Anchorage PD 2 Officers Found in Violation For Selfies with 'White Privilege' Card Driver

PRIVILEGE PASS

Just to be clear ... Anchorage PD frowns upon cops joking and taking selfies with potentially impaired drivers who flash a "white privilege" card -- instead of a driver's license -- as identification.

Yeah, this is actually a thing that happened. The dept just announced its findings after investigating the July incident where officers pulled over Mimi Israelah at 3:30 AM for weaving. She recorded video, which she posted but since deleted, showing officers Nicholas Bowe and Charles Worland laughing as she presented the novelty I.D. card.

One of the cops said it was "hilarious." Many people online had a much different reaction when Israelah's video went viral -- they were outraged and called on law enforcement in the Alaskan city to do something.

For the record, the cops said Israelah showed no signs of impairment, and they didn't give her a ticket -- but lots of folks thought they just let her off because they loved her gag.

If nothing else she could've been cited for not having a license on her while driving.

On Thursday, Deputy Chief Sean Case said, "We recognize that the [Facebook] post, what was contained in that post, caused a bit of a public uproar, and there were a lot of people that saw that and did not like that post."

While the 2 officers were found to have violated department policy, Anchorage PD wouldn't go further into specifics ... nor would they say what punishment, if any, they're facing.

Both officers are reportedly still employed with the department.

Trevor Noah Griner's Sentence Is 'Bulls***' 'Get The F*** Out Of Here'

callin' out Russia's bs
Comedy Central

Hours after Brittney Griner was sentenced by a Russian judge to 9 years in prison ... Trevor Noah went IN on the foreign country -- dragging Vladimir Putin, while calling Thursday's ruling complete "bulls***."

Noah held nothing back on "The Daily Show," accusing Russia of using Griner and her drug trial as political pawns to gain leverage on the U.S.

"We all know Russia doesn’t care about what Brittney Griner did," Noah said. "This is the same country that’s breaking every human rights law on the planet, but they’re like, ‘That woman has vape cartridge. She’s real criminal.'"

"Get the f*** out of here, man!"

SENTENCED TO PRISON

Noah went on to repeatedly call Thursday's ruling "bulls***."

The comedian, though, did say there is a sliver of positive news to come out of Griner's sentence -- the U.S. and Russia can now seemingly begin prisoner swap talks earnestly.

And, Noah's clearly all in favor of giving the country whatever it wants to get the WNBA star back.

"Yeah, it seems like they win, but don’t forget, that person now has to live in Russia," Noah said. "Yeah, yeah. They’ll get there and be like, 'This whole country is prison. I miss food in Alcatraz, no!'"

Griner's Phoenix Mercury teammates, meanwhile, honored their star center with a 42-second moment of silence before their game against the Connecticut Sun on Thursday night.

Players from both teams linked arms during the pregame ceremony -- and at the tail-end of it all, an arena-wide "Bring Her Home!" chant broke out.

Griner will have the opportunity to appeal her sentence -- though in all likelihood, her only way of getting out of Russia before the end of the 9-year sentence is through a prisoner trade.

Disney World 'Toy Story' Hug Characters Need to Embrace Kids of All Races ... Says Fam in Viral Video

The family behind the viral video of Woody and Jessie from 'Toy Story' making sure to hug their kids at Disney World say their experience needs to be the norm for all children ... regardless of race.

PARADE PALS
TMZ.com

The parents, Candice and Harold, say they didn't know about the controversy swirling right now about costumed characters at other venues allegedly snubbing Black kids. They merely posted video because they were glad their daughter, Hayyn, got a hug from her favorite Disney character.

WOODY TO THE RESCUE
TikTok/@lifesigma

The parents say Hayyn would have been happy to get a wave from Jessie -- and it was a huge bonus when Woody flagged down Jessie to give the little girl a hug.

Hayyn was waiting on Jessie for the whole parade ... even wearing a Jessie dress, while holding Jessie and Woody dolls.

