Controversial S#!T

R. Kelly just got a small victory in the sexual abuse lawsuit, which he'd lost by not responding -- 'cause the judge is giving him a do-over in court ... TMZ has learned.

As we first told you ... R. Kelly's new attorneys filed a motion in Cook County asking a judge to throw out the default judgment entered against the singer back in April when he didn't show up to fight the claims he'd allegedly sexually abused Heather Williams at age 16.

R. Kelly's lawyers argued he was confused and overwhelmed when he got served the court papers in jail. More importantly, they said he's illiterate, and didn't know what he was reading.

Looks like the judge bought that, and vacated the default judgment... which now means he can fight the lawsuit on its merits. Kelly's attorneys, Zaid Abdallah and Raed Shalabi tell us ... "We’ve never been part of a criminal case where an alleged victim has filed a civil case during a criminal proceeding."

Rick Singer, the man who pulled all the strings in the massive college admissions bribery case, is living the Porsche lifestyle while the clients he ratted out face years in prison.

Shirtless Rick was chillin' at a public pool Tuesday in St. Petersburg, Florida ... when a staffer from C13Originals spotted him and fired off questions ... but the mastermind was impenetrable.

As we reported ... Rick copped a plea to racketeering conspiracy, tax conspiracy, money laundering and obstruction of justice. He faces a maximum of 65 years in prison, but he'll get way less for turning on those from who he richly profited.

Rick, who raked in more than $25 mil from wealthy parents like Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman, has already been forced to forfeit millions ... but he's still got a fancy set of wheels.

Jenelle Evans' days as a 'Teen Mom' are done -- MTV has severed ties with her and her family following David Eason's murder of the family dog ... TMZ has confirmed.

A spokesperson for MTV tells us, "We have stopped filming with Jenelle Eason as of April 6, 2019 and have no plans to cover her story in the upcoming season." The rep also reiterated the company's previous firing of David, saying, "MTV ended its relationship with David Eason over a year ago in February 2018 and has not filmed any new episodes of 'Teen Mom 2' with him since."

You'll remember, David was fired as a result of homophobic comments he made ... and MTV has gone to great lengths to avoid dealing with him on the show.

Our sources say MTV executives told Jenelle's manager the killing of Nugget was the last straw and they feared he was out of control and wanted no part in what they see as a looming disaster. We're told Jenelle was making six figures per season and that is now gone. Jenelle is still with David.

The decision to cut ties with Jenelle comes on the heels of her husband shooting and killing her French Bulldog as punishment for nipping at their 2-year-old daughter, Ensley ... even though video of the incident showed it was far from a vicious attack.

The Columbus County Sheriff's Office and Animal Control have initiated a joint investigation into allegations of animal cruelty against David, who allegedly slammed the poor pup against their home's back deck before taking him into the woods and shooting him to death.

Law enforcement told us Animal Control officers did visit the family's property to do an initial check, but left without talking to anyone because they were scared away by "No Trespassing" signs and a pit bull on the porch.

As we've reported ... Eason also has a history of posting gun-crazed videos online flaunting his home arsenal, and has been accused of domestic violence.

Common's on a newfound mission to help victims of molestation -- like himself -- and says his just-released book is the first step in making it happen.

The multitalented star was leaving NBC in New York Tuesday when we asked about his new memoir, 'Let Love Have the Last Word,' and its shocking revelation that he was molested as a child.

Common tells us he's being open about his experience because he hopes it will encourage others to feel safe talking about it too ... and it will aid in the healing process.

In his book, the Oscar-winner shares how a repressed memory of being molested by a family friend -- whom he refers to as Brandon -- surfaced a couple years ago while acting out a scene with Laura Dern in the 2018 film, "The Tale."

Common's story details his personal journey as he works through the painful experience with the help of therapy ... and how he's still dealing with it on a daily basis.

Julian Assange won't survive extradition to the United States, because he may be a marked man ... so fears Pamela Anderson.

The former "Baywatch" star came on "TMZ Live" Tuesday hours after she visited Assange in prison and told us she's deathly afraid for his safety no matter where Assange is ... America, or otherwise.

As you know … Assange was forcibly removed from the Ecuadorean Embassy in the UK last month after the country withdrew his asylum. The United States has accused Assange of conspiring with Chelsea Manning to hack a classified Pentagon computer and wants the Wikileaks founder extradited to the U.S. to stand trial. He's currently in a maximum security facility in London.

