CELEBRITY JUSTICE ™

Ashton Kutcher took the stand Wednesday in a murder case, and his testimony could be crucial in the case of a man prosecutors call a "serial sexual-thrill killer."

Kutcher was in an L.A. courthouse testifying in the trial of Michael Gargiulo -- aka the "Hollywood Ripper" -- who's accused of attacking 4 women with a knife and killing 3 of them over the span of 15 years.

Among them is Ashley Ellerin, a friend of Kutcher's who was supposed to be his date to a Grammys after-party in February 2001 but never showed. Kutcher reportedly went to her house to check on her but she didn't answer, so he left.

Ashton testified that he had met Ashley through a friend and he had gone to her house a few weeks before the Grammys to a housewarming party for her. He characterized his relationship with her as "an acquaintance," although he did say he had some interest in her.

Kutcher said the night of the Grammys was the first time he had thought he might pursue her in a dating relationship. He told the jury at around 7:30 PM he called her to say he was going to a friend's house to watch the show and then come to her home.

He said at 8:24 PM they talked and she said she had just gotten out of the shower and was going to blow dry her hair and they would meet up later and maybe go out to dinner. He called her at around 10 PM and believed he left a message saying it was getting late so they would not have dinner but just drinks.

Ashton says he went home, walked his dog and went to her place at around 10:45 PM. He knocked on her door but no one answered. He looked through a side window and saw what he thought was red wine spilled on the floor. So, he left.

The next morning Ashley was found dead in her home outside her bathroom, with more than 47 stab wounds, and authorities say Gargiulo was the murderer.

Ashton appeared in court wearing a blue suit and appeared relaxed on the stand.

The alleged serial killer is also accused of killing his 18-year-old neighbor, Tricia Pacaccio, back in 1993 when he lived in Illinois. Gargiulo moved to L.A. in 1998, but authorities say the killing didn't stop.

He's accused in Ellerin's death in 2001 and the 2005 murder of his neighbor, Maria Bruno, who was stabbed 17 times.

Gargiulo allegedly attacked another neighbor, Michelle Murphy, in her Santa Monica home in 2008, but she managed to fight off the attack and call 911. Blood matching Gargiulo's DNA was found at the scene.

Ezekiel Elliott ain't out of the woods yet -- the man who was shoved by the NFL star at a music festival earlier this month says he's still considering pressing criminal charges against the RB.

... unless Zeke complies with his one demand.

The victim is 19-year-old Kyle Johnson -- a 6'0", 185-pound defensive back for the Orange Coast College football team in Costa Mesa, CA.

Johnson tells CBS2 in L.A. he was working as a security guard at the Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas on May 19 when his security team told Elliott he was not allowed to enter a restricted area ... and that's when Elliott got aggressive.

Johnson claims Zeke appeared drunk -- "he didn't really seem to have a clue about where he was" -- and when they tried to direct him to leave the area, the Dallas Cowboys star got in his face and shoved him over a metal gate.

Johnson says he wasn't really injured in the incident, but notes "it didn't feel good." Cops in the area witnessed the incident and immediately put Zeke in handcuffs.

Cops asked Johnson if he wanted to press charges and at the time he declined because, "I didn't want to make a rash decision that soon without evaluating it further. It was 3 AM. I was shocked."

Johnson says all he wanted at the time was an apology from Elliott -- a guy he used to look up to -- but got a fake lip-service apology instead.

"I did get an apology from him, it wasn't a sincere apology. He didn't maintain eye contact. It didn't seem sincere at all."

Now, Johnson is evaluating all of his legal options -- but says a "sincere apology" from Elliott would probably end the drama once and for all.

"I wasn't hurt or anything but to have someone that you looked up to shove you on the ground over a metal fence? It's not the biggest thing in the world ... but [to say] nothing happened? I mean, come on."

The guy who freaked out Madison Beer at the BottleRock festival this weekend allegedly came back the next day, high on drugs ... which landed him in handcuffs.

Napa PD tells TMZ ... 28-year-old Jake Rutger Hanson was arrested Sunday just outside the festival grounds after cops were called for another disturbance. When officers arrived, we're told Hanson displayed signs of being under the influence, and cops say they found drug paraphernalia on him.

Hanson was busted on the spot and booked for being under the influence of a controlled substance, as well as for the paraphernalia. We're told cops suspect he was on some kind of hallucinogenic, but it's unclear which one.

Hanson caused quite a ruckus the day before his arrest ... when his movements in the BottleRock crowd caused Madison to abruptly halt her set and signal that there may have been a shooting threat in the audience.