Of course, after posting their video they became aware of the allegations at Sesame Place and Chuck E. Cheese, and Harold and Candice say everyone's child deserves at least some kind of acknowledgment -- even if it's just a wave or blown kiss from their favorite character.

JULY 2022
SESAME SNUB
Instagram / @__jodiii__

As we've reported, there's now a class action lawsuit filed against Sesame Place in Philadelphia.

There's no doubt that case helped fuel online interest in Hayyn's Disney World hug -- a prime example of how these interactions should ideally play out ... for all kids.

Wiz Khalifa Sits with Envy & Drama ... Apologizes for Nightclub DJs Rant

Wiz Khalifa's finally breaking his silence about his angry tirade toward a pair of L.A.-based DJs inside a nightclub ... and he's admitting he was outta line.

During a special edition Breakfast Club interview on Friday, DJ Envy took it upon himself to interview Wiz alongside DJ Drama to rep for all the turntablists worldwide … who may have been bothered at the sight of the star rapper trashing their backup support.

For his part, Wiz didn’t hide behind his celebrity, admitting he wasn’t too big to say he was sorry.

“I apologize to anybody I’ve offended … sincerely,” the Taylor Gang CEO said to kick off the interview, before explaining what went down, from his POV.

According to Wiz, he was booked at club Poppy in WeHo to promote his new album, “Multiverse,” but when it came for his time on the mic, the song order -- which his team sent beforehand -- was outta wack. Also, other songs not included in the setlist randomly popped up during the performance.

Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.

Wiz admits that's when he lost his cool -- but in the aftermath, he's taken a lot of heat from the tight-knit DJ community, perhaps most notably from Kid Capri … who actually had a hand in staging the Breakfast Club summit.

Envy says Capri called him asking for Drama’s number and shortly after, the interview was set.

Wiz says he reached out to the DJ, Mikey Danger, multiple times … we have as well.

It sounds like everyone just had a bad day. Back to the "Multiverse!"

Tyler Perry I Don't Want To Talk Race with My 7-Yr-Old Son Yet!!!

Tyler Perry won't be having "the talk" with his son any time soon, because despite increased racial tensions in the country ... he doesn't want a 7-year-old to have to think about those issues. Not yet.

Tyler opened up about this critical parenting decision, during an interview with AARP -- yes, he's over 50 -- where he said he wants to wait as long as possible to talk to Aman about race and racism in the world.

He explained, “I don’t want to tell him that there are people who will judge him because of the color of his skin, because right now he’s in a school with every race, and all these kids are in their purest form. When he describes his friends, he never defines them by race”.

In case you didn't know, Tyler had Aman with model Gelila Bekele, and although the couple reportedly ended things back in 2020 -- after more than a decade together -- they are happily co-parenting.

"The talk" ... as all Black American families know it ... has been a big topic in society in the wake of George Floyd's 2020 murder -- so, Tyler's approach is interesting. The sad fact is most Black children can't be shielded from the harsh reality of racism, but Tyler would be the first to say he's in an extremely fortunate position.

He says, "the moment [Aman] loses that innocence is going to be a very, very sad day for me" ... but, he acknowledged the day will come eventually, since his son is already asking tough questions.

More than anything ... Tyler says he wants to have the talk so his son will not tolerate injustice, and work to make a change in the world.

Monkeypox U.S. Asleep at the Wheel in Responding ... Report

There is growing evidence U.S. health officials ignored obvious signs monkeypox would become a health emergency, especially when it came to stockpiling vaccines.

The U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services had significant stockpiles of the vaccine but simply didn't have the foresight to bottle it so it could be quickly distributed ... this according to New York Times sources.

And, there's more ... there's a small company in Denmark that manufactures the vaccine worldwide, and the U.S. was so slow in putting in orders to bottle the vaccines ... the company gave hundreds of thousands of does to European countries ... doses that had been initially earmarked for the U.S.

