Crime

Ronnie Ortiz-Magro says he's stepping away from 'Jersey Shore' in the wake of his domestic violence arrest ... he says he's seeking treatment for mental health issues.

Ronnie says he talked with honchos at MTV and they all agreed ... Ron needs a break to seek treatment for issues he says he's ignored for too long. He says he's finally ready to face his struggles head-on ... and he says his top priority is to be healthy so he can be the best man and best father he can be for his daughter.

TMZ broke the story ... Ronnie won't be charged in his recent domestic violence case, but his arrest for the alleged incident with his girlfriend could trigger legal problems because he's on probation.

You'll recall ... Ronnie's GF, Saffire Matos, called the cops following an argument that allegedly turned physical, but after his arrest she went on social media to downplay the allegations.

Ronnie also has a long history of domestic violence issues with the mother of his child, Jenn Harley.

Ronnie filmed scenes for the upcoming "Jersey Shore: Family Vacation" reality show, but it appears he was not included in the trailer. It's unclear if his scenes will be cut, and the series is set to premiere June 3.

Ronnie Magro-Ortiz will NOT be charged in his domestic violence case ... but his arrest for the alleged incident with his girlfriend, Saffire Matos, is triggering a different legal problem for him.

A rep for the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office tells TMZ ... they will not charge Ronnie with a misdemeanor, but instead will move to violate his probation and will hold a hearing on the matter next month.

As we reported ... Ronnie didn't get charged with a felony in the case because the L.A. County District Attorney's Office determined it didn't have sufficient evidence to convict him. That's how his case ended up in the City Attorney's Office.

Now, the one issue remaining -- his potential probation violation. Remember, Ronnie's on probation for a domestic violence case involving his ex, Jenn Harley. He could find out his fate during next month's hearing, and, yes ... jail time is a real possibility.

As we first reported ... Saffire called the police following an argument that allegedly turned physical. Following Ronnie's arrest, Saffire took to social media to downplay the allegations.

Ronnie's attorney, Scott Leemon, tells TMZ ... "“We are very happy that after further investigation both the LA County District Attorney’s office and the LA City Attorney’s office determined that criminal charges were not warranted against Ronnie related to the incident that occurred in April."

Officials have agreed to drop the DUI case against Johnny Damon stemming from a wild arrest back in February ... despite cops claiming the MLB star's blood alcohol content was nearly 4 TIMES the legal limit.

You remember the incident ... Damon and his wife, Michelle, were pulled over in Windermere, Florida around 1:23 AM on Feb. 19 and appeared to be super-duper hammered.

Police video shows Damon admitting to drinking before getting behind the wheel -- and cops say both Damon and his wife got physical with officers during the stop.

The police report, obtained by TMZ Sports, notes Damon's B.A.C. was .30 -- which is WAYYY above the .08 legal limit.

During the stop, Johnny -- who bombed field sobriety tests -- brought up his support for Donald Trump ... saying, "I know people are trying to target me because I'm a Trump supporter."

47-year-old Johnny was ultimately charged with misdemeanor DUI -- and was facing up to 9 months in jail if convicted.

But, despite what appeared to be overwhelming evidence, prosecutors are not trying to throw the book at Damon ... instead, offering him a pretty sweet deal that involves cutting a check and doing some community service.

We spoke with Damon's attorney, Stuart Hyman, who tells us Johnny agreed to enter into a pre-trial diversion program -- which involves making a donation to charity and completing a certain amount of hours of community service. He did not mention the number of hours Damon agreed to.

If Damon successfully completes the terms of the deal, Hyman says prosecutors have agreed to drop the case.

As for Damon's wife, Michelle Mangan-Damon -- her case is much more complicated.

She was charged with 2 felonies for allegedly battering officers on the scene -- and could face years in prison if convicted.

The bizarre case of the tiger on the loose in Houston has gotten even stranger, as the man police arrested for the incident denies being the owner ... and nobody seems to know where the tiger is.

Cops arrested Victor Hugo Cuevas Monday for evading police after officers say he was the guy seen on video Sunday wrangling the tiger that got loose in a Houston suburb and nearly shot by a neighbor.