Pam, a huge advocate for her friend Assange, believes there’s no chance he would withstand extradition … and she’s fighting like hell to make sure Julian isn’t extradited, telling us it's a matter of life and death.

As R. Kelly's battling one indictment, he could be staring down a brand new one -- a grand jury's set to hear evidence related to sex trafficking claims against the disgraced singer ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us federal prosecutors from the Northern District of Illinois will convene a grand jury later this month and offer up witness testimony detailing how Kelly allegedly bought plane tickets and set up hotel rooms for underage girls.

We're told prosecutors will also present emails and text messages that show the coordination Kelly's team used to set up the travel. Additionally, physical evidence will be presented ... which our sources say will include semen-stained clothing.

As we first reported ... the Illinois case is completely separate from 2 other probes currently underway with feds in New York. So, Kelly's mountain of legal trouble could be growing exponentially.

Britney Spears is in dire straits and a judge needs to protect her ... this according to Lynne Spears, who's acting quickly to make sure her own lawyer can argue her cause.

Lynne has filed new court docs, asking a judge to let her attorney appear at a court hearing Friday in Britney's conservatorship case. At the hearing, Lynne will ask the judge to order Britney's dad to include her in her daughter's treatment plan.

Jamie Spears is Britney's conservator and we know there is an extreme conflict between the 2 parents. Lynne is not asking to become a co-conservator with Jamie ... but she clearly has beef with him over the way Britney is being managed.

Lynne's lawyer says it is in Britney's best interest for her to have a voice in the situation.

As we reported, Britney is not doing well after her 30-day stay at a mental health facility. As we told you, her meds stopped working and doctors have been unable to find the right combination of drugs. As one source said, "Britney is making bad decisions and it's a problem."

"One thing about football is that nobody really cares what you say if you can play."

That's how Richard Sherman views the situation regarding his new 49ers teammate, Nick Bosa -- who's been at the center of controversy over tweets about Donald Trump and Colin Kaepernick.

Remember, back when he was a college student at Ohio State, Bosa referred to Kap as a "clown" -- which is interesting considering Sherman has been a strong supporter of Colin ever since the QB first began taking a knee during the national anthem.

The #2 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft also acknowledged scrubbing his social media pages of pro-Trump comments out of fear liberal fans in San Francisco wouldn't embrace him when he was drafted.

Sherman was asked about the situation by the Sacramento Bee -- and essentially said Bosa's views and previous comments won't matter if the guy produces on the field on Sundays.

“It’s not like something where guys are like, ‘Hey man, what about what you said?’ No. No. If he can play, he can play. If he can’t play, he won’t be here," Sherman said.

"But at the end of the day, that’s all that matters in football. Is he getting sacks on Sunday? Is he helping our team? Is he being a good teammate? Those are things that matter."

"Now, if he’s a bad teammate, that’s something we’ll address."

The star cornerback also weighed in on possible racial issues in the locker room stemming from Bosa's tweets and comments.

"At the end of the day, I think a guy that has played with African Americans his whole life, not saying he can’t be racist, but they know how to maneuver around African Americans," Sherman said.

9:55 AM PT -- R. Kelly's publicist, Darrell Johnson, tells us, "Mr. Kelly steadfastly proclaims his innocence and looks forward to a speedy trial. Again, the state has failed to bring forth any proof concerning the sex tape, while claiming there was wrong doing!"

7:55 AM PT -- R. Kelly's lawyers were told it's not enough to insinuate something rotten was going on between Michael Avenatti and State's Attorney Kim Foxx ... the judge just told the singer's lawyers they gotta say what they mean.

The lawyers asked the judge to order prosecutors to preserve all communications between Avenatti and Foxx, but they didn't say why. The judge wants to know why these communications are so important, and what it might prove. So, the lawyers were sent back to the drawing board to tell the judge why these communications could affect the case.

For his part, Avenatti states they have already uncovered texts and emails between himself and Foxx, and they were published by the Chicago Tribune weeks ago. It's unclear what more may exist, but Avenatti is claiming they have it all, and he came up clean.

