CELEBRITY JUSTICE ™

DDG's celebrating a big legal victory -- he's no longer facing charges for illegal gun possession -- and it's perfect timing, as the platinum-selling rapper has a big summer tour.

We spoke to DDG's manager, Dimitri Hurt ... who tells TMZ Hip Hop the new California gun laws allowing for more concealed weapons also played into the District Attorney's decision to reject the case and not pursue charges.

An excited DDG took to Instagram to celebrate the news, thanking Dimitri and jokingly calling vlogger Charleston White his "lawyer" in Akademiks comment section ... but it's actually Dimitri.

TMZ Hip Hop broke open the story ... LAPD pulled over DDG on June 7 for allegedly speeding and swerving in his Lambo, and he admitted having a loaded firearm in the whip.

Dimitri says DDG did make the honest mistake of speeding to a video shoot with the firearm, but with the charges dropped, he's now clear to travel for work.

This week, it's onward to Europe for the U.K.'s 2022 Wireless Fest, a Rolling Loud Portugal ... followed by shows in Amsterdam, Germany, Denmark and Poland as they make their way back to the U.S.

Britney Spears is not going to sit willingly for a deposition ... that was made clear by her lawyer, who filed legal docs saying Jamie Spears is "shameless"  by, among other things, asking a judge for a depo date "shortly after his daughter's wedding and just before Father's Day."

Attorney Mathew Rosengart claims in searing legal docs ... "Mr. Spears refuses to simply go away, as he should and as any decent man or father would do." Rosengart goes on to say Jamie is piling up legal fees to rehabilitate his reputation.

Rosengart says there's no legitimate purpose to force Britney into a deposition and calls it "morally abominable" and "revenge."

Britney and Rosengart have accused Jamie of gross conflicts of interest -- among other things, alleging he approved unjustified fees requested by business manager Lou Taylor and used Britney's money to pay for unwarranted personal expenses.

On the other hand, among the abuses, Britney has alleged ... that Jamie illegally forced her into rehab and refused to allow her to remarry. These are alleged abuses that might convince a judge that he has a right to confront Britney over these claims. The counter to that is that Rosengart is simply asking for an accounting to determine if Jamie squandered Britney's money, and that can be determined without Britney's direct participation.

A man who has already been arrested for stalking Ariana Grande has been arrested again ... this time after breaking into her Montecito home on her 29th birthday.

Aharon Brown has a history of dogging Ariana. He was arrested last September at her L.A. home after showing up with a large hunting knife, allegedly screaming at her security, "I'll f***ing kill you and her!" He was arrested for making criminal threats and a judge issued a restraining order prohibiting him from coming near Ariana.

That did not stop him. He violated the restraining order recently by trying to find Ariana and apparently got close. He was supposed to turn himself in Tuesday for violating the restraining order, but Sunday he traveled to Montecito and broke into her house.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... on Sunday, Brown somehow got into Ariana's Montecito home. She was NOT home at the time, but the security alarm went off and cops showed up and arrested Brown.

Johnny Depp's attorney Camille Vasquez is plotting her next move after winning his case against Amber Heard ... and she's in high demand in both the legal world and Hollywood.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ … Camille's considering a wide range of career options in the wake of the Depp-Heard trial, and her rise to fame, including media, law and even authoring a book.

Camille's a "big get" for lots of Hollywood bigwigs ... we're told she's speaking with agents and network execs about a bunch of projects ... like broadcasting roles, speaking engagements, branding opportunities and even starting her own production company.

We're told Camille's taking it slow, and is trying to decide if Hollywood, law or both are the right fit.

As for law ... we're told she's being courted by some major law firms. It makes sense ... law firms are all about snagging clients, and Camille is now in high demand by litigants around the country. We're told at least 4 big law firms are making a full-court press, and last Wednesday in NYC she met with a managing partner at one of them.

She's getting hit up by scores of folks who need a lawyer, and we're told there's one high-profile potential client who's close to going to trial, and she's interested in the case.

As we reported, Camille was hailed as "Wonder Woman" on her way to NYC ... jumping to aid a passenger who was suffering a medical emergency on her flight.

She's also pondering the idea of writing a book ... in her spare time, right?

As Camille mulls over her next move, we're told she's visiting her boyfriend, Ed, at his place in London, where they plan to celebrate her upcoming birthday.

Camille told us she was going to see Johnny again ... and our sources say they're trying to put something on the calendar while they're both in Europe.

Sounds like Camille's got quite the summer ahead.

Amber Heard is now officially on the hook for $8.35 million, and she could be on the hook for even more if she appeals the defamation verdict.