So now, with more than 7,000 reported cases in the U.S. and counting, the government is distributing just over a million doses, yet it will take a minimum of 3 1/2 mil minimum to fight the outbreak. And, it gets worse ... the U.S. has ordered 5.5 million additional doses, but only half a million will be delivered this year, and not until October. The rest won't be delivered until 2023.

RIGHT ON TRACK
CNN

Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator, was grilled on CNN Friday about the U.S. response, and he struggled to explain why the U.S. was slow in responding.

RUNNING OUT OF TIME
TMZ.com

Dr. Anne Rimoin, a UCLA professor of epidemiology, said on "TMZ Live" Thursday she has been studying monkeypox in Africa for 2 decades and this was a slow-moving train that inevitably would make its way to the U.S., yet officials were asleep at the wheel.

Elon Musk Feds Drug Tested Me After Blazing with Joe Rogan

RIPPED FOR RIPS
Full Send Podcast

Elon Musk says he fell under a government microscope after smoking weed with Joe Rogan ... claiming the feds randomly drug tested him.

The world's richest man sat down for a podcast Tuesday with the Nelk Boys, recalling the backlash he got from Uncle Sam over what he says was one measly rip from a blunt while on Rogan's show.

SEPTEMBER 2018
RIPPIN' THAT DANK
Joe Rogan Experience

Remember, Elon blazed it up with Joe back in September 2018, sparking up on camera while talking about Tesla's plans for an airplane. The video went viral and then Tesla's stock briefly plummeted on the heels of the smoke sesh.

Elon says the federal response was "pretty nutty" ... explaining the problem is ganja is still illegal federally, and because he runs SpaceX -- which holds lucrative government contracts -- the feds tested him for a range of illicit drugs.

It's interesting ... Elon claims the real driving force behind the random drug tests were his SpaceX competitors, who he says pressured the feds to test his urine.

Elon's sit-down with the Nelk Boys featured a hard seltzer, but he won't have to worry about the feds hounding him over alcohol.

Ex-Patriot Rich Ohrnberger I Intentionally Crashed My Car ... Running Late, Scared Belichick Would Cut Me

TOTALLY TARDY
XTRA1360/ Hartman & Rich O Show

Former Patriots O-lineman Rich Ohrnberger was so afraid of being cut by Bill Belichick ... he intentionally rear-ended a van while on his way to practice after running late to a team meeting!!

Ohrnberger -- a fourth-round pick in the 2009 NFL draft -- made the confession Thursday on the "The Hartman And Rich O Show" ... saying he purposely got into a fender bender so he wouldn't have to face the wrath of the future Hall of Fame head coach.

"I was driving a Chevy Tahoe, and it says I'm late already," Ohrnberger recalled, continuing, "Or, I'm gonna be. I'm like 5 minutes to being officially late, and I've got a 15-minute drive ahead of me."

Rich -- who only spent two seasons with New England -- said he was terrified of what the notoriously strict coach might do.

"I had this sinking feeling in my stomach," and the entire time, he kept thinking to himself, "I'm gonna get cut."

Ohrnberger said he noticed a beat-up van and came up with the idea that if he got into an accident, that would be the perfect excuse for why he was late for the team meeting.

"And I'm cruising down this slight sloping hill that brings you to the first traffic light," Ohrnberger said, "that I have to turn right to get to the stadium for the morning meeting."

"I see a church van in front of me that's all dinged up, and it's got the black smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe, and I'm just like, 'I'm gonna hit this car.'"

Ohrnberger said he figured it's better to deal with the consequences of the collision -- banging up his car, etc. -- than dealing with Bill scolding him for being tardy.

Little did Rich know ... the church van he hit had an elderly man inside, but luckily, the old guy didn't sustain any injuries during the minor collision, and his van was okay, too.