He was whisked away by cops, who booted him from the event entirely -- although cops didn't find any weapons on him or any proof he'd committed a crime. Still, he wasn't supposed to come back at all. NPD says event staff found his behavior alarming -- and that was enough for them to tell him to get lost for good.

Jenelle Evans and David Eason suffered a major court defeat Tuesday, when a judge ruled they will not regain custody of their 3 children ... and they will have virtually no face-to-face contact for the time being.

After 4 days of explosive testimony, in which Jenelle, David, Kaiser's dad Nathan Griffith and others testified about problems in the home, the judge decided there were serious issues with Jenelle and David that put the children at risk.

The trigger for the hearing was David killing the family dog earlier this month. As we reported, Child Protective Services ordered 4-year-old Kaiser to stay with Nathan, 9-year-old Jace with his grandma, Barbara, and 2-year-old Ensley also with Barbara.

Sources connected to the case tell TMZ, for the time being, Jenelle and David can see their kids only once a week for an hour with supervision.

As one source put it, "It's all David's fault."

Another source says the judge laid out a number of steps Jenelle and David must take in order to regain custody, including parenting classes, counseling and weekly drug testing.

And yet, another source told us Kaiser was "extremely fearful" of going back to the family house and claimed he was mistreated by David. His concerns were brought up in court and we're told affected the judge's decision.

As for Jenelle, one source says she was "stunned" by the ruling and believed she would walk out of court Tuesday with her kids. Instead, she walked out with David.

Justin Bieber's Canadian side really shone through when a cop pulled him over in his Lamborghini and the traffic stop played out like a prime case of DWB -- driving while Bieber.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Bev Hills PD pulled over Justin Monday night because he didn't have a front license plate and his window tint was too dark.

We're told the cop decided not to write a ticket because Justin was polite, cooperative and respectful ... and agreed to take care of the car's issues right away. A lot of times, for a lot of people -- particularly entertainers -- that's at least a fix-it ticket. Just sayin' ...

Last time JB got pulled over in Bev Hills he wasn't so lucky -- he got a ticket for using his phone while driving.

Considering his past difficulties with Lambos, it's a pretty pleasant outcome for the Biebs.

So, no ... it was NOT too late to say "sorry" ... at least for BHPD.

One of the shops featured on "Storage Wars" was broken into over Memorial Day weekend -- costing its reality TV star owners a few thousand dollars and a crappy day of cleanup.

Rene Nezhoda -- who runs the Bargain Hunters Thrift Store with his wife, Casey -- tells TMZ ... a thief, or group of thieves, smashed through the front glass doors of his San Diego-area business early Saturday morning around 4 AM ... and made off with some of their goods.

We're told the culprits jacked around $2,000 worth of rare coins Rene and Casey had in their possession, and ended up doing about another $2,000 of damage to the store in total.

All in all ... the Nezhodas are looking at a minimum set back of $4,000.

Rene and Casey posted a video of the aftermath later in the day, and it's clear they were pissed about the break-in. Rene goes so far as to call the culprit "the lowest scumbag out there." Check out his tour of how the burglars got in and out ... it's a pretty entertaining breakdown, even if it's a crappy financial situation for them.

10:35 AM PT -- TMZ Sports has obtained the mug shot from Herrera's arrest.

We've also obtained court docs from the incident ... which say Herrera's girlfriend was found with "hand print markings to her neck area and small scratches to her arms."

Odubel is due in court to face the charge in June on the same day the Phils are scheduled to play the Nationals in D.C.

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Odubel Herrera was arrested Monday night after cops say he roughed up his 20-year-old girlfriend during an altercation in an Atlantic City casino.

According to the Atlantic City Police Department, Herrera and his GF got into a dispute at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino during the Phillies' off day Monday.

Cops were called to the scene ... and when they saw the woman, they said she had visible injuries on her arm and neck.

Cops say they found 27-year-old Herrera in his hotel room after the incident ... and arrested him on the charge of simple assault.

Herrera -- who's batting just .222 with 1 home run for the Phils this season -- was released from custody shortly after and will be required to return for a court date in the future.

For their part ... Major League Baseball says it's placed Herrera on administrative leave in wake of the arrest.

"This morning we were made aware of an alleged incident involving Odúbel Herrera," the Phillies said in a statement ... "Upon receiving this information, we immediately reported the incident to Major League Baseball, which has informed us that Herrera has been placed on Administrative Leave."

"The Phillies take any domestic violence accusation seriously, and strongly support the Joint Domestic Violence Policy agreed upon by MLB and the MLBPA."

