Celebrity Divorce

Pilar Sanders says her estranged husband Deion and his daughter Deiondra mind-tricked her into believing she really is a "worthless, gold diggin' ho" ... so she's suing them both for $200 MILLION.

The suit was clearly triggered by Deiondra's Twitter rant earlier this month ... in which she trashed Pilar as a "gold diggin' h*e" ... and publicly accused her of cheating on Deion.

In her lawsuit, Pilar claims Deiondra and Deion have been attacking her with various "emotional weapons" for years ... including dominance, humiliation, isolation, threats, intimidation, denial and blame.

Pilar claims the Twitter rant was just another example of the humiliation she was forced to endure during the marriage ... adding, "[Deion and Deiondra] even persuaded [Pilar] that she was and is worthless, a 'gold diggin' ho, and that no one else would want her."

Pilar also claims the two would intimidate her by leaving various weapons on display around the house and "hurting pets."

The details of the alleged animal abuse are not explained in the suit.

Pilar is demanding $150 MILLION in punitive damages and $50 mil in actual damages. Her attorney Larry Friedman tells TMZ Pilar also wants a public apology -- and adds ... she "passed a polygraph test confirming" she didn't cheat on Deion.

Meanwhile, the divorce proceedings are still underway.

Deion's lawyer Jody Johnson says Pilar's suit is bogus -- and added, "Continued efforts to extort money and negatively impact the children will not be rewarded by Mr. Sanders." She also says Deion is looking forward to a "quick and private resolution of the divorce."

Terrence Howard is having a bad day ... 'cause the actor has just been ordered to write a big, fat check to a woman he accused of being an evil racist ... his wife.

Howard was in L.A. County Superior Court today to deal with his exceptionally nasty divorce from Michelle Ghent Howard ... and was ordered to shell out more than $50,000 to hold her over until they hammer out a long-term arrangement.

Here's the breakdown ... the judge ruled that Michelle needs:
-- $10k in temporary support for rent, food, etc.
-- $20k so she can pay her lawyers
-- $20k so she can pay her accountants
-- and $1,800 per month for her Range Rover car payments

Terrence has to fork over the dough within 30 days.

As TMZ previously reported, Terrence HATES Michelle with a passion ... claiming she often called him a "n**ger" ... tried to extort him ... and even threatened to have him killed by "The Russians."

Michelle also HATES Terrence ... and claims he violently assaulted her on numerous occasions since they tied the knot back in 2010.

Kobe Bryant is making a full court press to save his marriage ... and has sworn up and down to Vanessa he will never stray again if she takes him back.

Sources connected with the couple tell TMZ ... Kobe has "aggressively" pursued Vanessa over the last three weeks, and she's been receptive. We're told Vanessa tends to believe Kobe, but still isn't sure the marriage can be resurrected.

And then there's the subject of lavish gifts. We're told Kobe has given Vanessa a very expensive piece of jewelry. We don't know the price, nor do we know how it compares to the $4 million ring she scored after Kobe's infamous dalliance a few years back.

Seal has finally surrendered to the reality that his wife is leaving him -- 'cause for the first time since the split, the singer was spotted without his wedding ring.

Right after the split, Seal appeared on "Ellen" and said he had "no intention" of removing the wedding band because "It's a token of how I feel about this woman" ... adding, "It feels really comfortable on my hand."

But the singer clearly wanted to send a message when he arrived in Australia this morning -- 'cause dude had bright yellow nail polish on his fingers, which drew even more attention to the fact he was sans ring.

Another come-from-behind victory for Kobe Bryant ... sucking face with the woman who has now taken all of his homes, Vanessa Bryant ... and now TMZ can confirm the two are working on a reconciliation.

Vanessa showed up for the Lakers Valentine's Day victory over the Atlanta Hawks. The two shared a kiss in the tunnel on the way into the locker room.

TMZ broke the story ... Vanessa filed for divorce in December, and they have already sealed the property settlement deal in which Vanessa got all 3 Newport Beach estates.

But sources told us at the time Vanessa filed ... don't be surprised if she goes back to Bryant.

And, although Kobe and Vanessa have submitted all the necessary docs to divorce, it doesn't become final until mid-June, so there's plenty of time to withdraw the papers.

FYI -- we're told Kobe and Vanessa are NOT living with each other ... yet.

