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Joe Exotic's former zoo in Oklahoma is being investigated over concerns for the welfare of its animals -- specifically the lions -- but Jeff Lowe says everything's being done right to take care of them ... but it's a challenge.

TMZ's learned a whistleblower provided PETA with photos and video of lions at the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park -- which Lowe took over after Exotic -- suffering from severe flystrike ... a condition in which flies bite and lay eggs on other animals and destroy their skin.

The photos show lions at the zoo with bloody ears with the tips severely damaged, and also covered in flies. Flystrike can be very painful and even deadly to animals if not treated.

Lowe tells TMZ the animals are being treated, though, as flies have been a constant problem at the zoo for years ... because it's located near a big horse farm.

Lowe says the GW Zoo spends thousands a month on medications for the lions, tigers and other animals, along with fly repellent. Problem is, Lowe says most repellents can also be harmful to the animals ... so they have to be careful.

He says this is just one of the many reasons he's moving the animals to his new zoo, Tiger King Park, as soon as possible.

Still, PETA has asked the USDA to conduct a welfare check on the animals, which local law enforcement reported is already being done after receiving numerous calls about the issue.

The Oklahoma Department Of Wildlife Conservation tells us it conducted a welfare check of the native animals at the zoo -- including bobcats, mountain lions and bears -- and found the animals to be in good health and described the situation as in "good shape."

The USDA is responsible for the exotic animals, however. We reached out to the agency about its investigation ... so far no word back.

Faith Hill is calling on Mississippi lawmakers to change the state flag ... she says the Confederate symbolism sends a terrifying message, and it's time to be removed.

The country singer made her plea to the Mississippi state legislature Thursday night on social media, ahead of Friday's potential vote to change the flag, saying ... "We have to realize that this flag is a direct symbol of terror for our black brothers and sisters."

A Mississippi native, Faith says it's time to change the state flag, which features an image of the Confederate battle flag. She says, "I understand many view the current flag as a symbol of heritage and Southern pride ... it is time for the world to meet the Mississippi of today and not the Mississippi of 1894," when the state legislature first voted on the current flag.

A change could be made as soon as Friday, state lawmakers who want to remove the Confederate imagery say they appear to have enough votes to make the change.

Faith says she wants, "ONE NEW FLAG, one that represents ALL of the citizens of Mississippi."

Stay tuned ...

St. Louis rapper Huey -- best known for his 2007 hit, "Pop, Lock & Drop It" -- is dead after an unsolved shooting incident ... TMZ has confirmed.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... Huey is one of two men who were shot Thursday in St. Louis County. Huey succumbed to his injuries late Thursday night.

Cops say they got a call about a 32-year-old male shooting victim who'd arrived at a local hospital suffering from at least one apparent gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital.

The second man who was shot was transported to a local hospital where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Cops say the shootings are related and say it went down in Kinloch, Missouri, where as many as 10 people were present during the time of the shooting. It remains under investigation.

Huey's "Pop, Lock & Drop It" track was a huge hit back in 2007. It spent 23 weeks on Billboard's Hot 100 chart and peaked at No. 6 before earning double-platinum status.

The track was the single from his "Notebook Paper" album, which included collaborations with T-Pain and Bow Wow. Huey's music also became popular with St. Louis' most famous rapper, Nelly.

Huey -- who had recently released his single "Pulled Away" back in April -- was reportedly the target of a triple-homicide back in 2009 in St. Louis. The threats were so real ... a concert promoter allegedly told the rapper not to perform because he was being targeted.

Huey is survived by his 13-year-old daughter. He was 32.

Someone or someTHING keeps murdering Jay Cutler's beloved chickens ... and the ex-NFL QB is so fed up, he's pulling out the big guns -- AND the night vision goggles -- to stop the culprit.

The retired Chicago Bears star went public with his troubles on Instagram earlier this week ... saying a "chicken serial killer" has been ripping the heads off his birds at his home in Tennessee.

So ... is it a coyote? A raccoon? A monster?!?

Cutler initially thought his own cat, Thelma, had blood on her paws ... but he later determined the pet was not responsible.

After eliminating Thelma as a suspect, Cutler came up with a plan to catch the REAL murderer -- an all-night stakeout!!!

So #6 grabbed his night vision goggles, camo and a nice stogie and assumed his position in his kids' treehouse to look over his rooster, Old Blue after sundown ... updating his 500k followers throughout the night.