10:12 AM PT -- Yo Gotti has weighed in on the situation, telling TMZ he has experienced similar discrimination at the Cosmopolitan, and other hotels in Vegas. He says, "It's a disgrace that these establishments continue to judge us by the color of our skin and our professions instead of recognizing our artistry and dedication to our communities."

Gotti states, "I stand with Meek Mill and all my peers in the hip-hop community that have been disrespected by places like the Cosmopolitan."

9:08 AM PT -- Meek's lawyer is doubling down, telling us he believes the Cosmo and other Vegas hotels are discriminating against black hip-hop artists and illegally circulating a banned list.

Tacopina says the properties are treating the rappers like dogs, and acting like it's the days of Tupac and Biggie all over again.

He adds that the video of Meek being denied and threatened is all the proof needed to show there's something seriously messed up going on in Sin City.

Meek Mill will file a lawsuit this week against the Cosmopolitan hotel in Vegas for ordering him to leave the grounds and threatening him with arrest, and his lawyer vows to destroy the hotel for its actions.

Meek's celeb lawyer, Joe Tacopina, tells TMZ, he will ask for "heavy monetary damages" for "lying and humiliating Meek," adding, "I'm going to take this place down because of what they did."

Tacopina claims there's a list of black rappers who are persona non grata at a group of Vegas hotels. Cosmo denies it excludes anyone because of race, but Tacopina tells us he's already identified 2 other rappers -- Yo Gotti and BlocBoy JB -- who claim other Vegas hotels have denied them because they're black rappers.

TMZ broke the story, Meek and his crew were going to see DJ Mustard Saturday at the Marquee Nightclub at the hotel but they were met by security as they pulled up and were ordered to leave, and if they got out of the car they'd be arrested for trespassing.

The hotel tells TMZ, they do not discriminate against anyone ... They wouldn't let Meek in because Marquee was at capacity and they had told him that before he left for the hotel. There are problems with the hotel's story. First, you hear a security guard in the video say they denied him because of a prior incident. Meek seemed baffled and repeatedly asked for specifics, but the hotel security guy wouldn't say.

There's also this ... Meek asked if he could go inside the hotel to get something to eat, but he was still denied. Presumably, the restaurants were not at capacity.

TMZ broke the story ... Tacopina fired off a letter to the Cosmo just after the incident demanding an apology and entrance to the club, but the hotel didn't respond. Tacopina says it's now game on.

Tacopina claims the Cosmo is scrambling now, coming up with 2 different versions of events, both of which he says are lies -- that Meek was involved in a prior incident, and he was denied because the club was at capacity.

Tacopina says, "Show us one other incident where a white individual was denied hotel club access or access to the grounds because Marquee was full?"

The lawsuit will allege racial discrimination under state and federal law as well as defamation.

Ellen DeGeneres revealed she's a victim of sexual assault ... and hopes her story helps other victims who are afraid to come forward.

The famed talk show host opened up on season 2 of David Letterman's Netflix show, 'My Next Guest Needs No Introduction' ... about her mother, Betty DeGeneres, marrying a "very bad man" who took advantage of Ellen when she a teenager.

She claims her stepfather waited until her mom was out of town and told her he needed to feel her breasts because he'd found a lump in her mom's breast and needed to check hers.

Ellen says she was 15 or 16 when it happened, and she's still angry at herself because she was too weak to stand up to him. She says ... "It's a really horrible, horrible story and the only reason I'm actually going to go into detail about it is because I want other girls to not ever let someone do that."

Ellen adds ... "We [women] just don't feel like we're worthy, or we're scared to have a voice, and we're scared to say no ... That's the only reason I think it's important to talk about it because there's so many young girls and it doesn't matter how old you are."

She says she's angered when victims do come forward and aren't believed, because women don't just make stuff up ... but feels it's time for women to have a voice, and have power.

There's no clear-cut evidence Blac Chyna was wielding a knife when she allegedly threatened her hairdresser.

Sources close to the case tell TMZ ... no witnesses have come forward backing the hairdresser's claim Chyna went after her with a blade. Nor does the surveillance footage we obtained from that night show a knife.

It's possible the alleged knife appeared off-camera -- but, again, zippo from witnesses.

TMZ broke the story ... BC and her hairdresser got into a heated argument earlier this month at Chyna's San Fernando Valley home. The hairdresser filed a police report, and BC appeared as a named suspect for assault with a deadly weapon.

For her part, Blac Chyna insists she's the victim, not the aggressor ... and claims her Rolls-Royce was damaged when the hairdresser started hurling soda cans during the altercation.