Police say Cuevas loaded the big cat into a white SUV and drove off as officers arrived, but his attorney Michael Elliott addressed reporters after his client bonded out and says Cuevas is being accused of doing things he didn't do.

The lawyer suggests Houston PD's made some false assumptions, and most significantly -- he says the tiger does not belong to Cuevas and denies knowing the animal's whereabouts.

The tiger is a 9-month-old male named India, and Cuevas' lawyer says ... "We are both very anxious and looking forward to doing everything we can do to find India. We want to find India."

BTW -- Cuevas bonded out for his most recent arrest after previously being out on $50,000 bond in neighboring Fort Bend County on a murder charge ... so there's that.

As we reported ... 'Tiger King' star Carole Baskin put Texas Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn on blast earlier this week for allowing such a situation to unfold in the state in the first place.

Jack Harlow is finally speaking out about the fatal Louisville nightclub shooting for which his DJ's been indicted for murder -- and his first words are ones of sorrow and regret for the victim.

The rapper shared his thoughts Wednesday about the chaos he was smack in the middle of 2 weeks ago on the eve of the Kentucky Derby ... violence that led to a grand jury indicting his DJ, Ronnie Luciano.

Jack says, "My heart is broken by the events that occurred over Derby weekend. My heart breaks for Kasmira, her children, and everyone else touched by this tragic death."

He goes on to explain that he's been in touch with Kasmira's family, who've apparently been pretty receptive to talking. Jack adds, "Nothing can reverse what happened. Too many lives have been changed forever. My life will remain committed to making Louisville a better place."

As we reported, Ronnie turned himself in Tuesday after the grand jury indictment for his alleged role in the shooting.

It appears that Kasmira -- the 37-year-old woman who was killed -- was the one shown in our video ... which captured the moment a gunshot went off and sent everyone scrambling, including Jack, who was close to the action.

The home that sits on the lot where John Wayne Gacy murdered 33 boys and young men back in '70s has sold ... after quite a slash in the original asking price.

As we told you ... the property hit the market in late 2019 for $459,000, but there were no takers for more than a year ... alas, it finally has a new owner.

According to property records, obtained by TMZ ... the buyer purchased the home for $395,000.

Now, to be clear, the actual house that sits on the lot is NOT Gacy's former residence. In 1979, a year after police made the grisly discovery of 29 rotting bodies at Gacy's home, it was demolished.

Seven years later, a new house was built on the lot ... and that's the one that just sold.

Still, the macabre history of the property -- a 3-bed, 2-bath "beautiful brick home" with an updated kitchen overlooking a huge backyard -- might be too creepy for most people ... but apparently not the new homeowner.

Lil Pump is fuming after his luxury whips were broken into on Mother's Day, but the only good news is ... we've learned the 4 suspects were caught on camera committing the crime.

According to a Miami Beach PD report, obtained by TMZ, 4 unknown suspects hopped the wall of a house around 6 AM and found the 3 pricey whips -- a Range Rover, Rolls-Royce Cullinan and Rolls-Royce Wraith -- parked there.

Cops say surveillance video shows the suspects looking inside the cars before one of them smashed the left rear panel of the Range Rover and swiped a cosmetic nail kit worth $600.

Cops say another suspect is seen getting into the Wraith through an unlocked passenger door, though that person apparently didn’t take anything. Cops say another suspect smashed the rear windshield of the Cullinan ... triggering an alarm that prompted the headlights and taillights to flash.

According to the report ... the alarm startled the suspects who then hopped back over the fence and fled the scene.

Lil Pump is NOT named in the police report but his mother is listed as a victim of the alleged crimes. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... this is the incident the "Gucci Gang" rapper described while going off on Instagram Live.

Pump was visibly outraged saying, "That’s how y’all wanna play? I’mma be up for the next 3, 4 days. Come back to my f***ing house. I’mma blow your fucking head off."

Jack Harlow's DJ has just been indicted on a murder charge for his alleged role in a nightclub shooting in Louisville.

Prosecutors in Kentucky charged Ronnie Tyshon O'Bannon -- who goes by Ronnie Luciano -- with murder and tampering with physical evidence in connection with the fatal shooting ... and there's reportedly a warrant out for his arrest.