For the first time in years, Heidi Klum spent Valentine's Day WITHOUT the company of Seal.

Heidi -- accompanied by a bodyguard -- was out on Sunset Blvd. last night around 7:30 PM ... walking right past Boa restaurant and into an area where you can enter the Soho House ... a super-fancy members-only club with a restaurant and a bar.

Katy Perry and Russell Brand never entertained the idea of signing a prenup -- and if they could do it all over again ... they wouldn't have changed a thing, sources close to the couple tell TMZ.

According to sources, Katy and Russell's marriage happened so fast, they never really had the opportunity to summon their lawyers and hash out a prenup ... nor did either really believe they needed one.

We’re told both felt comfortable one wouldn’t screw the other in the event of a divorce -- they both knew where the other person stood on money, life, religion ... everything.

TMZ broke the story ... Russell refused to accept $20 million of Katy's money he was entitled to as part of the divorce -- exactly half the money she made during the course of their marriage.

Sources tell us, Russell was never a materialistic person and never spent much -- he never got into entertainment for the money.

As one source put it, "Russell is a very simple person who doesn’t need much to make him happy."

The source adds, “He would never take money that [Katy] earned. That’s not Russell. And if it was the other way around, Katy wouldn’t have taken it either. They respect each other too much."

Usher's ex-wife Tameka Raymond is asking the singer to dig his own legal grave -- by handing over $50,000 to cover HER attorney's fees and other legal investments she's made ... to strip him of child custody.

Tameka filed the docs in Fulton County Superior Court in Georgia -- asking a judge to force Usher to pay her $15,000 to cover her expensive lawyer fees ... plus an additional $35,000 for other costs.

According to the docs, the other costs in their custody dispute include the retention of various expert witnesses, hiring private investigators, and procuring out-of-state depositions.

Tameka claims she's entitled to the money because of the vast disparity in income between her and her ex -- a disparity that puts her at a disadvantage while she's trying to build her case.

Although "Dexter" co-stars Michael C. Hall and Jennifer Carpenter finalized their divorce in December, the former couple couldn't be any closer as they walked arm-in-arm and snuggled in Venice Beach on Wednesday.

Puddle of Mudd singer Wes Scantlin's smoking hot wife doesn't give two damns about the prenup she signed before her marriage -- and now, she's asking a judge to throw it out ... awarding her half of the assets Wes accrued during their marriage.

Jessica Nicole Scantlin filed the legal docs in L.A., claiming she "will seek for the premarital agreement to either be set aside on the grounds that it is either unenforceable or she was coerced into executing it."

Jessica claims Wes -- who filed for divorce in November -- coerced her into signing the agreement right before their wedding back in 2008, knowing she wouldn't refuse because her family had already sunk an enormous investment into the ceremony.

As a result, Jessica insists she's been screwed out of her interest in the music Wes wrote while they were together -- music Jessica claims she inspired.

Katy Perry's not only keeping all the cash she made during her marriage to Russell Brand -- she's also taking back her maiden name ... according to new divorce docs.

Katy's response to Russell's divorce filing -- filed yesterday and obtained by TMZ -- states the ex-couple reached a "comprehensive written settlement." As we first reported, that includes Russell passing on their community property -- aka 50% of Katy's approximate $40 million in earnings!

The doc also includes a check next to the box -- "Respondent's [Katy's] former name be restored to." It goes on to specify her full name ... Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson.

"Alcatraz" star Parminder Nagra -- the main chick from "Bend It Like Beckham" -- is kicking her husband to the curb ... TMZ has learned.

36-year-old Nagra has filed for divorce from photographer James Stenson ... seeking to end her three year marriage.

According to the divorce papers, obtained by TMZ, Nagra cites "irreconcilable differences" for the split. The two dated for 7 years before tying the knot and have a 2 year-old son.

The wedding was attended by a bunch of stars ... including Nagra's former "E.R." co-star John Stamos ... who played drums at the reception. Sad.

Deion Sanders' aunt Laura Jones just gave a SHOCKING blow-by-blow to her violent altercation with Pilar inside Deion's Texas mansion Monday -- admitting she grabbed Pilar's hair ... and beat the holy hell out of her.