Chyna might be S-O-L too ... our sources say there's no way of proving the damage to her car came from soda cans being thrown.

Fact is ... neither woman's got evidence to help 'em prove a case.

5:58 PM PT -- The photographer who shot Iggy for GQ Australia's cover that year says his photos were stolen from him and published without his permission.

He also mentions there's an investigation underway, and vows that the culprit will be prosecuted. The photog adds, "I empathize with any discomfort that this situation has caused to anyone that is involved." He didn't mention Iggy by name.

Iggy Azalea is equally pissed and hurt that someone betrayed her and leaked nude photos from a shoot she did for GQ years ago ... vowing to hold the guilty party responsible.

Topless photos of the Australian MC made their way around the Internet over the weekend, which prompted a flood of inappropriate comments aimed at her ... and, ultimately, it led to Iggy completely deactivating her social media accounts on IG and Twitter.

She later reactivated one of the accounts to issue a statement. It couldn't be more clear -- she's not happy about it, and she's gonna find out who screwed her over.

In her since-deleted remarks, Iggy says the photos were outtake shots from her 2016 GQ Australia cover shoot ... and that she was assured no fully topless photos of her would make the final cut. She says she also never gave permission for those pics to see the light of day.

Iggy goes on to write that there is no reason anyone who was working on the shoot that day should've saved the fully topless shots of herself, adding that she feels blindsided, embarrassed, violated and a whirlwind of other emotions over the invasion of privacy.

She ends with this ... "I fully intend on finding out where the leak originated from and pressing criminal charges in regards to this. It's important to me that someone actually be held accountable for their actions & the way it impacts my life."

We've reached out to GQ Australia for comment ... so far, no word back.

8:00 PM PT -- Meek's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, just told us, "The assertion that the Cosmopolitan denied Meek because of capacity concerns at Marquee Dayclub is outright false. In the recorded video, Meek also inquired about getting a meal at one of the hotel's restaurants, yet their security team continued to deny Meek and said he would be arrested for trespassing regardless of location in the premises. The Cosmopolitan's conduct continues to be deplorable."

Meek Mill was sent away from the Cosmopolitan hotel in Vegas not because he's a black rapper, but because the club he wanted to go to had reached capacity ... problem is, the story doesn't make sense.

TMZ broke the story ... Meek was ordered to leave the Cosmo on Saturday, and he was told by security if he got out of the car he'd be arrested for trespassing. Meek's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, said the hotel has a thing against black rappers.

Cosmo just told TMZ, they have a "zero tolerance for discrimination" and said this was not an issue of race. Cosmo says Meek was going to the Marquee Dayclub inside the hotel where DJ Mustard was performing. Cosmo says, "Marquee Dayclub had reached capacity per Las Vegas Fire Marshall code. Earlier that day, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police had been called onsite to manage a larger than usual venue crowd."

Cosmo goes on ... "Accordingly, when Marquee Dayclub was contacted in advance of Meek Mill's arrival, security staff clarified that he would not be granted access because of capacity issues, in accordance with both club and resort policy. Upon his arrival, it was reiterated to Meek Mill and his team for a second time that access to the venue was not permitted."

The Hotel says, "Meek Mill refused to depart property and was then informed that any continued attempt would result in trespassing." As we reported, they threatened to arrest Meek if he got out of the car.

Now, here's what doesn't make sense. First, check out the video TMZ posted Saturday, just after Meek left. You clearly hear a Cosmo security guard talking to Meek and his team and referencing a prior incident that happened in the lobby. Meek and his team repeatedly asked when the alleged incident occurred, but got no answer.

And, check out this video. Meek says he might just go inside to grab some grub, but that didn't fly with security and, presumably, the restaurants were not at capacity.

There were others who were trying to get in despite the capacity limit, and as far as we know they weren't greeted by security in the front of the hotel and ordered to leave before getting out of their cars.

Kid Ink came home to a broken-into house last week -- and, quite likely, a big SMH moment followed thereafter.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Ink arrived at his L.A.-area home Thursday evening and found a bunch of luggage in his backyard, which he hadn't put there. Upon further investigation, we're told he discovered the property had been broken into ... and that upwards of $200k worth of items were stolen.

Our sources say some of the stuff that was jacked included purses and an assortment of jewelry he had lying around the place.

To make matters worse ... we're told the prowlers were able to get in fairly easy -- through his very own back door ... which was left completely unlocked. Our sources say that's how the dude(s) got in -- as there were no signs of forced entry. Doh!!!

