review.

Hiding her face from the media, Lisa Nowak returned to Texas and the Johnson Space Center for a medical assessment Wednesday, a day after being charged in Florida with attempted first-degree murder, attempted kidnapping and three other crimes.

Nowak had shown no signs of instability before her arrest, said Deputy NASA Administrator Shana Dale. "As you know, it's a very tight-knit community that cared about each other."

Police said Nowak, accustomed to wearing astronaut diapers during the space shuttle's launch and return, wore them on a 900-mile drive from Houston to Florida so she would not have to make bathroom stops as she raced to confront Colleen Shipman at the Orlando International Airport. A police affidavit said Nowak, in a wig and trench coat, had "stealthily followed the victim while in disguise and possessed multiple deadly weapons," including a knife and steel mallet.

She was released on bail but ordered to stay away from Shipman and wear a monitoring device.

Nowak underwent a medical assessment Wednesday at the Johnson Space Center, said NASA spokeswoman Nicole Cloutier-Lemasters, who would not say whether that included a psychological evaluation. "She's not staying here. She's leaving with her family," Cloutier-Lemasters said.

NASA officials declined to comment when asked if Nowak's arrest meant the end of her NASA career. Nowak will be replaced as a ground communicator for the next space shuttle mission, where she would have talked to the astronauts from Houston during their flight.

Dale said Nowak's arrest would not have a long-term impact on the space program.

"This is a tragic event that impacted many lives, but this is a unique situation that we're facing," Dale said.

It was a remarkable downfall for a woman whose life seemed to be on a perfect trajectory until a few months ago. Just weeks ago, Nowak and her husband separated after 19 years.

Nowak became an astronaut after winning a series of Navy service awards. She had flown on the shuttle Discovery, and was a mother of three children. She said in a September interview with Ladies Home Journal magazine that her husband, Richard, "works in Mission Control, so he's part of the whole space business, too. And supportive also."

"I interviewed her before her flight last summer and I remember walking away from that thinking she's like every other first-time flier: extremely, excited about the flight," CBS News space consultant Bill Harwood said on CBS' The Early Show.

"When I heard that name and heard what was going on, I was as shocked as everyone else," Harwood said of Nowak.

But there were signs that not everything was right in her life.

In a NASA interview last year, before her mission aboard Discovery, she spoke about the strain her career placed on her family. She has twin 5-year-old girls and a teenage son.

"It's a sacrifice for our own personal time and our families and the people around us," she said. "But I do think it's worth it, because if you don't explore and take risks and go do all these things, then everything will stay the same."

[kailumego1]

What is really interesting here the degree of hypocrisy and the lengths some individuals will resort to %u201Cwhitewash%u201D, %u201Csmooth over%u201D, %u201C rationalized%u201D, etc, etc, the blatant criminal actions of those whom share similar group status, white-educated-wealthy and prominent.

The legal and social %u201Cdouble-standard%u201D is written in %u201Cblood%u201D, the constant barrage of comments referencing her as a victim, when not to long ago, these same individuals were foaming at the mouth, I mean literally, hyperventilating over O.J. Simpson%u2019s high-profile murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her male companion Ronald Goldman.

Almost the entire %u201Cwhite%u201D population in the United States was livid over the fact, he killed his lovely%u201D white wife%u201D, and he had gotten away with it, in a court of law.

And now look what we have here, another love triangle, however the accused isn%u2019t the grotesquely distorted picturesque image of a black male, but a %u201Cpoor%u201D victimized white woman, who according to many posters %u201Cjust snapped%u201D.

Well, using some of many posters%u2019 inane logic, couldn%u2019t O.J. Simpson have had a similar %u201Cpsychotic break%u201D, absolutely not, because it%u2019s a double standard for whites and blacks in America?

[kailumego1]

It always amazes me when the majority of white folks rant and rave over the gratuitous violence committed by members of another race, but rationalized their own barbarianism. This woman was no more distraught than O.J. was entirely blameless in the murder of both Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. The only difference here she was a highly educated prominent member of society, but also a terribly, deeply disturbed human being.

