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11:18 AM PT -- Mere minutes after dropping out of the race, President Biden has fully endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential race ... saying picking her as his number 2 was the best decision he's made -- and asking Dems to come together to defeat Donald Trump.

President Biden is waving the white flag on his reelection bid ... dropping out of the race for the White House amid mounting pressure from within his own party.

POTUS announced Sunday he will not be at the top of the Democratic ticket in 2024 in a lengthy statement published to X ... saying it's in the best interests of the nation for him to step aside.

In the statement, Biden touts his administration's accomplishments ... citing a reivatalized economy, lower prescription drug costs and passed gun safety laws among other notable achievements.

Irv Gotti is fighting back against the sexual assault allegations leveled against him in a new lawsuit ... and he's pondering one of his own.

A rep for the Murder Inc. Records head honcho reacted Thursday to the civil lawsuit filed in Miami-Dade County by a Jane Doe, and Gotti's camp is claiming the plaintiff pulled some shady business.

According to the rep, the suit "was filed after Mr. Gotti rejected the attempt by this individual to coerce a payment of money from him. The lawsuit contains a single page of 'facts' which are unsworn to, sparse by any measure, and which Mr. Gotti categorically denies."

New footage appears to show would-be Donald Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks lurking in the background of the rally ... an hour before he shot at the former president.

In video recorded by a man who attended Saturday's rally, you can see a person matching Crooks' description -- and he's pacing around the event's perimeter, just on the outskirts of the main event ... right by the building Crooks climbed an hour later to take aim at Trump.

The footage was obtained by WTAE-TV Pittsburgh ... and the Trump supporter who filmed it says when he looked over his footage and noticed Crooks in the background, he couldn't sleep ... let alone believe he'd captured the shooter inadvertently.

Big Sean is denying his latest lyrical assaults are aimed at Kendrick Lamar -- a narrative he's blaming DJ Akademiks for drumming up the dumbness!!!

The Detroit rapper resumed his comeback this week on the coveted "On The Radar" freestyle series over Aaliyah and Timbaland's "If Your Girl Only Knew" track ... and Ak promoted the lyrics, “I got better things to do than find someone to beef with" as a K. Dot jab.

Ak's exact quote "BIG SEAN COOKED KENDRICK" spread on social media like wildfire, spurring discussion that Sean Don was ready to challenge K. Dot for the reigning rap throne!!!

Brandon Aiyuk's days in the Bay Area might be numbered ... 'cause the NFL star has officially requested a trade from the San Francisco 49ers.

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo broke the news on Tuesday ... saying the 26-year-old wide receiver has asked the team to find him a new dance partner after an offseason of failed negotiations over a long-term deal.

Aiyuk is owed around $14 mil, from the 49ers this season, but with wide receivers seeing pay increases around the league ... the four-year pro would like to see his paycheck go up as well.

Thomas Matthew Crooks -- the would-be assassin who tried and failed to take out Donald Trump -- now has an official cause of death in the books ... if it wasn't already obvious.

The Butler County Coroner tells TMZ ... Crooks died from a gunshot wound to the head, and the coroner is ruling his death a homicide. Of course, he was shot and killed by a Secret Service agent after he opened fire into the crowd in Butler, PA this weekend.

To be clear, "homicide" is the manner of death, and not a crime ... like murder or manslaughter. The coroner's ruling in no way suggests the Secret Service snipers were in unjustified in taking out Crooks ... who had not only opened fire on a former President, but also shot and killed a citizen in the crowd.

The judge in Young Thug's spiraling YSL RICO case won't be sitting through the seemingly endless courtroom proceedings anymore ... he's just been booted from the case!!!

On Monday, Georgia Superior Court Judge Rachel Krause granted several motions filed by Young Thug and several of his co-defendants to remove Judge Ural Glanville after months of friction.

Although Judge Krause said there was "no doubt" Judge Glanville could preside fairly over the trial, the court nevertheless ordered the clerk's office to reassign the trial to another judge to preserve "the public's confidence in the judicial system."

Donald Trump has named Senator J.D. Vance as his Vice Presidential running mate -- proving things are rolling on in the wake of the assassination attempt on his life.

The ex-Prez made the announcement Monday -- writing ... "J.D. honorably served our Country in the Marine Corps, graduated from Ohio State University in two years, Summa Cum Laude, and is a Yale Law School Graduate, where he was Editor of The Yale Law Journal, and President of the Yale Law Veterans Association. J.D.’s book, 'Hillbilly Elegy,' became a Major Best Seller and Movie, as it championed the hardworking men and women of our Country."

He continues ... "J.D. has had a very successful business career in Technology and Finance, and now, during the Campaign, will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond ..."