7:14 AM PT -- R. Kelly just made his way inside the courthouse suited and booted with a huge entourage behind him. He kept it moving though, not stopping for questions or photos.

The judge still deciding whether there will be a live feed inside the courtroom -- we're waiting to see what the ruling is. Fingers crossed.

R. Kelly is on a collision course with another famous defendant -- Michael Avenatti -- and it could all come to a head Tuesday morning when the singer appears in court to possibly challenge the authenticity of a sex tape.

The embattled singer is trying to blow up the sex tape by suggesting something fishy was going on between Avenatti and Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx. In R. Kelly's legal docs, he notes Avenatti has publicly claimed to have had repeated conversations with Foxx, and based on what happened in the Jussie Smollett case, he describes the prosecutor as someone who is "able to be influenced and wowed."

He goes on to allege there are questions to suggest Foxx was "bullied or just simply manipulated by Avenatti."

Avenatti previously came forward with 2 sex tapes he claims show Kelly having sex with a 14-year-old girl ... and Kelly's legal team wanted to know more about Avenatti's relationship with Foxx, saying they were concerned Avenatti might have "bullied or simply manipulated" Foxx.

As we've reported ... the tapes are part of the new evidence that prompted prosecutors to hit R. Kelly with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

John Singleton's will is lacking a critical component that is wreaking havoc on his family ... and now his 7 children are all embroiled in conflict over their father's estate.

We've learned the children have lawyered up over John's estate, which is reportedly worth around $35 million. John's mom, Shelia Ward, filed his will in probate court last Friday, leaving all of his property to Justice, his firstborn.

Here are the major problems. The will was drafted in 1993 when Justice was John's only child. John left everything in his will to Justice.

Singleton had a total of 7 kids at the time of his death. The will never accounted for the additional 6 children. Under California law, unless the unborn children were specifically disinherited in the will when John signed it, they may have a legal claim to a portion of his estate. And, no such clause exists in the will.

Shelia is the executor of John's will, and when she filed her legal docs she listed his assets at around $3.8 mil. That means more than $31 million is unaccounted for. Most likely, John created a trust with assets that don't have to go through probate court. In other words, it's all taken care of outside the will.

We don't know who gets what in the trust ... because trust documents don't have to be filed in probate court. But, that is clearly the bulk of John's estate.

We know at least one of John's kids is furious at Shelia because while he was in a coma, 21-year-old Cleopatra accused Shelia of trying to cut all of John's kids out of his estate.

In addition to challenging the will, the kids could file a separate lawsuit if they have beef over the trust or whatever John created to dispose of the $31 mil. A legal fight may not just pit grandma against grandkids ... it could also pit some of the kids against the others.

Unless Layzie Bone can prove a DNA test with 99.9999999% accuracy is wrong, he IS the father of another child ... TMZ has learned.

We broke the story ... the Bone Thugs-N-Harmony rapper -- real name Steven Howse -- was involved in a paternity case in Michigan with the baby's mother, Shateira Marketa Childress. She claimed he was the father of her child, Sevyn, and turns out ... she was right.

According to the test report ... DNA samples were collected from the trio in April, and Layzie's been determined to be the biological father with almost 100 percent certainty.

As we told you, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is looking to establish Layzie as the father in order to determine how much he'll have to fork over in child support.

The rapper was involved in another paternity suit in 2013 with a different woman, and he was found to be the father that time as well. Layzie -- who apparently ain't all that lazy -- also has 3 other kids with his wife of many years.

Forget American Pharoah and Secretariat's legendary Kentucky Derby runs ... Saturday's DQ finish was the MOST shocking moment in race history, so says the HOF jockey, Jerry Bailey.

"By far," Jerry tells TMZ Sports ... "This Derby will be remembered for a long time."

You've seen the story by now ... Maximum Security's epic Derby victory this past weekend was vacated after a review showed the horse impeded others on the race track.

A lot of people -- including President Donald Trump -- called the decision to overturn the result BS ... but Jerry tells us race officials weren't wrong.

"The video clearly shows, at least in my opinion, that the stewards made the right call."

Jerry says it's a bummer for everybody involved -- from the owners to the fans to the bettors -- calling it "a shame."

But, Bailey says they got the ruling ultimately right in the end ... saying, "As soon as we looked at the tape, we saw it."