"Obviously things have escalated," Jay said on IG. "We're gonna sit here and make sure Old Blue has a good night tonight and whatever happens, happens."

But, the whole stakeout had an anticlimactic ending Friday morning -- Cutler says he was unable to find the killer ... but he's vowed to continue the hunt.

"No culprit last night, which is okay. Stayed up way too late. Super tired this morning. But, Old Blue's gonna be on the case today."

Elijah McClain's mother firmly believes cops killed her son and the City of Aurora, CO covered it up, and though she desperately wants justice ... she's not getting her hopes up.

Sheneen McClain tells us she feels helpless and hopeless -- even despite a reopened investigation into her son's death -- because she thinks cops have already gotten away with murdering Elijah with the help of an "elaborate cover-up" ... and she can never get him back.

As we reported ... Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has appointed a special prosecutor to look into McClain's death, but Sheneen's not impressed. She suggests it's all for show, and calls it "just another song and dance" in hopes the story will go away.

The good news ... Elijah's story is not going away -- at least with the general public. In fact, the renewed interest in his case led to 3 million people signing a petition calling for his death to be investigated ... and it certainly seems to have influenced the Governor's decision.

Polis said, "Elijah McClain should be alive today, and we owe it to his family to take this step and elevate the pursuit of justice in his name to a statewide concern."

Though McClain's family attorney, Mari Newman, pointed out that, "It shouldn't take a petition signed by millions to hold police accountable when they kill an innocent black man" ... Sheneen did say she's happy Elijah's story is spreading.

What would really make her feel better though ... is justice for her son. She tells us what she wants is the cops involved in his death to get sentenced to life in prison ... and for anyone else who played a part to be held accountable and punished.

Sheneen sounds like she believes it will be an uphill battle though ... and it's hard to blame her. The D.A. initially decided not to charge the officers, saying their actions were "legally" justified.

He added ... "While the officers no doubt used force in this incident, based on the evidence and the law applicable at the time of Mr. McClain's death, the prosecution cannot disprove the officers' reasonable belief in the necessity to use force."

Britney Spears and Beyonce fans are bickering over who is the real Queen B for no good reason ... so says the artist whose painting ignited the whole beef.

Here's the deal ... Britney kicked the Beyhive Wednesday when she posted a painting of a bee with a crown and said, "To all my fans who call me Queen 👑 B …. I believe this would be more accurate."

Naturally, Britney's post sent Bey fans into a tizzy, and the hive sounded off by the thousands, letting Brit know there's only one Queen B in their eyes -- and she's from Houston.

Not to be a buzzkill, but Jenna Paddey, the artist who painted the image, says neither Britney nor Beyonce was her inspiration.

Translation: stand down, fan armies!!!

Jenna tells us she painted the illustration in 2018, and it was only intended to reflect a play on words for the phrase, "queen bee." She says she's not sure how Britney came across her work -- she does sell prints on her website -- but only found out about the IG post when friends started tagging her in comments.

A pool cleaner claims she required surgery and will likely be scarred for life after Ezekiel Elliott's dogs violently attacked her in March ... and now she's suing the NFL star.

But Zeke's attorney tells us the NFL star adamantly denies wrongdoing and now he's digging in for a legal war.

It's all spelled out in new court docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, in which a woman says she went to clean Elliott's pool at his home in Frisco, TX on March 11 ... when she was "ambushed" by his 3 dogs -- a Rottweiler and two bulldogs.

In the docs, the woman claims the Rottweiler bit her arm and dragged her ... before the two bulldogs began attacking her legs.

The woman says the dogs bit her multiple times ... and after she was able to free herself from the animals, she went straight to the emergency room "in immense pain."

She claims the injuries were so bad ... 2 weeks later, she required surgery to repair the damage done by the Rottweiler's bite to her forearm.

In the lawsuit, the woman says she's still having issues with her surgically repaired arm ... and says she constantly suffers from mental and physical pain over the attack.

She's asking for over $200,000 in the suit from the Dallas Cowboys superstar ... but less than $1 million.

The woman also claims this wasn't the first time Elliott's dogs have attacked a pool cleaner ... she alleges that around Dec. 2019, the Rottweiler bit someone else who worked for her company.

We reached out to the Frisco Police Dept. over the allegations ... and a spokesperson said animal services did respond to an incident at Elliott's home on March 11, but the spokesperson says no criminal charges were filed.