High-profile burglaries have plagued the Los Angeles area for well over a year now, with celeb victims like Rihanna, Yasiel Puig, Taylor Swift, Chief Keef, Christina Milian and other stars who were set to be targets of robberies. Cops cracked down and arrested a handful of suspects in relation to some of those burglaries, but it's clear there are still people out there breaking and entering.

As for KI ... we're told police are investigating the matter.

7:55 AM PT -- Meek's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, tells TMZ, "The racist hole that they [Cosmopolitan] have dug for themselves has just gotten deeper. Yesterday, when this incident unfolded, the chief security guard could not articulate a reason why Meek was denied entry and threatened with arrest. They've now come up with some fabricated claim through an anonymous source that Meek was involved in a fight on their property."

Tacopina goes on ... "Meek Mill was never involved in a fight on their property, ever and I challenge the Cosmopolitan to produce a video of such altercation or a contemporaneous incident report. The legal case against the Cosmopolitan just got stronger."

Meek Mill was not racially profiled when he was denied entrance at the Cosmopolitan hotel in Las Vegas -- he was ordered to leave because of a past incident ... so claims a Cosmo source.

TMZ broke the story ... Meek rolled up to the hotel Saturday and was ordered to stay in his car and drive away ... or else he'd be arrested.

Meek's celebrity lawyer, Joe Tacopina, told TMZ, Meek is part of a long list of African-American rappers who were blacklisted from certain Vegas hotels. Tacopina has threatened the hotel with a lawsuit unless it apologizes, and STAT.

Cosmopolitan officially had nothing to say about the incident and did not issue an apology, but the Cosmo source says there was a prior incident where Meek was at the hotel and "fought with security guards." The source claims Meek became persona non grata for that reason.

Tacopina told TMZ, "We have learned that the Cosmopolitan maintains a list of African American recording artists who should be denied access for no other reason than their culture and skin color."

Madison Beer cut her mid-day concert short after a gun scare erupted in the crowd beneath her -- which ended with the removal of a guy who's now banned from the premises.

It all went down Saturday evening at the BottleRock festival in Napa, CA -- where Madison was in the middle of performing Radiohead's "Creep," when she abruptly stopped her crooning and ran over to the side stage in a panic after seeing something in the crowd.

In video of the incident, you can hear Madison frantically talking to her stage handlers, saying ... "What is going on? Yo, yo, everyone pay attention. What's going on?!" She then turns to the audience and tells them to back up, seemingly warning them of something happening on the ground.

The video then starts to shake, but it briefly captures what appears to be an older gentleman in a green coat wandering about in an area that seems to be closed off near the front of the stage, with no one else around him. People start to freak out and flee the scene ... reacting to what many perceived as a possible shooter situation.

Further video shows police offers escorting the same guy away in handcuffs.

Napa Police later clarified what exactly had happened, saying cops responded to a disturbance and booted the guy they identified as the responsible party. NPD says no weapons were actually involved, and that there was no active threat to the community.

It's unclear what the guy might've done to scare Madison like that, but whatever it was ... it clearly rattled her and her fans. Madison's mom later posted about it, saying it's sad we live in a world where concert-goers can't enjoy themselves without looking over their shoulder.

Someone really wants you to believe 50 Cent went crying to the cops about Jimmy Henchman back in the day, but a report that name drops him is complete BS ... according to officials who know the case inside and out.

Here's the sitch -- a document purporting to be a "Report of Investigation" by the U.S. Dept. of Justice's DEA Office has been circulating for a while that cites 50 as having called the feds in 2009 to tip them off to ex-music mogul, James Rosemond -- aka Jimmy H.

At the time, Jimmy was believed to be linked to the murder of 50's pal, Lodi Mack ... who allegedly beat up Jimmy's 14-year-old son in the streets of NYC. Jimmy was eventually charged and convicted for the murder -- prosecutors say he hired guys to kill Lodi.

Welp ... it would appear someone wants to paint 50 as a good, old-fashioned rat, 'cause the report's been making the rounds on the Internet and in newsrooms.

In the doc, it says 50 called in anonymously at first to say the cops should be looking into Jimmy as a possible suspect for Lodi's murder ... and allegedly went on to tell cops that he was afraid for his own life in the aftermath. The doc says 50 told cops he'd cooperate with the investigation

Thing is ... we've been told the document is a complete fake. Law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of Lodi and Jimmy's case tell us ... the alleged report was never taken, and 50 was never recorded as having talked to officers working on the matter at the time.

Funny enough ... 50's known for calling out real-life snitches, like Tekashi 6ix9ine, who he savagely roasted on social media upon news that Tekashi had cut a deal with the feds by diming out his associates in his racketeering case.