No different than O.J. with one exception she was white, and that stands for a lot in American society. And certainly no different than a lot of deeply disturbed blacks, Arabs, Hispanics, however, considering the blatant hypocrisy in America, it%u2019s not surprising the media and many whites will %u201Cspin%u201D her behavior as a %u201Cvictim%u201D instead of a vicious cold blooded killer, who if gotten the chance would have kidnapped, murdered, and dismembered her competitors body.

But, according to some white posters she%u2019s a %u201Cvictim%u201D, whose feelings were the object of ridicule and rejection by an amoral lover and his acquaintance.

One insane poster had the audacity to state she shouldn%u2019t be charged because she is educated, served in the arm forces, and a prominent member of society, which he/she went on the state only the %u201Cpoor%u201D should be prosecuted. What insane logic!!!!

[kailumego1]

And what makes her crime so more heinous and depraved the %u201Cmurder%u201D tools she took with her, a plastic bag, hunting knife, pepper spray, and Beebe gun, of which she maniacally planned this down to the wire. Now what do you suppose the black plastic garbage bag and hunting knife were for to twiddle as she lay in wait like deranged predator? Oh no, that black plastic bag was for to hide the body of her %u201Cvictim%u201D once she dismembered it.

And go right ahead on, %u201Cwhitewash%u201D this crime all you like it only proves how %u201Cout of touch%u201D and %u201Cpathologically deranged%u201D many of you are, so the next time you open your mouths and spew your portentous ideological idiosyncratic nonsense about Arab terrorist and African Americans criminal behavior take a long, long look in the mirror.

And by the way, this type of criminal behavior perpetrated by white women is no isolated incident, try watching Oxygen [Snapped], Court TV, A&E, etc, there are plenty of cases including this type of pathological behavior. Don%u2019t want to forget there is an O.J. article on CBS. News web-site, I know many of you can%u2019t wait to rush over and spout your hypocritical nonsense.

[jstagrl1]

I think this will never hold up in court. Now, what she did was pretty insane but can anyone say that she would have harmed the other woman? Could she have gone through with it? Attempted murder??? She only used pepper spray. Unless the women has a severe allergy to pepper spray, I don't see it as attempted murder. Now if she walked up to the car with an axe and said she only wanted to talk, I might feel different

[legendary240]

I know what she did was wrong, but do they have to use such a horrible photo of her?
Posted by docgalen at 06:09 AM : Feb 08, 2007

Yeah, she looks like a five year meth smoker, maybe she is.

[stick130]

Nasa shouldn't be responsible for any employee not at work. I do think the woman did a very poor job of planning an attack. I'm sure I would get caught also,it takes experience and a little luck to commit a crime and not get caught. I don't believe we have the whole story. Why would she commit a crime at a public airport? I can't get by that question. I need the news media to give me some more info!

[injunear1]

The Agency (NASA) spokesman John Ira Petty said in an interview that "We try not to concern ourselves with our employees personal lives". The deputy Administrator Shana Dale said " As you know it's a very tight knit (NASA?) community that cared (cares?) about each other. There's no doubt that they are a close community when disaster strikes. The difference of what two people with high positions in the Agency say about their employees professional and personal lives confirms my suspicion that the Agency is trying once again to cover up something. It's too unbelievable and improbable that NASA didn't have a handle on what was happening to Lisa Nowak. The public would be well served to know what measures are in place to monitor the behaviour of their astronauts on and off the job. I believe this tragedy could have been avoided with careful interrogations about the abilty of Mrs. Nowak to carry on her job as an astronaut. It will be interesting to hear what conclusions NASA will come to concerning this unfortunate event.

[docgalen]

I know what she did was wrong, but do they have to use such a horrible photo of her?

