Mel B Huddling Up with Lawyer Over Belafonte Drama
Mel B beelined it for her attorney Wednesday, possibly with new evidence in her nasty divorce from Stephen Belafonte.
She seemed determined heading into the office building after making a quick stop at her Bev Hills home ... where assistants removed a computer for her. Stephen's been banned from the house by the restraining order ... so it's unclear why she'd take the computer.
It is clear Mel will be spending a lot of time with her lawyers in the months ahead.
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David Schwimmer Splits from Wife After 7 Year Marriage
David Schwimmer and his wife, Zoe Buckman, have split after almost 7 years of marriage.
The couple made the announcement, saying, "It is with great love, respect and friendship that we have decided to take some time apart while we determine the future of our relationship."
They add ... "Our priority is, of course, our daughter's happiness and well being during this challenging time, and so we ask for your support and respect for our privacy as we continue to raise her together and navigate this new chapter for our family."
Schwimmer and Buckman have been together for more than 10 years, and got hitched in June 2010. They have 1 daughter together ... this is also their first go at marriage each.
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Mel B Belafonte Targeted Playboy Mansion for 3-Ways
Stephen Belafonte had a favorite place to take Mel B for 3-ways ... the Playboy Mansion, sources connected with Mel B tell TMZ.
Our sources say Belafonte would "hound and cajole" Mel B to go to the Mansion, which she generally didn't want to do. We're told he would badger her for hours until she was worn down and finally agreed to go.
Once there, our sources say Belafonte would encourage her to drink -- she has struggled with alcohol abuse -- and when she got drunk he would then zero in on Playboy Bunnies for 3-ways.
Sources connected with Belafonte say they had an open marriage. Mel B calls BS on that, alleging Belafonte would often videotape the 3-ways and then threaten to release the videos if she didn't continue to participate in the encounters.
Mel B Begged Friends Not to Call Cops on Belafonte 'He'll Kill Me'
Mel B convinced close friends and family members not to tell police she was being beaten by Stephen Belafonte because she was afraid he would think she was behind it and kill her.
Multiple sources close to Mel B tell us ... a close circle of friends and family didn't believe her when she explained away various injuries, and when they confronted her, she had trouble hiding what she now says is the truth ... that she was being viciously attacked by Belafonte.
We're told some of the people who confronted her said they were going to call the cops and report him, but she became emotional and begged them to stand down, and not just because she was in fear for her life. She believed anyone who blew the whistle on Belafonte would become his target as well.
As we reported, people who were on various TV shows with Mel B were aware of a slew of injuries she suffered and they also saw Belafonte on the set and witnessed what some called his abusive and threatening behavior. Yet, as far as we can tell -- and this is consistent with her declaration -- no one from any show ever called the cops to report alleged domestic violence.
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Mel B's Home Fire Sale After Domestic Abuse Allegations Surface
Mel B clearly wants to move on with her life, because the very same day estranged husband Stephen Belafonte was kicked out of the family house that has been up for sale for only 2 weeks, she lowered the price by a million bucks.
The Hollywood Hills home was put on the market March 22 for $8.995 mil. On Monday, just after a judge ordered Stephen to leave, the asking price went down to $7.995 mil.
Our sources say Mel B might not even live there while the house is up for sale, because it has a lot of bad memories.
The house is 6,000 square feet ... 4 bedrooms, 5 1/2 baths.
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Hunter and Kathleen Biden Request to Seal Divorce Denied ... Judge Says Damage Is Done
Hunter and Kathleen Biden's push to keep their divorce battle out of the public eye has been shot down by the judge ... TMZ has learned.
According to docs obtained by TMZ, Joe Biden's son and daughter-in-law claim they and their kids are public figures, and if details of their divorce get out ... it could be "damaging and embarrassing" to the family. Hence the request to seal the case.
The court called B.S., saying if the estranged couple wanted to keep it on the DL, they shouldn't have included the sordid allegations in the initial divorce petition, which was filed publicly. The judge says in docs, "Sealing those documents now will not erase any embarrassment the parties or their children may have already experienced."
You'll recall ... each accused the other of cheating, and she said Hunter blew all their money.
As we reported ... Hunter and Kathleen have toned things down since then, agreeing to cease nasty allegations in public.
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Mel B Declaration Detailing Abuse Allegations Against Stephen Belafonte
Mel B has detailed horrific abuse she allegedly suffered over a period of years at the hands of her estranged husband, Stephen Belafonte.
TMZ broke the story with examples of her allegations. Here is her sworn declaration that convinced a judge to issue a temporary restraining order.