Bottom line ... be on time for Belichick's meetings!!

Ahmaud Arbery Murderers Judge Upholds Federal Hate Crime Conviction

The 3 men found guilty of Ahmaud Arbery's murder are getting rejected by a federal judge ... who's affirmed their convictions for federal hate crimes.

Gregory McMichael, Travis McMichael and William "Roddy" Bryan had filed motions to set aside the jury's guilty verdict, but on Thursday a federal judge told them there was "more than sufficient evidence" to nail them for the 2020 murder of Ahmaud.

Their federal convictions -- which came down in February -- were for killing Ahmaud based on his race and kidnapping. In denying their motion the judge relied on social media posts from the defendants that negatively compared Black people to white people, generally.

FEBRUARY 2020
IN COLD BLOOD

Specifically, the judge pointed out Gregory McMichael had posted, "all these blacks are nothing but trouble; I wish they would all die."  ... and made disparaging comments about a Black tenant.

SENTENCED TO LIFE
FOX 30

All 3 are still awaiting their sentences in the federal case, but whatever they get is more symbolic than anything after their Georgia murder convictions and sentencing. The McMichaels got life sentences with no parole, and Bryan got a life sentence with the possibility of parole.

Hockey Player Kicks Opponent In Face With Skate ... Cops Investigating

SKATING SKIRMISH
LiveBarn

A hockey player from an adult league in Canada straight-up kicked an opponent in the face with his skate during a mid-game scuffle ... and the incident was so reckless, police now tell TMZ Sports they're investigating it all.

The scary scene happened during an Adult Safe Hockey League game on July 29th at Scotia Barn in Burnaby.

You can see in the video from the arena, two players from opposing teams were fighting each other in the 3rd period ... when, suddenly, one of the guys appeared to intentionally kick the other with the blade of his skate.

The player wearing a #90 jersey immediately fell onto the ice and covered his face. His teammates, meanwhile, went after the kick suspect before refs ultimately intervened. The guy was issued a penalty, and ejected from the game.

The Burnaby Royal Canadian Mounted Police tells us the victim received medical treatment for injuries he suffered from the kick -- adding that they've since launched an investigation.

"Burnaby RCMP is continuing to investigate the circumstances and actions that led to the player’s injuries," the officials said.

"Burnaby RCMP is in possession of video showing one angle of the incident, which has been collected as evidence. Investigators are still in the process of speaking with players and witnesses."

In addition to the ejection, the kick suspect also received an indefinite suspension from the ASHL, which said in a statement, "The conduct and on-ice behaviour depicted in the video in no way aligns with the values of our league and the rules of the game."

"While we acknowledge that the total prevention of incidents like this is not possible, we will continue to ensure that such incidents are treated with appropriate supplemental discipline, including the potential for a player to be permanently expelled from the league."

Chuck E. Cheese Mom of Snubbed Kid ... Ramping Up to Sue

CHUCK CHECKS OUT
Twitter / @belllahijabi

Chuck E. Cheese has a hot mess on its hands -- and no, we're not talking about its pizza ... it's a possible lawsuit from the mom of the child who was snubbed by their mascot.

Naney D. Muhammad is the mother of the young Black girl who recently got the cold shoulder at a CEC in New Jersey -- and she tells TMZ ... yes, she's preparing to take legal action against the pizza chain for what she considers overt and blatant racist behavior.

SEEING A PATTERN
TMZ.com

Nancy says she's noticed a pattern of this sort of thing at amusement parks and indoor play areas for children -- and finds it heartbreaking she and her daughter were on the receiving end of it at Chuck E. Cheese.

She tells us CEC corporate fired off a standard statement she feels is empty and void of an apology ... and, as a result, says she's consulting with her lawyer for next steps so justice can be achieved. In her eyes, no kid should be made to feel how hers did that day.

Of course, this might just be the latest in what could become several lawsuits -- we've already seen things like this happen at Sesame Place. One class action lawsuit's already been filed against that Pennsylvania theme park.