5:55 PM PT -- Special prosecutor Erlinda Ocampo Johnson, who resigned during Friday's hearing, tells TMZ ... "As prosecutors we have obligations to disclose all the evidence. When I learned this morning of the existence of the evidence that had not been disclosed, I believed that the right decision was to dismiss the case. When my voice was not heard, I asked to withdraw from the case. We not only owe a duty to the people, but to the defendants accused of crimes as well. The prosecution must always be above reproach."

4:50 PM PT -- Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey gave a statement to reporters saying, “I believe that the importance of the evidence was misconstrued by the defense attorneys."

She continued, “But I have to respect the court’s decision.”

It's a stunning turn ... Alec Baldwin's manslaughter trial has come to an abrupt end as the judge dismissed the "Rust" case after finding law enforcement had concealed evidence that prevented the actor from preparing his defense.

President Joe Biden was defiant during a rare news conference ... fighting back at critics who are calling for him to drop out of the race.

POTUS is trying to show voters he's still got the mental chops to beat Donald Trump and carry out the duties of president for another term ... and while he made a few trademark flubs -- like saying "Vice President Trump" in referring to Kamala Harris -- he was confident in his ability to win another election, and pushed back on narratives about his mental fitness.

Biden called his debate disaster a "stupid mistake" ... saying he was off his game because he traveled all over creation in the weeks before ... including from Italy to L.A. to go to the fundraiser with George Clooney. He said he won't make that mistake again.

Danny Elfman, a famous film score composer, is being sued by a woman accusing him of serving her a martini glass filled with semen ... she says his public denial paints her as a liar, and she insists it actually happened.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Nomi Abadi is suing Elfman for defamation ... she says he lied about her in a Rolling Stone article where he and his reps denied he engaged in sexual misconduct toward her.

In the suit, filed by attorney Eric M. George, Nomi says Danny invited her over to his studio in August 2016 and placed a martini glass filled with an off-white substance in front of her. She says she "sat in silence, terrified, gagging from the putrid smell coming from ... semen ejaculate."

3:40 PM PT -- The U.S. Soccer Federation just confirmed it's parted ways with Gregg Berhalter ... with org. President Cindy Parlow Cone saying in a statement they're now solely focused on working tirelessly to find their next coach.

U.S. soccer fans are getting some interesting news on Wednesday -- Gregg Berhalter will reportedly not be returning to manage the Men's National Team after failing to advance out of the Copa América group stage.

Doug McIntyre of FOX Sports broke the news minutes ago ... saying the Red, White and Blue are going in a new direction with the position.

Berhalter was hired in 2018 after the U.S. failed to qualify for the World Cup that same year.

United States Marshals guarding Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor's Washington D.C. residence shot a suspected carjacker ... and the feds say the suspect was packing heat.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the feds say the shooting went down early Friday morning around 1:15 AM when the alleged suspect, 18-year-old Kentrell Flowers, approached one of the Marshals parked in an unmarked government vehicle and pointed a handgun at him through the front driver-side window in an attempted carjacking.

The docs say the Marshal drew his gun and fired four shots through the window at the suspect, with bullets hitting Flowers in the mouth. A second Marshal rushed over from another car and fired his gun too and one of the Marshals gave Flowers first aid.

Karen Read may be tried again for the death of her boyfriend after the judge declared a mistrial, but murder charges may not be on the table ... because according to the defense, the vote on the murder charge was 12 - 0, IN FAVOR OF ACQUITTAL!

Read's lawyer, Alan Jackson, has just filed docs arguing prosecuting Read for 2nd-degree murder a second time would amount to double jeopardy. Shockingly, when the judge declared the mistrial, she didn't say anything about the jury's vote on the murder charge.

We've also learned the jury was unanimous in favor of acquittal on the charge of leaving the scene of an accident where there was injury or death. The only charge on which the jury was deadlocked was vehicular manslaughter, where the jury apparently voted 9 - 3 in favor of guilt.

Porn star Jesse Jane's official cause of death is an overdose ... TMZ has confirmed.

TMZ has learned Jesse died of an accidental fentanyl and cocaine overdose according to the Oklahoma City Medical Examiner's office.

We broke the story back in January ... law enforcement sources told us the famed adult film actress was found dead at a home in Moore, OK after authorities responded to the residence on a welfare check.

10:15 AM PT -- Arthur Aidala, Rudy Giuliani's New York lawyer, tells TMZ ... "Of course, we are disappointed by it all, but we can't say we are surprised. The court has been very heavy handled with Mayor Giuliani from the inception of this matter. We are exploring any appellate options. Rudy and I traded some text messages -- he was not surprised at all – he felt there was no likelihood he would get a fair shake."

9:46 AM PT -- One of Rudy Giuliani's attorneys, L. Allyn Stockton, tells TMZ ... "If what New York has revoked his license for is similar to his conduct in Georgia, then they have revoked his license for merely representing a client zealously."

Rudy Giuliani has just lost his license to practice law in New York state.