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Lisa Marie Presley Claims Estranged Hubby Called Paparazzi To Look Like Doting Dad
Lisa Marie Presley's estranged husband arranged for paparazzi to make him look like a doting dad ... so claim people connected to Lisa Marie.
Michael Lockwood was photographed at a flea market Sunday with their twin girls. Sources connected with Lisa Marie tell us Lisa Marie is convinced this was a setup ... that paparazzi didn't just happen to find him. She believes he called them to make it appear he's an involved dad ... something she believes is fiction.
The kids are currently living with their grandma, Priscilla Presley, while the Dept. of Children and Family Services investigates allegations Michael had inappropriate pictures on his computer. Lisa Marie was struggling with substance abuse issues so Priscilla is now the day-to-day guardian.
Lisa Marie filed for divorce last June and asked for sole legal and physical custody. Michael responded by saying he wanted joint custody. For now, he gets monitored visits.
We reached out to Michael's lawyer ... so far, no word back.
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Mel B Abuse by Husband Seen By Many, Authorities Not Called
Mel B says she has been the victim of horrific brutality at the hands of husband Stephen Belafonte for nearly a decade, and lots of people around her saw her injuries but it appears most of them bought her stories that made no sense.
TMZ broke the story, Mel B got a restraining order Monday against Belafonte, claiming he beat her, choked her and threw her to the ground on multiple occasions. According to the documents, after an alleged beating in 2012 over Belafonte's jealousy of Usher, producers of 'X Factor' (Australia) noticed swelling on her face and asked for a physician. She claimed it was an allergic reaction to shellfish and according to the document, the doctor on set bought her story.
She was also forced to miss a filming of 'X Factor' (UK) in late 2014 because her injuries were so bad they could not be covered by theatrical makeup. When she finally returned, she still had visible facial and body wounds yet no one sounded the alarm.
Around the same time, things got so bad, Mel B tried to take her own life by swallowing an entire bottle of Aspirin. She had a change of heart, tried calling 999, but she says Belafonte prevented her from doing so. At some point she says her friend, Randy, came over but Belafonte forced him to leave. Randy called an ambulance but Belafonte turned it away. Authorities were not alerted.
The next day, her driver showed up to take her to work and saw such extensive injuries he took her to the hospital, where she spent 2 days with security standing guard outside her room to keep Belafonte away. Yet authorities again were not alerted.
She returned again to 'X Factor' (UK) with visible facial and body wounds, which producers attempted to cover up. Again, authorities not called.
When she was back in L.A. she told 'X Factor' "employers" she had attempted suicide to escape from the abuse at the hands of Belafonte. She says they offered assistance to get her away from Belafonte, but it appears authorities were not contacted and she went back to living with him.
Mel B says throughout the years, Belafonte would harass and intimidate her agents, producers and co-stars, and they complained to her he was "abusive and demanding," and he was adversely affecting her business ... but again, it appears authorities were not contacted.
Belafonte tells TMZ he questions the motives of her accusations.
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Mel B Belafonte Beat Me Physically And Beat Me Down Emotionally
Mel B says she was emotionally weak when she married Stephen Belafonte, but it soon became apparent ... whenever she achieved success, he would literally beat her down to maintain control.
Mel B got a restraining order Monday, forcing Belafonte to leave the family home and stay clear of her and her 3 kids. In her declaration, she recounts why she married him. She says, "At the time, I was vulnerable. I was giving birth as a single mother, my self-esteem was very low, and my hormones were out of balance due to the pregnancy."
She says Belafonte "rushed in to help me in every way," saying in the beginning he was nice and supportive.
Shortly after they got married, Mel B says things changed dramatically. She says he would tell her she was "worthless, that he made me 'who I am,' that no one knows how really stupid I am."
She says he destroyed her self-confidence and self-esteem, especially because she was struggling to lose her pregnancy weight.
Mel B says she lived in abject fear he would make good on his threat to release sex tapes of them he recorded, threatening to ruin her career. She also says he threatened to release the videos to Children's Services in an attempt to have the kids taken away.
As we reported, she says it got so bad, in December 2014, she tried committing suicide by swallowing an entire bottle of Aspirin.
She says the final humiliation was when he allegedly began having sex with their nanny, got her pregnant and told her they should all just live together. She says she got up the gumption to fire the nanny and leave him, but he fired back that the nanny would leak damaging stories to the media and Children's Services. She was so scared she re-hired the nanny and stayed with him.
