Crime & Arrests

The judge who was originally expected to oversee Mark Sanchez's battery case has recused herself, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

Indiana court records we've obtained show on Tuesday, Jennifer Prinz Harrison signed a recusal order stating the case be reassigned to another court.

No explanation for the move was given.

Donna Adelson has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of orchestrating the killing of her former son-in-law, Daniel Markel.

Adelson was convicted on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation last month following a trial lasting several weeks, according to the Associated Press.

She was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole in a Tallahassee courtroom Monday. Each of her other two counts carries a sentence of 30 years, which are to be served consecutively.

9:23 AM PT -- In a press conference Tuesday, Governor Shapiro admitted to battling feelings of guilt following the attack, saying, "The hardest part has been trying to explain it to our children and to our nieces and nephews. I've carried with me this enormous sense of guilt -- guilt that doing this job that I love so much has put our children's lives at risk." He went on to urge that as political violence rises in this country, it's important that none of us grows numb to it. "We need real accountability for acts of political violence, and today is real accountability."

The man who set the Pennsylvania Governor's Mansion ablaze in April pleaded guilty today to arson and other charges ... and new video released shows the crime -- and inferno -- in progress.

Watch the video ... you can see Cody Balmer break a window of Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's home from the outside, light a Molotov cocktail, and toss it in, starting a blaze.

Balmer, a mechanic, enters the residence through another broken window ... you can see him roaming around inside the home trying to enter various rooms by kicking the doors in. When that fails, he just starts throwing down more explosives in what appears to be the dining room ... before casually exiting through a front door and strolling away across the lawn.

Damien Hurstel, the 19-year-old Staten Island man who allegedly beheaded his mom’s boyfriend, reportedly showed his little sister his handiwork ... then asked if she wanted their mom to live.

Hurstel's mother, Alicia Zayas, told the New York Post her daughter Bri asked her brother if he was going to hurt their mom too and he replied, "Do you want her to live?"

Zayas says her daughter said, "Yes, please" and her son replied, "Okay, she'll live."

Cops say 'Real Housewives of Potomac' star Dr. Wendy Osefo is lying about being the victim of a home burglary ... but a couple months after she made her report, she went on a podcast -- and doubled-down on her claims.

Wendy appeared on the "Gabbing With Gib" podcast back in September 2024 and she was asked about the alleged home burglary, which we first reported about in April 2024 ... and the clip is resurfacing now that she's been charged with fraud.

In the interview, Wendy explains why she thinks she was "targeted" by burglars.

Blueface's mom Karlissa Saffold is confident her son is just "days away" from being freed from prison, but wants to keep the release date a secret for now ... he needs time to acclimate!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Karlissa -- and Blueface's new GF Angela -- in Los Angeles this week, where they tackled all the recent Blueface happenings.

The platinum-selling "Thotiana" rapper has been packing on the pounds behind bars -- Karlissa notes 70 more pounds to be exact, but she says it's the result of push-ups and sit-ups to pass the time.

Darius McCrary was arrested near the U.S.-Mexico border in California and he's currently sitting in a San Diego jail ... and it looks like he got picked up on an out-of-state felony charge.

The "Family Matters" alum was busted Sunday by the United States Border Patrol ... according to online records.

Darius' case says this is a "fugitive arrest" and the section of the California Penal Code listed on online records applies to individuals in California who are wanted by another state for a serious crime.

At a Friday press conference in Tampa, Florida, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the arrest of a California man who allegedly threatened conservative commentator Benny Johnson's life.

George Isbell Jr. was reportedly arrested in San Diego Tuesday this week and was charged with mailing a threatening communication, according to Fox News.

Isbell, 69, allegedly mailed a letter to Johnson sometime around September 18. Bondi said ... "The author of this letter made it very clear that he hated Benny because of his views, and he wanted Benny dead."

Isbell allegedly made other violent statements and referenced the death of Charlie Kirk, who was killed just a few days before letter was sent, authorities said.

Johnson contacted the Tampa Police Department after receiving the letter, and the FBI helped out with the subsequent investigation.

U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Gregory Kehoe said fingerprints found on the letter implicated Isbell, Fox News reports. Isbell could face up to five years in prison if he's convicted.

Mark Sanchez spent about 20 minutes roaming and, at times, stumbling around downtown Indianapolis before the violent encounter with his alleged victim ... and this new video shows nearly all of his activity.

TMZ Sports obtained surveillance videos tracking the ex-NFL star -- from 12:05 AM, when the alleged victim, Perry Tole, pulled up in his service truck ... to 12:30 AM, when Sanchez fled the scene, bloodied from stab wounds.