JULY 2022
SESAME SNUB
Instagram / @__jodiii__

Speaking of Sesame, Nancy tells us she sees similarities in what happened with Chuck ... but despite that, would still be willing to take her daughter to see Elmo and co. Watch to see why.

Terrell Owens Heated Dispute With Neighbor ... Cops Involved

8/3/22
HARRASSED AT HOME
UPDATE

9:55 AM PT -- The Broward County Sheriff's Office tells TMZ Sports ... officers responded to the scene of the argument at around 10:30 PM on Wednesday -- but did not make any arrests.

UPDATE

"The parties were separated," cops tell us, "and the situation resolved."

Terrell Owens got into such a heated argument with a woman in his neighborhood on Wednesday night, cops had to get involved ... and when they arrived, the woman quarreling with the football legend screamed at T.O., "You're a Black man approaching a white woman!"

Parts of the incident were captured by Owens on his social media live stream -- after he and one of his neighbors apparently got into a dispute over the way he had been driving around his neighborhood.

Owens began filming the incident moments after cops had arrived on the scene.

In the footage, the woman accused T.O. of driving recklessly, nearly hitting her with his car, and then getting out of his ride to intimidate her. Owens adamantly denied the allegations, saying he was driving safely, and only got out of his vehicle because she was screaming profanities at him.

THE FULL INTERACTION

"You don't yell at me and tell me I almost hit you and I didn't," Owens can be heard telling the woman in the video.

"But, you didn't have to get out of your f***ing car!" she replied.

Owens continued, "You didn't have to talk to me that way, either! Karen!"

That's when the woman yelled back, "You're a Black man approaching a white woman!"

The woman then broke down in tears a few moments later. Owens accused her of hamming it up for the cop on the scene.

The police officer attempted to de-escalate the situation -- separating the two -- but it's unclear how it was all resolved ... Owens signed off before the cops left.

The 48-year-old former Dallas Cowboys star did caption the video by writing, "KAREN IS REAL!!!!"

"Wow!! JUST A NORMAL NIGHT OF BEING A BLACK MAN IN AMERICA 🤷🏾‍♂️😂😂," he continued. "I want to say I can’t believe it but y’all know what it is. #karenonbikes #tears #falseaccusations #hernameiskate"

We've reached out to Owens and cops to try to get more information on the incident, but so far, no word back yet.

'Selling Sunset' Heather Rae Young Sues Strip Club ... Don't Use My Pic for Promo!!!

"Selling Sunset" star Heather Rae Young is going after a strip club she says used her image to promote NFL viewing parties ... and now, she wants them to pay.

Heather and two other women just filed legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- claiming Platinum West and Platinum Plus Gentlemen's clubs in SC and PA, respectively, plastered their images on promo posters to get patrons into the club.

In the docs, Heather includes the flyer she says Platinum West used with her image for Sunday and Monday night football events ... with the phrase, "Cheerleaders for Every Fan."

Heather says she never had any sort of agreement, or communications at all with Platinum ... and to use her image to allure guests is plain old false advertising. Not only that, Heather claims the club is defaming her by making it appear she works there as a stripper.

As for the two other women -- Amber Lancaster and Jaime Edmondson Longoria -- suing the club ... Lancaster works on "The Price is Right" and was previously crowned Miss Washington Teen USA, Longoria has worked for Playboy and as a Dolphins cheerleader ... and is married to SF Giants All-Star Evan Longoria.

They're suing to have the club stop using their images as well as for damages and defamation.

Deshaun Watson NFL Appealing QB's 6-Game Suspension

Deshaun Watson could be suspended for more than 6 games after all ... the NFL announced Wednesday it is appealing Monday's initial ruling.

The league had three days to decide if it would appeal Sue L. Robinson's choice to only ban Watson for six games, and after using nearly every allotted hour, The Shield revealed it will now do it.