As for Zeke, his attorney Frank Salzano tells us his client did nothing wrong, saying ... "Ezekiel was in no way negligent in connection with the alleged incident and intends to vigorously defend the lawsuit."

Elliott has made no attempts to hide his infatuation with his dogs ... he's created an Instagram page for the three -- and even has his Rottweiler, Ace, tattooed on his forearm.

In fact, Zeke just showed off all three dogs on a Twitch stream this week ... giving each one a kiss for the camera.

Before this adorable kid was rocking hairstyles like pixie cuts, cornrows, blonde bobs and even buzzcuts she was just another cute little tot with hair ties growing up in Edison, New Jersey.

Although this mini-musician no longer goes by her real name (Ashley Nicolette Frangipane) she still flashes this same bright smile while performing as a singer and songwriter with a more singular stage name.

You should be sad and sorry if you're still stumped about this cute kid ... take control cause it's now or never if you are going to guess who this sweet kid from the Eastside is.

Colorado authorities are taking a second crack at investigating the death of Elijah McClain, who died last year after being stopped by police, and put into a chokehold.

Governor Jared Polis appointed a special prosecutor Thursday to reopen the inquiry into Elijah's death and potentially prosecute the cops who were involved.

As you've probably read ... Elijah died back in August 2019 after police stopped him on a street in suburban Denver. His story has gone viral this week, and become a rallying cry for protests against police brutality and systemic racism.

Mari Newman -- the attorney for Elijah's family -- tells TMZ ... "It shouldn't take a petition signed by millions to hold police accountable when they kill an innocent black man."

The Governor is putting state Attorney General Phil Weiser on the case and Polis says, "Elijah McClain should be alive today, and we owe it to his family to take this step and elevate the pursuit of justice in his name to a statewide concern."

Polis says he was moved to act in part because of Elijah's mother, who described her son as a "responsible and curious child ... who could inspire the darkest soul."

Aurora PD officers stopped Elijah on August 24, 2019, while responding to a call about a suspicious person walking the streets wearing a ski mask and waving his arms. His family says he commonly wore the mask to keep warm ... due to his anemia.

Cops say Elijah refused to stop walking down the street and resisted when police confronted him and attempted to place him in custody. One of the cops placed Elijah in a chokehold.

Body-camera footage of the incident shows Elijah telling the cops, "Let go of me. I am an introvert. Please respect the boundaries that I am speaking." His words are now popping up on social media posts demanding justice.

Justin Bieber's going after 2 social media users -- whom he suggests might be the same person -- for accusing him of sexual assault, claiming the allegations are "factually impossible" and part of a scheme to seek attention and fame.

Bieber is suing 2 Jane Does -- who go by Danielle and Kadi on social media -- for defamation over what he calls "malicious" claims he sexually assaulted them in 2014 and 2015, respectively.

According to legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Bieber has "indisputable documentary evidence" to prove their sexual assault claims are nothing but "outrageous, fabricated lies."

First up is Danielle, who claims Bieber sexually assaulted her in a Four Seasons Hotel room in Austin, TX on March 9, 2014 after a music event. Bieber claims there is no truth to Danielle's allegation ... and he can prove it.

According to the docs ... Bieber did make a surprise appearance at SXSW, but did NOT stay at the Four Seasons Hotel or even have a room there. Instead, he and his girlfriend at the time, Selena Gomez, left together after his SXSW performance and stayed nearby at a rental property.

Bieber alleges Danielle totally made up her story based on public reports that he ate at the Four Seasons Restaurant on March 10, 2014.

As for Kadi ... she claims Bieber sexually assaulted her at the Langham Hotel in NYC around 2:30 AM on the morning of May 5, 2015. Once again, Bieber says this is factually impossible and calls Kadi's social media post "an elaborate hoax."

According to Bieber ... Kadi is a superfan who waits outside hotels for him, is desperate to meet him and desperate for fame. However, Bieber claims Kadi has never met him ... and says she even admitted to such in her own tweets AFTER the date she now claims he sexually assaulted her.

As for the May 5, 2015 allegation ... Bieber claims Kadi fabricated it because she knew Bieber attended the Met Gala.

According to the docs ... Bieber did attend the event, but went to a private after-party afterward where he stayed until almost 4 AM, then hit up a hot dog stand. Bieber claims there is photographic evidence and several witnesses to this ... and he calls the 2:30 AM allegation made by Kadi an "impossibility – a poor, but damaging, fabrication."

