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11:30 AM PT -- Chief White House Spokesperson Katie Zacharia tells TMZ ... “I practiced international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials.”

A White House official also says ... Katie has her JD from Pepperdine. Katie moved to China with her husband after graduating because of his job at an American private equity firm while she worked on international transaction law.

Katie Zacharia -- the new White House Press Secretary -- never passed the bar exam ... even though President Donald Trump insists she's a lawyer.

The Wall Street Journal published an article Thursday that cites an anonymous source with direct knowledge of the matter who claims Katie took the bar exam shortly after graduating from Pepperdine University's Caruso School of Law and didn't pass.

Katie then went to China with her future husband ... where she worked as an associate on the international-practice team at a law firm in Beijing. The source told the WSJ that Katie was told by real lawyers that she could provide legal analysis based on her law degree and international transaction experience.

Russell Brand's tongue was "lizard-like" when he allegedly raped a woman back in 1999 ... at least that's what the woman told police.

The alleged victim's 2023 interview with cops was played in court on Thursday ... and, in it, the woman explains she came forward with her claims after seeing a documentary about Brand's alleged misconduct.

She says the alleged encounter started when she and Brand were chatting after a theatre show he performed in ... she says he suggested they go back to his hotel room.

8:26 AM PT -- Winston Lee's lawyer, Teny Geragos, tells TMZ ... "To the extent Mr. Giuffra is implying I’m leaking anything, that is false.  But, the facts will come out and they will show my client did not assault or harm this person.”

Jane Doe's lawyer claims lawyers for the defendants in her lawsuit are the ones leaking documents to the press ... and he's name-checking us in the new filing.

Thomas Giuffra filed the legal letter Wednesday asking a judge not to enter a broad order restricting both sides from speaking about the case in the media ... insisting that, while the Cornell 7 have been on a coordinated media blitz, he's just been reacting to the fervor around the case.

In the documents, Giuffra claims it's the lawyers for the so-called Cornell 7 leaking documents to the press ... and, at one point, he highlights TMZ's relationship with Mark Geragos -- implying he's been carrying the water for the defense's position and getting information out through TMZ.

Matt Gaetz -- the former congressman from Florida -- has been sued by two women who claim he sex trafficked them.

The pair -- who are going by Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 in the lawsuit -- allege they met a man named Micah Greenberg through the online dating website Seeking Arrangement ... a website commonly used to facilitate relationships between older, wealthy people and young people who could use a little extra dough.

Jane Doe 1 says she met Greenberg in 2017 ... at first allegedly engaging only him in sexual acts in exchange for money.

"NYPD Blue" star Kim Delaney and her husband, James Morgan, are back together ... just months after she sought a restraining order against him ... TMZ has learned.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, the actress filed to dismiss her divorce after her attorney told the judge Kim had reconciled with James.

The move comes after several years of trouble for the couple ... and just months after James was arrested for public intoxication at LAX in July after reportedly getting into it with Kim and a flight attendant.

The man who fell to his death at Six Flags Over Georgia struck four kids as he plummeted ... and the children were rushed to a hospital with injuries.

Cops revealed Thursday that the four other guests who were harmed in Monday's tragedy were kids ... and they were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

Hassan Jihad Ibn Kariem, a 42-year-old teacher from Atlanta, plummeted to his death after being ejected from the Goliath roller coaster. He hit other riders and the tracks on his way down.

Martin Short dove into mental health issues and his daughter's tragic suicide at a fundraiser gala thrown by Selena Gomez ... noting he will grieve his child forever.

The actor took the stage at the 2026 Rare Impact Fund Benefit Wednesday night -- the annual fundraiser supports Selena's charity, the Rare Impact Fund -- and he got deep.

The Katherine Short Legacy Award -- an award named in honor of Martin's daughter -- was unveiled at the benefit ... and the "Only Murders In The Building" star presented it and shared some words about Katherine.

President Trump is reversing Pete Hegseth's plan to livestream Nidal Malik Hasan's execution by firing squad ... saying the execution may be viewed in person "by the immediate families of the victims, if they so choose."

