iStock/Thinkstock(CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.) — An Ivy League grad who appeared on popular game shows such as Jeopardy! was indicted by a grand jury this week on charges that she broke into the home of a Virginia lawmaker and assaulted his wife.
Claire Ogilvie, 36, is awaiting trial in the February incident. Court documents allege that Ogilvie — a former patent attorney and high school teacher — sneaked into the home of Virginia House of Delegates member David Toscano, armed with a deadly weapon, and assaulted his wife, Nancy Tramontin. Ogilvie faces felony charges of breaking and entering while armed, abduction and malicious wounding.
Ogilvie remains in jail and has not entered a plea. Her attorney Adam Rhea declined bail.
“There are reasons,” Rhea said. “Every case is different. This is a case where we felt like it was in our best interest not to ask for bond.”
In a written statement to the Charlottesville Daily Progress after the alleged attack, representatives for Tramontin say she and her lawmaker husband met Ogilvie on a Semester at Sea cruise — a study-abroad program — in 2010, where the Yale grad was tutoring the couple’s son. They remained friends.
“In 2012, Nancy became concerned that Ms. Ogilvie had developed an unsettling interest in the Toscano family,” the statement reads. “The family reduced their contact, beginning in the early summer, and saw her for the last time in fall 2012. Before the attack, Nancy and the Toscanos had not seen Ms. Ogilvie in over a year.”
One expert says such a falling out may have caused Ogilvie to allegedly act out.
“That’s very common in stalking, when the stalker feels rejected,” forensic psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Bober, who has no connection to the case, said. “That’s often when they will turn to violence.”
Attorneys for both parties declined ABC News’ request for comment. Prosecutors say the record will remain sealed until Ogilvie’s hearing Sept. 17.
Ogilvie won $50,000 on Who Wants to be a Millionaire in 2005. She also made two appearances on Jeopardy! in 1998, advancing to the semifinals of the show’s college championship.
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