49-year-old Laura -- who's married to Deion's uncle -- called in to Dallas K104 this morning, claiming she stopped by Deion's house to take care of some housekeeping items (a job Deion pays her to do) and Pilar flipped.

According to Laura, Pilar objected to her being in the house, and demanded she "get the f**k out." The argument escalated quickly, and Laura says Pilar brushed against her in a threatening way ... so Laura responded by grabbing Pilar's hair and hitting her.

This is where it gets NUTS -- Laura says Pilar then ripped Laura's dress clean off during the melee, leaving her practically naked, and tumbled backwards down the staircase. Laura says Pilar then grabbed a bunch of knives from the kitchen, and brandished them while she called 911.

Right then, Laura says Deion came downstairs to see what the ruckus was about -- and Pilar yelled at the dispatcher, "My husband is attacking me!!!"

According to Laura, the cops showed up minutes later -- and Pilar refused to put away the knives ... so they cuffed her and threw in the back of a cruiser. Laura says the children were present the entire time.

But Laura claims charges were never filed against Pilar because Deion intervened -- and got Pilar off the hook.

Laura also submitted an alleged audio recording of the fight -- claiming she acquired it during her brawl with Pilar ... who's allegedly been recording everything in the house to use as leverage in her divorce.

Russell Brand is entitled to approximately $20 million of Katy Perry's fortune ... but TMZ has learned he will not take a single penny of it.

Russell's lawyer filed final divorce papers Tuesday ... although the judge will make the divorce official on June 30, because there's a 6 month waiting period.

Informed sources tell TMZ ... Russell and Katy did NOT have a prenup. As a result, everything they earned during their 14-month marriage is community property -- which means they're each entitled to 50% of the pot.

Katy made $44 million between May, 2010 and May, 2011 -- according to Forbes. The couple married in October, 2010, so Russell could have scored a fortune if he exercised his community property rights.

But here's the deal. As one source put it, "This divorce is as amicable as it gets, and Russell was a mensch (Yiddish for a good person)." He doesn't want Katy's money. He's happy to walk away with the money he earned -- which is far less than what Katy raked in.

So we gotta ask ...

Deion Sanders "orchestrated" a violent attack on his wife ... designed to physically force her out of his Texas mansion ... this according to a new lawsuit filed by Pilar Sanders.

In a fast and furious legal response to the altercation at the home this week, Pilar filed suit against Deion and a woman named Laura Jones, the woman accused of carrying out the attack.

According to the documents, Deion summoned Laura -- his "fake aunt" -- to help him physically remove Pilar from the home on Feb. 6 so Deion could change the locks and bar her from returning.

Pilar claims Jones is legally banned from entering the home ... but she entered the place anyway ... so Pilar says she demanded that the woman leave immediately. Instead, Pilar claims, the woman "squared off and took a swing at [Pilar] hitting her in the eye."

Pilar says Laura "continued to hit, slap, punch, choke, push and kick" her ... causing various injuries. Pilar says she was so scared, she grabbed a KITCHEN KNIFE and prepared to defend herself until cops arrived.

Now, Pilar wants a judge to issue a restraining order against the woman ... and she wants Deion to fork over a check for the mental and physical pain.

Pilar Sanders called cops to Deion's gargantuan Texas mansion yesterday ... claiming she was ATTACKED by one of Deion's female friends ... while the NFL legend stood by and watched.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ, Pilar told officers a woman named Laura arrived to the mansion to see Deion ... but Pilar told Laura she was not welcome in the home and asked her to leave.

We're told Laura refused ... and after some words were exchanged, Laura threw an object at Pilar ... striking her in the eye.

Pilar grabbed her phone and called 911 ... and told police Deion was present during the altercation, but didn't do ANYTHING to diffuse the situation.

Cops tell TMZ ... no arrests were made and the situation is under investigation.

Pilar's lawyer tells TMZ, "Pilar was taken to the hospital emergency room as a result of the injuries she sustained during the assault."

The lawyer adds, "This is an opportunity for Deion to use his 'Century-21 celebrity status' to set an example as to how to lovingly care for his wife and children during divorce proceedings."

10:05 AM PST -- Deion Sanders has broken his silence on Twitter ... saying, "My AUNT Laura Jones was at my home fixing my phone system and was attacked. We have proof. We apologize for these weekly ignorant lies! TRUTH."