Donald Trump has just presented Tiger Woods with the Presidential Medal of Freedom -- and joked about how the two always remember the good things ... and never the bad.

Tiger was emotional as he accepted the award in front of his family and girlfriend -- and choked back tears as he spoke about his late father.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award in the United States -- and is given to people who make an especially great contribution to American society.

Trump had announced Woods would be receiving the award after Tiger won the 2019 Masters in Augusta.

Trump couldn't have been more complimentary to Woods -- hailing the 43-year-old as an extraordinary athlete and "also a great guy."

Trump says Woods inspired millions of Americans with his thrilling victories on the golf course -- including that amazing win at the 2019 Masters ... which Trump described as an "incredible comeback" after all of the physical ailments he's dealt with over the years.

POTUS also said Woods is the embodiment of the American spirit -- "always striving for greatness."

Woods thanked his kids, his mother and his girlfriend -- and shouted out the people who stuck with him through "the good and the bad, the highs and the lows."

Unclear if he was specifically referencing golf -- or his other issues over the years.

FS1 star Colin Cowherd desperately wants Baker Mayfield to know he doesn't hate him ... telling TMZ Sports, "Baker thinks I don't like him. I love Baker."

Of course, the two have had a rocky relationship over the past few years -- and the beef flared up again on Friday when Baker attacked Colin on Twitter.

Colin posted a video clip from 'The Herd' explaining why he thinks Baker and Browns GM John Dorsey are the perfect couple for Cleveland ... and that's when Mayfield responded, "you’re a donkey man."

Cowherd fired back saying, "I wish you would LISTEN before ruining my weekend" ... which prompted Baker to write, "Why would I listen to you instead of just reading the quote?"

"That’s exactly what you do when you go on air... skip all the details and important stuff, then go for the irrational opinion for clicks."

But, when we got Cowherd out at LAX just hours after the spat ... he told us he has NO beef with Baker -- and says he just wants to be friends!!!

"Send my best to Baker," Colin says ... "Baker thinks I don't like him, I love Baker."

As for Mayfield's side of the feud ... doesn't seem like the feeling's mutual -- 'cause he's gone after Colin SEVERAL times in the last couple years.

Michael Cohen's got the Monday blues on steroids ... he just checked himself into prison to begin his 3-year sentence -- but on the positive(ish) side he can hang with The Situation from "Jersey Shore."

President Trump's former personal attorney was spotted Monday arriving at the Federal Correctional Institution in Otisville, NY ... where he'll be incarcerated after pleading guilty to tax fraud and campaign finance violations.

As we reported ... Cohen was slapped with 8 federal charges in August 2018. The campaign finance violation was for his $130k hush payment to Stormy Daniels in the 11th hour of the 2016 election.

Before heading off to the minimum-security prison -- considered a haven for white-collar criminals and 70 miles away from his NYC crib -- Cohen told reporters outside his pad "there still remains much to be told and I look forward to the day when I can share the truth."

Cohen also appeared to take a shot at Trump ... saying by the time he's released he hopes "the country will be in a place without xenophobia, injustice and lies at the helm."

Jussie Smollett's "Empire" costars aren't satisfied with Fox's plan to keep the actor's character off the upcoming season and are lobbying network execs to bring him back full-time.

Sources on the show tell us cast members -- including Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard -- feel Jussie deserves a fair shake, and that should include a full return to the show. Just last week, Fox announced Jussie got an extension through season 6, but also ... it had no plans to bring his character back to the show.

Our sources say as soon as the announcement was made, Jussie's costars got busy contacting "Empire" brass and pushing for his return.

As for why ... we're told the cast feels Jussie's character was an incredibly important part of the show, and they don't feel his return will hurt ratings. In one of the final episodes of season 5, Jussie's character, Jamal, got married in the first gay, black wedding on primetime TV.

We got Jussie out just before the episode aired, and asked how he was feeling. He said, "Pride."

Jussie's still got some serious legal issues ahead of him, though ... he's locked in a nasty civil lawsuit with the city of Chicago which sued him for the cost of the investigation into the alleged racist and homophobic attack.

One theory on Jussie's contract extension is that Fox is waiting to see how the case plays out before making a final decision on his future with the show.

Smollett was hit with 16 felony counts for lying to cops about the incident... but the charges were ultimately dropped.