As you know, a jury awarded Johnny Depp the $8.35M after an explosive trial. The judge Friday officially entered the judgment into the court record, and there's a string attached if Amber decides to go forward with an appeal.

The judge said if Amber appeals she must post a bond in the full amount of Johnny's judgment PLUS 6% -- that's an additional $621k. Presumably, the 6% is an interest penalty for a delay in collection.

As for Amber, her rep released a statement invoking, of all things, the January 6th House hearings, stating ... she will indeed appeal, saying, "As stated in yesterday's congressional hearings, you don't ask for a pardon if you are innocent.  And, you don't decline to appeal if you know you are right."

Amber Heard is speaking out and showing her face for the first time since losing big in the Johnny Depp case -- saying she holds no ill-will toward the jury, but social media is another story.

The actress sat down for an interview with 'Today,' which is going to be aired in pieces throughout the week ... but right out the gate, NBC is teasing a couple juicy soundbites from her chat with Savannah Guthrie in which AH gets into her feelings about the trial.

For starters, she discusses the social media coverage -- which was overwhelmingly in favor of her ex, Johnny Depp, and which she was clearly aware of during the 6-week proceedings.

She says even if you don't believe her/think she lied, you can't deny the posts in the digital world have been lopsided, suggesting there hasn't been a "fair representation" of both sides online.

Interestingly, Amber's attorney, Elaine Bredehoft, also tried to deflect blame toward the viral aspect of the saga, rather than take ownership of the loss.

As for the 7 men and women who said they didn't buy her account, Amber says there's no hard feelings, but she thinks it was Depp's personality and super-stardom that won them over.

Watch the clip, she seems to think JD charmed their pants off, and she also believes the fact Depp's side was able to present witnesses first also helped.

Young Thug still found a way to be at Hot 97's Summer Jam even though he's locked up on RICO charges -- thanking fans for their support during an uncertain time.

We caught Young Thug's somber, yet uplifting message from inside MetLife Stadium where he urged fans and onlookers to help fuel the Protect Black Art initiative, a law that could prevent prosecutors from using rappers' lyrics in court against them.

“I just want to say thank you to all of my friends and my family for coming out and supporting us,” Thug began. “You know, your support during this time means a lot to us, ya know.”

"You know, this isn’t just about me or YSL, I always use my music as a form of artistic expression, and now I see that Black artists and rappers don’t have that, you know, freedom,” he continued. “Everybody please sign the ‘Protect Black Art’ petition and keep praying for us. I love you all.”

Team YSL has been getting plenty of support from fellow high-profile rappers like Drake and Lil Baby, with Meek Mill being the latest as he took time outta his Summer Jam set to double down PBA support.

Johnny Depp clearly understands the power of TikTok, but his attorneys reject the notion it had any impact on the verdict ... instead, they say it's Amber Heard's testimony that hurt her with the jury.

Camille Vasquez -- fresh off her promotion to partner in her law firm -- and Ben Chew told ABC's George Stephanopoulos their strategy was to use Amber's own words against her ... carefully crafting their questions based on her previous testimony. Vasquez believes that showed the jury all it needed to know about Amber.

As for Team Amber's claim the jury was influenced by the overwhelming support for Johnny on social media -- including TikTok, which Depp joined Tuesday -- Chew says it "played no role whatsoever," and the jury reached the verdict purely based on the evidence presented by both sides.

Remember, the jury was not sequestered, and the criticism is it would've been impossible for them to avoid the flood of posts supporting Johnny and attacking Amber.

Vasquez also shot down the idea the #MeToo movement was setback by the verdict in Johnny's favor -- saying, "We encourage any victim to come forward. Domestic violence doesn't have a gender." She added, "The facts are what they were. The jury made a unanimous decision based on those facts."

Chew and Vasquez carefully skirted a question about the possibility of Johnny striking a deal ... where he would let Amber off the hook for the $8.35 million judgment, and she would not file an appeal ... as she's claimed she intends to do.

Amber Heard’s sister has no regrets about the outcome of the Johnny Depp trial -- putting on a united front even in defeat.

Whitney Henriquez shared her support for her “sissy” on IG, this a few days after a jury ruled in favor of her ex-brother-in-law. She didn’t mince words … saying she’d do it all over again. The photo attached was just a hashtag -- #istandwithamberheard.

WH says, “I still stand with you, sissy. Yesterday, today and tomorrow I will always be proud of you for standing up for yourself, for testifying both here in Virginia and in the UK, and for being the voice of so many who can’t speak to the things that happen behind closed doors."

She adds, “We knew that this was going to be an uphill battle and that the cards were stacked against us. But you stood up and spoke out regardless."