The president took to Truth Social to address the Secretary of War's push to make the viewing public for all ... saying the idea may have been a "strong deterrent ... but, many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die, through streaming, or through any other visual device."

Trump says the convicted Fort Hood shooter will still be executed by firing squad, it just won't be streamed live.

RJ Mitte was dealing with a lot in the days before his death ... but he was still ready with an easy smile for fans ... cracking a grin in New Mexico in what appears to be one of the final photos of him.

We've obtained a photo of a smiling RJ at the Albuquerque airport ... it was snapped on October 4, just 8 days before his death.

Check out the pic taken by Bethany Crass ... RJ -- dressed in a flannel, T-shirt, and cap -- poses with a stuffed doll of Woody from "Toy Story." He flashes a big grin for the camera.

Huge break in a 2011 murder case involving "The People's Court" ... police in Florida arrested Dale Smith for allegedly killing his ex-fiancée after they appeared on the famous TV show.

The Orlando PD announced Wednesday that Smith was taken into custody at his workplace and charged with murder ... nearly 15 years after Michelle Parker vanished without a trace. Smith was booked in the Orange County jail without bond.  

Cops say Smith was a prime suspect in the case from the start, and all evidence pointed to him as the alleged killer.

Amar’e Stoudemire is taking his talents to ... the police department!?

The 43-year-old retired superstar hooper graduated from the Miami-Dade Police Academy with the most recent class of cadets in the School of Justice’s Basic Law Enforcement Academy.

"For Amar’e, this is more than a second career. Becoming a police officer was a childhood dream, inspired in part by family members who served in law enforcement," the college said of Stoudemire.

Diddy busted his head during a fight with another famous, or infamous, inmate ... a Jamaican drug lord known as "Dudus," and TMZ has learned the fight was over Diddy getting all the inmates in trouble.

Multiple sources inside Fort Dix FCI tell us ... Diddy and "Dudus" -- real name Christopher Coke -- came to blows last Friday, and Diddy got the worst of it ... suffering a head injury so severe, prison officials rushed him to an outside facility for treatment.

We're told the two men were fighting because Dudus, and many other inmates, are pissed at Diddy for getting exposed in that NBC News report about his luxurious life behind bars. As a result, prison officials have conducted at least 2 raids and confiscated cell phones from inmates ... including Dudus.

Kristi Noem's estranged husband, Bryon Noem, agrees their marriage is over but doesn't agree with her spousal support suggestion ... he thinks the money should flow his way, not hers.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, Bryon agreed the marriage was over due to irreconcilable differences ... but he disagreed with Kristi on the financials.

In her petition, filed on September 28, Kristi says she wants to preserve the ability to ask for spousal support. Bryon and Kristi have three kids, but they are all adults … so child support isn't on the line.

However, in his newly filed response, Bryon says he should be the one to potentially receive monthly payments.

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You never know what you're gonna get ... a big story that breaks, an argument erupts in the room, or someone's just joking around.

Your comments are a big part of the stream, and the staff spends a lot of time speaking directly to you. Every day is different!

The show goes on for Kelly Clarkson amid her escalating feud with a Brooklyn toy store ... delivering a stunning performance Wednesday in Las Vegas, and TMZ has video of her big night onstage.

Kelly looks like a million bucks as she belts out tune after tune during a corporate event at Allegiant Stadium in Sin City. We're told Kelly looked absolutely "thrilled" to be singing in front of the packed crowd.

As you can see ... Kelly was hitting the high notes during "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)." She also sang her other big hits ... "Favorite Kind Of High," "Breakaway, "Since U Been Gone," and more. 

Michael Desronvil -- the lone holdout juror in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial -- says Clancy's attorney put a big fat target on his back, making him fear for his life.

In his first televised interview Thursday, Desronvil told Fox News host Kayleigh McEnany that he felt "scared" after Clancy's lawyer, Kevin Reddington, filed a motion asking the judge to authorize an investigation into Desronvil after his vote caused a mistrial.

In the motion, Reddington asked the court to review Desronvil's cell phone data usage during deliberations. The attorney also requested that Desronvil answer questions concerning how truthful he was on his jury questionnaire.