According to a statement from the league, the appeal will either be heard by commissioner Roger Goodell or his designee. Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Goodell or his designee will then "issue a written decision that will constitute final disposition of the dispute and is binding."

It is expected that this will mean Watson will serve a ban longer than six games.

In fact, famed business and legal analyst Andrew Brandt told "TMZ Live" on Tuesday he expected that if the league appealed the suspension, it would not only increase the ban, but would also tag on a "big fine."

8/2/22
TIME IS TICKING
TMZSports.com

As we reported, Robinson initially handed down the suspension after she ruled the 26-year-old QB had been sexually inappropriate with multiple female massage therapists.

For his part, Watson, who signed a huge contract with the Browns after being traded from the Texans this offseason, had previously denied any wrongdoing in the case.

Disney World's Woody Makes Sure Black Kids Greeted ... No Sesame Place Drama!!!

WOODY TO THE RESCUE
TikTok/@lifesigma

Someone at Disney World is reading headlines, or so it seems based on how a Woody character went out of the way to engage Black children waiting along a parade route.

Check out this video posted by a proud dad who took his 2 young kids to Disney's Orlando theme park this week -- it shows the little ones shouting out to a costumed Jessie mascot from the 'Toy Story' franchise as the characters walk down the street lined with cheering fans.

Jessie was on the other side of the street and appeared preoccupied entertaining that part of the crowd, but her pal Woody notices some Black kids and actually responds to them.

Check it out ... Woody flags Jessie down, points to the young'ns ... and they both head over to interact with them -- which is obviously awesome, since they were desperately trying to get Jessie's attention and seem to be really big fans.

JULY 2022
SESAME SNUB
Instagram / @__jodiii__

Not to turn this into a negative story -- because it's obviously very sweet -- but one can't ignore this happened in the midst of what's become a disturbing trend lately ... namely, mascots/costumed characters at theme parks and such snubbing Black children, allegedly intentionally.

It's been happening all over the country, it seems ... whether it's Sesame Place, Disneyland or even Chuck E. Cheese. All over, some messed-up videos have circulated appearing to show classic characters either ignoring or walking away from kids of color.

Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.

While most of the establishments have denied any overt racist intentions, people are having a hard time buying that.

It's hard to say for sure whether Woody here had any of that on his mind when he did what he did ... but it's certainly possible. Considering how big this controversy has gotten in recent weeks, ya gotta imagine some higher-ups at places like this have had talks with their staff.

Beyonce Monica Lewinsky Gets Stung ... For Asking Bey to Change 'Partition' Lyric

Monica Lewinsky is taking fire from the Beyhive, after she obliquely asked Beyonce to change the lyric of one of her old songs.

As you may know, Monica chimed in over a word in Bey's song "Heated" from her "Renaissance" album -- Bey used the word "spa***n" and "s**z" ... insulting words referencing a disability. Beyonce's team said there was no offense meant and they were unaware it was offensive, so it was removed from the song.

Apparently, Monica now feels emboldened, and suggested Beyonce remove a lyric from her 2013 hit "Partition."  The lyric in question ... "He popped all my buttons, and he ripped my blouse/He Monica Lewinsky'd all on my gown."

In case you don't know -- but you should -- the lyric references Monica's famed Gap dress, in which Bill Clinton's sperm/DNA linked him to her.

Monica wrote an article years ago in Vanity Fair, informing Bey she was incorrect ... if she was set on the lyric, it should have gone like this ... "He Bill Clinton'd all on my gown." It's a solid point.

The Beyhive is infuriated at Monica, with one member tweeting, "Rap song muse is in your bio. You like the references. Only relevance you have as of lately." Another tweeted, "It's a 10-year-old song and the answer is NO."

Who needs bodyguards when you have the hive?

Old news is old news!
Be First!

Get TMZ breaking news sent right to your browser!