Whitney says she knows what she saw, and would get on the stand for Amber a “million times over.” She also says she still stands with AH — as do others, despite the outcome.

You'll recall, Whitney was one of a handful of witnesses for Team Amber in the 6-week trial down in Virginia — and she was key, because she was the only person who could say they’d seen a physical fight with their own two eyes. Whitney claimed Johnny struck her first, and then went on to pummel Amber at the top of a staircase … aka, the “Kate Moss moment."

The opportunity to testify once more on Amber’s behalf might come sooner than later … assuming her sibling actually follows up with appealing the verdict like she’s said she will.

Lisa Bloom says her clients are already feeling the impact of the Depp-Heard trial by being silenced -- but she's being labeled a hypocrite ... because of Harvey Weinstein.

The famed women's rights attorney -- who has made a career following in the footsteps of her mother, Gloria Allred, by repping women with claims against high-profile men -- shared some insight into how the verdict against Amber is taking a toll on other alleged victims.

She writes, "I had to advise two women today that if they speak out about their sexual assaults, they can be sued. Even if they don't name their abuser. Even if they don't identify him by job or relationship. One wept at being silenced. The fallout from (Depp vs. Heard)."

Lisa also addressed a caveat proposed by some who say truthful accusers are A-OK ... "Some of you said they need not worry if they are telling the truth. If only. Defamation case = years of anguish in pretrial proceedings + 2-5 years to get to trial + a half mil to a million $ in attorneys fees (not to me). Few have the emotional strength and wealth for that."

It's a fair point ... women, in general, might second guess going public with allegations now, especially knowing they could be sued and lose. But, the flip side of that argument is ... Amber was literally one woman making claims against Johnny, while no other woman did.

Comparing JD to the likes of Weinstein or other notorious #MeToo men with a sea of accusers isn't fair -- you could say this was a unique one-off that won't have a chilling effect ... especially if you believe Amber lied, which a vast majority of folks (including the jury) do.

Speaking of Weinstein, Lisa's history with the guy is resurfacing in the wake of these comments of hers. Many are pointing out what they see as her being sanctimonious ... seeing how she was advising HW at the beginning of his own scandal in 2017.

As we reported, Lisa was doing extensive investigative work for Weinstein in the summer of 2017 ... looking into Rose McGowan and other accusers who were going public.

While that was true at the time, so too is the fact that Lisa has repped scores of women over the years, specifically alleged victims. So whether it's her or someone else, the argument has been and will continue to be made ... this verdict was mega.

GoFundMe is wasting no time in cracking down on pages trying to make money following the Johnny Depp and Amber Heard trial ... removing a phony $1 million campaign claiming to be raising money for Amber to pay Johnny's damages.

Shortly after the verdict, a fundraiser, created by someone named Kimberly Moore, was set up to help Heard. Moore claimed to have made contact with Heard's legal team and vowed Amber would have direct access to any money raised.

The page's description read, "I believe Amber, and social media protected the abuser. The judgment exceeds her net worth. It's so sad that he was able to get away with the abuse. The judgment furthers that abuse. If you can please help her."

However, a spokesperson for GoFundMe says they were able to flag the profile quickly -- before a substantial amount of money was raised. It was determined neither Amber nor anyone on her team had created the page ... and it was shut down.

We're told, the platform will continue to look for fake pages and act accordingly.

Of course, Heard's been ordered to pay Depp $8.35 million ... though her team had said it will appeal.

Johnny Depp could have been Paul McCartney in Scotland Friday night ... the crowd went wild when he took the stage as fans screamed, "INNOCENT, INNOCENT!!!"

Johnny was back in action with Jeff Beck, this time at the Glasgow Concert Hall. The venue was packed to the gills, as 3,000 fans showed deafening approval as Johnny sang cover songs like "What's Going On?" and "Isolation."

You don't hear the crowd scream "innocent" in the video, but yeah, it happened.

Johnny was clearly in a great mood, but didn't laugh or joke ... especially about you know what.

Johnny sang and played guitar for around half an hour, and the crowd loved it. He came back for an encore ... The Beatle's "A Day in the Life," which, by the way, begins, "I read the news today ...."

Yeah, the news has been good for Johnny this week, with his resounding courtroom victory over Amber Heard.

Amber Heard's lawyer has a million gripes over the jury verdict ... saying the trial was a "zoo" and the jury was influenced by social media.

Elaine Charlson Bredehoft went on "Today" Thursday and complained that social media attacks against Amber made their way to jurors. True, she said, jurors were told not to look at social and traditional media coverage of the trial, but it was inescapable and unfairly tainted their view toward Amber.