According to the suit ... Bieber also believes the 2 social media accounts might be run by the same person, or they're a coordinated effort to ruin his reputation.

The cop who was caught on video seemingly using a chokehold on a man he was trying to detain ... has now been arrested.

According to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz ... 39-year-old officer David Afanador was arrested and charged Thursday for the incident that went down Sunday at Rockaway Beach. He is facing charges of attempted aggravated strangulation and strangulation in the second degree.

As we reported ... Afanador was suspended from the force without pay earlier in the week, after NYPD officers were recorded attempting to detain and arrest a black man, Ricky Bellevue. In the vid, Afanador is seen wrapping his arm around the man's neck. According to the criminal complaint ... Afanador had him in the chokehold for 8 to 12 seconds, and Bellevue did go unconscious.

If convicted, Afanador faces up to 7 years in prison for using the banned chokehold.

Jenna Marbles -- one of YouTube's original vloggers with more than 3 billion views -- has apologized for past content and announced she's quitting her channel.

Jenna posted an 11-minute video to her more than 20 million subscribers on her YouTube channel and offered a tearful apology for content that included impersonating Nicki Minaj in blackface, rapping a racist song and slut-shaming.

One of the hot topics Jenna talked about is the amount of videos she has switched to private over the years. Jenna said, "I get it. We're at a time where we are purging ourselves of anything and everything toxic ... I've definitely done things in the past that weren't great. I'm not completely unproblematic. I've tried my best to grow up."

More specifically ... Jenna apologized for a 2011 video she posted showing herself in blackface. She said she never meant to do blackface and admits it was wrong after hearing from people who found her skit offensive. She says she learned from it and never repeated it.

Jenna said, "I'm unbelievably sorry ... I wish it wasn’t part of my past.” As for the racist rap song and the slut-shaming, Jenna said, "It doesn't need to exist. I shouldn’t have ever said that. I’m embarrassed that I ever made that, period."

She says, "for now I just can't exist on this channel," and added ... "I want to hold myself accountable, and it’s painful to do it. I’m ashamed of things I’ve done and said in my past. But, it’s important."

Indianapolis Colts superstar linebacker Darius Leonard claims he was wrongly kicked out of a Chipotle restaurant in South Carolina ... insisting it's all because he's Black.

The 24-year-old All-Pro says he was eating with his family Thursday -- "3 other Black guys and a mixed woman" -- when another patron (who is white) complained to management that Leonard was "verbally abusing him."

Leonard says the allegation is a straight-up lie -- but the restaurant manager walked over to his table and treated him like a criminal anyway ... booting him from the restaurant and threatening to call the police.

Leonard says what really pisses him off is the white patron got the benefit of the doubt without a shred of evidence -- and says this is the type of crap Black people have to deal with all the time.

"We’re talking about Black Lives Matter and for the guy to look at us and lie and laugh in our face as we walk out and the manger ... just come up here and just basically kick us out of Chipotle?! And, we felt like he was very disrespectful and that’s the white privilege that we are talking about.”

"We are tired of this," Leonard says ... "I'm telling you what I go through as a Black man in America. Ya'll don't understand what I go through."

"Ya'll see the police killing us. Ya'll seeing all the injustices that we go through. I live it. Day in and day out. And, I'm f*cking tired of it. Yes, I'm upset. I'm tired of it."

We reached out to the Chipotle where the incident took place but they offered no comment. We also reached out to the corporate office but so far no word back.

A "Karen" in Sacramento got her ass handed to her when she stupidly accepted a challenge to call a black woman the n-word ... and it's all on video.

The heated exchange unfolded this week at a convenience store in California's capital, where a middle-aged white woman started arguing with the black woman   ... and it quickly turned racial and violent.

It's unclear what started the confrontation ... the white woman insisted she'd only said "excuse me" -- but the black woman heard something different, so tempers were already high. Then, "Karen" dropped the n-word.

The black woman promised to beat the hell outta the white woman if she used the slur again and, for some reason, "Karen" took her up on the dare and said it ... loud and clear. That's when the punches flew ... haymaker after haymaker putting the racist woman down on her ass.

On social media, the black woman's husband is claiming she was arrested for assault. We haven't been able to confirm that yet.

The crazy scene is similar to another racist "Karen" getting slapped earlier this month inside a Phoenix gas station.

Bad as that was ... the Sacramento incident is way more violent.