Even after separating from him in December, she began posting messages suggesting she and Belafonte were working things out. She says what finally gave her the push was her father dying last month. She says Belafonte said, "Suck it up. If he's going to die, he's going to die," and that was the final straw.
Belafonte tells TMZ he questions the motives of her accusations.
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Mel B's Ex Stephen Belafonte Warrant Triggered By Brother's Big Mouth
Stephen Belafonte got in the crosshairs of the feds after his brother bragged Belafonte was in possession of a gun ... a gun he is prohibited from owning.
We're told The Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms got wind of his brother's comments and went to a judge last week asking for a warrant because Belafonte was reportedly convicted of domestic violence in 2003. He had allegedly gotten into a drunken fight with the mother of his child. As part of the conviction, he was prohibited from possessing firearms.
TMZ broke the story ... the ATF showed up to Belafonte's Hollywood Hills home Friday and waited for him to show to serve the warrant. We're told no gun was found.
Belafonte's brother has told various news outlets about the couple's explosive past. He claims Stephen once punched Mel B's dog and having the gun in their home was always a point of contention between them.
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Ralphie May Custody War Agrees to Drug Testing ... Monitored Visits with Kids
Ralphie May's estranged wife, Lahna Turner, is getting temporary sole custody of their 2 children, and the comedian will take random drug tests twice a month ... according to new legal docs.
The judge in their nasty custody war has granted Ralphie 2 weekly visits with his children, and one Skype call. A court appointed monitor must be present for the first 3 weeks.
Ralphie, who's made no secret of his love of marijuana, has agreed to submit to random drug tests twice a month.
According to the new docs ... the judge also threw out the restraining order Turner requested last month. Both Ralphie and Lahna have been told to stop talking smack about each other in front of their kids.
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Tarek El Moussa Ripped Revenge Bod
Tarek El Moussa's flaunting his best fixer upper yet, and it ain't a house -- it's his ripped bod.
We're told the "Flip or Flop" star was super motivated to get fit after battling 2 cancers, recovering from debilitating back problems and, of course, his troubles with Christina.
Tarek wanted to show off his progress and posed for these seriously shredded pics. Dating site profile pic material?
Hell yeah.
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Keshia Knight Pulliam Divorce Ed's GF Asked About Miscarriage Drugs ... Friend Testifies
A friend of Keshia Knight Pulliam's estranged husband says Ed Hartwell's girlfriend made an ominous request about something to "cause a miscarriage" during Keshia's pregnancy.
The friend, Damia Ward-Henley, made the revelation in new court docs filed by Keshia in her divorce case. Damia describes herself as a friend of Ed and Tonya Carroll ... who she says Ed started dating while he was still married to Keshia. According to the docs, Damia says Tonya found out Keshia was pregnant in June 2016, and was very upset because she wanted Ed to leave Keshia.
In the docs, Damia says Tonya told her "she wanted to get something that would cause someone to have a miscarriage." Damia says she shot down the request and told Tonya and Ed to break off their adulterous relationship.
Keshia also filed docs saying she's worried Ed -- an ex-NFL player -- is unfit to care for their 2-month-old daughter because she's seen him take OxyContin. She says Ed testified in a lawsuit with the NFL that he's suffering severe physical and mental problems, and needs to take many drugs to cope.
She wants a court-appointed guardian to evaluate his parental fitness.
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Michelle Kwan Husband Files for Divorce
Michelle Kwan's marriage is on ice, because her husband has just filed for divorce.
According to legal docs, Clay Pell cites irreconcilable differences for the breakdown of his marriage to the 36-year-old, 5-time world champion figure skater and 2-time Olympic medalist.
Clay is mum on spousal support but he does want her to foot the bills from his lawyer.
The couple married in January 2013. 35-year-old Clay was a White House National Security staffer under President Obama. He also ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Rhode Island.
They have no kids so if there's legal beef, it will be over property.
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Apollo Nida On the Hunt for Millions In Phaedra Parks Divorce
Apollo Nida is thrilled a judge nullified his divorce from Phaedra Parks, because he's suspicious she hasn't disclosed all of their assets, and he wants his cut.
TMZ broke the story ... the judge decided the divorce was unfair because he wasn't informed of the final hearing where the divorce was granted. The judge was also ticked off by Phaedra's vindictiveness ... intentionally misspelling his name on the docs.
So now it's back to square one, and Apollo wants to go back on the hunt to determine what property is fair game to split ... property he says includes a million-dollar marital home, millions of dollars in personal property and several businesses.
Apollo, who is currently serving a prison sentence, also wants joint legal custody of their 2 sons.