text: On June 13, 2001, while driving a vehicle owned by Italian actor Marco Leonardi (her From Dusk Till Dawn 3 co-star), Gayheart struck nine-year-old Jorge Cruz Jr. as he walked across a street in Los Angeles. Cruz died the following day from his injuries. Gayheart paid the family  () for Cruz's funeral expenses and was given permission by the family to attend the service, but ultimately chose not to. On August 7, 2001, Gayheart made her only public statement on the incident, in which she said: "The pain of this tragedy will live with me forever. Despite the allegations in the lawsuit, the facts will establish that this was a most unfortunate accident." On November 27, 2001, Gayheart pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter. She was sentenced to three years of probation, a one-year suspension of her license, a $2,800 fine (), and 750 hours of community service. The parents of the boy filed a wrongful death lawsuit, which was eventually settled out of court.
  Gayheart married actor Eric Dane on October 29, 2004, in Las Vegas. Dane told Flaunt magazine about how they met: "It's probably one of the least interesting stories in the world. It went basically like this: 'You wanna go out?' 'Yeah, sure.' Ten months later, we were married."
  On August 17, 2009, a nude video was posted on the website gawker.com that showed former Miss Teen USA contestant Kari Ann Peniche with Gayheart and husband Eric Dane.
  On March 3, 2010, Gayheart gave birth to her first child with Dane, a daughter in Los Angeles. The following year, she gave birth to her second daughter with Dane on December 28, 2011.
  In February 2018, Gayheart filed for divorce from Dane after 14 years of marriage, citing "irreconcilable differences."
  Filmography
  Film
  Television