[newsjeff-2009]

Four all of you out there who are surprised or shocked that an Astronaut employed by NASA could have a low character like this just remember: I wasn't published until after the November 2004 election, but many news polls and surverys show that Florida,Texas and many southern,bible belt states(Yes,and Republican States as well!!)have a much higher divorce rate than New York,D.C.,Massachucetts,and a few other New England States. Yes, I said Massachucetts(incidently Massachucetts and New York have the lowest divorce rates in the Nation)So you see even a native Oklahoman like myself was surprised to read this, maybe the southern,bible belt,republican states should focus more on holding domestic marriages together and reducing their divorce rates instead of making fun of Kerry,Clinton,Kennedy and New York and Massachucetts just because these two states are actually enjoying a marriage sucess rate that is double the national average.

[firststate]

Does anyone think that NASA should review their psychological flight fitness procedures? Duh! At least the need to review them didn't arise because the live feed from the ISS showed the carnage resulting in somebody's stripping a gear in flight. NASA dropped the ball, but at least it didn't get anybody hurt.

[themooniac]

Proof positive love will drive you nuts. From now on everytime I can't let go of a relationship I can always, at a minimum, say "at least I was'nt as bad as that chick from NASA". I love this story!!

[jabberwock11]

"She needs help, if she had cancer, we would all be upset for her, She has a mental illness and there is always stigma along with that. We should all try to help her."

I think Adolf Hitler was mentally ill too. Poor boy. I think he got a bad rap. He was really a nice person at heart. It was just his mental illness that made him do all those bad things.

[jw218389]

CDR "Stud" Oefelein isn't isn't in all of this - by NASA ethics standards. He created this potentially disasterous situation by sleeping around (allegedly) with a married woman (Nowak).

Yeah, he's single but he should pay the NASA career consequences for being a key part of this mess.

[thgdriver]

Mental breakdown is a very serious sickness, obviously she needs help, something happened sense she was evaluated and cleared as a astronaut.

She is also a Captain in our Navy, nobody gets that high by faking it. Again, I say she has had a mental breakdown of some kind.

She needs help, if she had cancer, we would all be upset for her, She has a mental illness and there is always stigma along with that. We should all try to help her.

[tuckerndfw]

This is an isolated incident.

It's hard to believe it is STILL "national news."

The woman had a nervous breakdown and needs to seek professional medical help. It could happen to anyone. And, if it had been anyone else, no one would have known about it.

Had she been Plain Jane Schmuck, she would have been given probation and told to see a doctor. As it is, this is what is called making a mountain out of a molehill.


It seems the media always has to have some kind of Jerry Springer nonsense to fill their pages/screens.

[blondmadison]

She stalked her rival for two whole months. She did not just snap three days ago. While she stalked her prey--she was working, she was being a mother, she was being a separated wife for the past two weeks prior to her finale--

For the most part--there was no "snap from reality" - she walked with reality all the way.

Her family can support her, her coworkers can hold her hand - but her children will one day grow up and realize that while she carried on as if nothing was happening, she was plotting, planning, timing, and tabulating what she would need and why.

So. Okay pepper spray to make someone stop and converse, by force. But the mallet and garbage bags??? And remember, she wore diapers and a wig and a trenchcoat - after two long months of stalking her. No "snap" occurred. It was very methodical and arrogant.

And you watch, it will be her sterling record, her education and career with the finest which will afford her undue inappropriate to the point of being criminal--sympathy. "Poor thing was mentally ill." I think poor dear was spoiled, used to achieving and succeeding and wanted what she wanted.

[jabberwock11]

"I blame myself."

LOL, That's the funniest post I've read all day.

[bdbeans]

All I can say is...

Fella' must've had a golden tip with a vibrator on the end!

But even still, nobody should go THAT crazy over of D**K!

Holla!

[godofredo29]

I blame myself.

[xarzu]

Typically women have no sense of valour. She put her kids first and risked it all for a better father figure for them. No more women astronauts.