When Tole arrives, you see him drive south down the alley ... where, apparently, Sanchez was already on the move. When Tole parks, he's out of camera view, so we don't know if they see each other, but 7 minutes later, Sanchez walks north out of the alley ... stumbling a bit.

Sean "Diddy" Combs had to break some tough news to his 2-year-old daughter after a judge sentenced him to 50 months in federal prison ... and he got emotional when he had to tell her that daddy wasn't coming home as soon as his family had hoped.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... Diddy was talking to the mother of his youngest child, Dana Tran, on the phone after sentencing and she put their toddler daughter, Love, on the phone, and the kid asked her father when she could see him and where he was.

Diddy was at MDC Brooklyn ... and we're told he choked up when Love told him, "I miss you, Daddy." An emotional Diddy replied, "I miss you and love you very much, Love."

Demi Lovato's ex-fiancé Max Ehrich says he's going to rehab after his domestic violence arrest ... and it sounds like he needs help, based on what he's telling us about the leadup to his arrest.

Max tells TMZ ... he was high and in psychosis when he had an altercation with his mom that resulted in him being hauled off to a Florida jail on a battery charge. He says his mom was trying to get him to stop huffing nitrous oxide.

The "Young and the Restless" actor says he went to Florida to stay with his parents ... after allegedly being kidnapped in Los Angeles last week by 3 gang members. He says his alleged kidnappers introduced him to nitrous, and he was high on nitrous for a week leading up to his arrest.

A California woman accused of killing "ER" star Cindyana Santangelo with a silicone butt injection has been convicted of murder ... a year and a half after being convicted in the death of another woman by the same method.

Libby Adame -- nicknamed "The Butt Lady" -- has been found guilty of second-degree murder and practicing medicine without a license in connection with Cindyana's death.

Santangelo died March 24 this year ... investigators said results from her autopsy showed she suffered an embolism from a silicone injection that had been administered earlier that day.

It appears Raja Jackson has ended Syko Stu's time in the squared circle ... as one of the wrestler's good friends tells TMZ Sports he's sure Stu's in-ring time is over following the violent attack.

Douglas Malo -- who actually helped rip Jackson off of Stu during his outburst at a Knokx Pro Wrestling event back in August -- sat down with us this week after prosecutors officially levied charges on Quinton "Rampage" Jackson's son ... and he told us he can't see Stu ever mixing it up between the ropes again.

Malo said the wrestler -- real name Stuart Smith -- simply took too much damage from Raja to even try to make a comeback.

David "Heavy D" Sparks -- one of the two stars of "The Diesel Brothers" -- has been released from federal custody after being arrested following a bench warrant ... TMZ has learned.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, a judge ordered Sparks released from the custody of the U.S. Marshals due to an agreement made by both parties that certain information will be given to 'Utah Physicians for a Wealthy Environment' within 10 days of today's hearing.

As we reported ... Sparks was arrested and booked Tuesday morning in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Demi Lovato's ex-fiancé Max Ehrich's legal situation may have just gotten worse ... 'cause it appears he was streaming on Instagram just prior to being arrested for allegedly assaulting his mother while abusing nitrous oxide.

TMZ broke the story ... Ehrich was arrested Tuesday for battery on a person 65 or older ... and according to the police report, the victim was his mom -- and cops say they were told it all started over an argument for her phone.

The report says just prior to his arrest, Max was streaming on IG ... and one of the viewers apparently recorded the wild footage.

Robert Roberson just scored a major victory -- because his planned execution was just blocked by the highest criminal court in Texas.

Roberson was facing execution on October 16 after being convicted of capital murder in 2002 for the death of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki, according to NBC News.

The case became notable because Nikki's death was partially attributed to "Shaken Baby Syndrome." Prosecutors believed Roberson had violently shaken his child to the point of causing severe injuries prior to her death.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted an emergency motion for a stay of execution on Thursday. Roberson's original sentence was challenged under the state's 2013 "junk science" law, "which provides for a second look when the science driving a conviction has since been debunked," according to The Texas Tribune.

His legal team had filed several appeals on his behalf, arguing the medical and scientific methods used to convict him in the past have been mostly discredited. Experts have determined the toddler died of natural and accidental causes, according to the Tribune.

Roberson would have been the first man to be executed in Texas for a case involving Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Roberson was supposed to be executed last year ... his execution was stopped just hours before it was set to take place.

The detective who arrested Roberson in 2002 has since claimed he believes Roberson is innocent, and has said he was unaware of Nikki's underlying health issues ... which apparently contributed to her death.