And, then there's this ... Bredehoft groused that the judge would not let the jury know that a U.K. judge ruled Johnny a wife beater. Thing is ... the laws were different in that case, the defendant was different and, frankly, it would have been stunning and bizarre if the Virginia judge just allowed the jury to know about it.

The Johnny Depp-Amber Heard case is about to reach the finish line with a decisive winner, or maybe two potential losers -- and TMZ is streaming the announcement at 12 PM PT.

The jury reached its verdict Wednesday in Fairfax, VA -- where they've been deliberating for the past few days after a month-plus long trial ... with lots of twists and turns, but more importantly -- a mountain's worth of evidence and testimony.

They heard closing arguments on Friday, which saw attorneys for Depp and Heard plead their cases one last time in dramatic fashion. Camille Vasquez and co. told jurors to use their common sense, as did AH's lead lawyer, Ben Rottenborn -- albeit with a different spin.

Rottenborn said a decision against Amber will have devastating effects on DV victims -- sending a message to those who choose to speak their truths, but don't have the most convincing documentation of their trauma ... a category in which Amber seemed to fall.

Indeed ... while both Johnny and Amber had ample audio recordings of one another amid explosive fights -- it would appear only Johnny explicitly caught AH admitting to hitting him.

Of course, Johnny wasn't left looking like an angel by any means -- the infamous kitchen rampage tape was played in court, which shows him throwing a fit and slamming cabinets ... all while pouring himself a "mega pint" of wine, and finally catching Amber recording him.

There were also vile texts Johnny sent about Amber, which were shown to the jury as well. Plus, Johnny's history of substance abuse was put under the microscope ... something he owned up to. And, then there are Amber's alleged injury photos, of which there were several.

Amber also got some of her friends to testify on her behalf, claiming they saw the alleged injuries after the fact ... and would often rush to console her after a blowout fight with JD.

Speaking of one of those fights, a memorable moment -- and a total W for Team Johnny -- came when his ex, Kate Moss, took the stand virtually to bat down a rumor that Amber invoked when she was testifying about an alleged staircase tussle, where she said she thought Johnny would throw her sister down ... like he'd allegedly done to KM.

That turned out to be total BS though, as Kate herself said there was no truth to that story -- and it seemed to hurt Amber's credibility, as did other testimony ... a la the ACLU "pledge."

There was also the matter of feces that was addressed early and often ... which made for a ton of meme fodder and jokes online, and almost always at the expense of Amber. As you know, Johnny seems to believe either she and/or a friend left it behind in their bed.

But, Amber herself denied it under oath -- blaming one of their teacup Yorkies, who she said had bowel issues ever since eating some of Johnny's weed. The jury is still out on that one.

All the same, it's clear this trial and all the public backlash against Amber took its toll on her -- she cried throughout this trial, but was especially passionate toward the end ... saying she just wanted to get on with her life, and that she's been left virtually broken from all this.

Amber Heard says her loss in the Johnny Depp defamation case is a true "setback" for women who speak out, saying she feels she's lost her right to freedom of speech in the process.

Heard tells TMZ, "The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I'm heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband."

She continues, "I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously."

As we reported, Depp was awarded $10.35 million in damages Wednesday after a jury found Heard defamed him in her op-ed titled, "‘I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath." Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages.

Heard tells us, "I believe Johnny’s attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of Freedom of Speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we won in the UK."

Finally, she says, "I’m sad I lost this case. But I am sadder still that I seem to have lost a right I thought I had as an American – to speak freely and openly."

Johnny Depp has a new lease on life after being awarded more than $10 million in his defamation case against Amber Heard ... telling the world he's "truly humbled" by the jury's decision.

In a lengthy statement following his win Wednesday, Depp says, "Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed. All in the blink of an eye."

He continues, "False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me ... And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled."

As we reported, a jury found Heard's op-ed titled, "I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath" defamed the actor, and awarded him $10.35M in damages. Heard was awarded $2M in compensatory damages of her own.

Depp's statement continues, "My decision to pursue this case, knowing very well the height of the legal hurdles that I would be facing and the inevitable, worldwide spectacle into my life, was only made after considerable thought."

He says, "From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome. Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that."

Depp also gives love to his fans, many of whom were outside the court, saying, "I am, and have been, overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and the colossal support and kindness from around the world. I hope that my quest to have the truth be told will have helped others, men or women, who have found themselves in my situation, and that those supporting them never give up. I also hope that the position will now return to innocent until proven guilty, both within the courts and in the media."

Offering thanks to those involved in the case, "I wish to acknowledge the noble work of the Judge, the jurors, the court staff and the Sheriffs who have sacrificed their own time to get to this point, and to my diligent and unwavering legal team who did an extraordinary job in helping me to share the truth."