TMZ broke the story ... video shows the moment shots were fired inside Vibes Restaurant and Ultra Lounge, where Jack was partying with his DJ.

The footage appears to show an altercation between a woman and at least one man, who lean into each other before falling over in a scuffle. At that moment, you hear what sounds like a gunshot, and everyone in the club makes a run for it, including Jack.

Cops say a 37-year-old woman was found dead from the shooting, and a man was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Soulja Boy pummeled his ex-GF with such violent force she suffered a miscarriage ... so she claims in a new lawsuit.

The woman, who filed her suit under the pseudonym Jane Doe to protect her identity, is suing the rapper claiming she was subjected to domestic violence for years at the hands of Soulja Boy.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, the woman claims, while pregnant with his child in 2015, he became irate and violent after a simple convo and began to punch her in the face and the chest until she could no longer stand on her feet.

She says the punches caused her to fall to the ground, where she curled her body to protect her stomach while using her hands to cover her head. She claims Soulja also kicked her all over her body, particularly in the stomach ... and claims soon after she suffered a miscarriage.

She claims there were other violent incidents. Like in 2017 ... Jane says Soulja flew into a violent rage ... punching her in the face and breasts. She says things got so bad Soulja's security had to pull him away from her. She claims Soulja was pissed because he thought she was leaving him.

She says a 2018 incident was caught on camera. Jane claims a conversation turned violent as he stood over her and began to physically attack and yell at her. She claims the night vision cameras used on the show captured the incident, which later aired on the WeTV network in early 2019.

She also points to an alleged incident in 2019 when she claims he "tightly gripped" her neck and choked her while threatening her life after she rebuffed his efforts to rekindle the relationship.

Jane claims during the course of their relationship he would coerce her to engage in sexual acts through the threat of physical violence. She claims he subjected her to physical assault if she refused.

Former 'RHONJ' star Dina Manzo's ex-husband was involved in her violent home invasion ... at least according to the grand jury, which just handed up an indictment for his alleged role in the incident.

A grand jury in Monmouth County just indicted Dina's ex, Thomas Manzo, charging him as an accomplice in the 2017 home invasion ... and he's already turned himself in to police.

You'll recall ... Dina and her current husband, David Cantin, were allegedly attacked with fists and baseball bats as soon as they walked in the front door of their NJ home. According to cops, the suspects punched Dina in the head and face, and bludgeoned David with a bat.

Dina and David were then allegedly zip-tied while the perps ransacked the home, making off with her engagement ring and cash.

Dina's ex has been hit with multiple assault charges, a burglary charge, a theft charge, a robbery charge, a weapons charge and multiple stalking charges.

As we first told you ... another man, James Mainello, was arrested and indicted for his alleged role in the home invasion back in May 2019. Mainello is named in the new indictment on all but the stalking charges.

An elderly Asian man was screaming out for help while at least 2 teenage attackers hovered over him -- but not only did no one come to his aid, you can hear someone laughing out loud.

The horrifying scene played out in the San Francisco Bay Area, where an 80-year-old man appeared to be randomly attacked by the 2 suspects, who cops say are in their teens.

In this surveillance video, you can see and hear the victim calling out for help but no one responds. Another person enters the frame, but does nothing -- it's unclear if that person was with the suspects.

Cops say the suspected attackers are as young as 16 and their getaway car was seen a couple hours later in a strong-armed robbery ... according to KGO-TV reporter Dion Lim. They are still on the loose.

Police aren't labeling this a racially motivated crime yet, but the victim has said he believes the attack was motivated by hate.

This incident comes as San Fran is still reeling from the heinous stabbing attack on 2 elderly Asian women. That suspect was captured and charged with attempted murder.

Whoever let their tiger out and about on the streets of a Houston neighborhood this weekend is certainly no Joe Exotic, but they were trying to be ... and almost got the thing killed.

Check out this wild scene that unfolded Sunday in the burb of Memorial, where a neighbor -- who is allegedly an off-duty sheriff's deputy -- came face-to-face with the striped beast. The guy had his gun drawn as he tried yelling at it to stop, but it continued creeping toward him.

The supposed owner tells the cop not to shoot it and that he'll get the animal, which he successfully did in the end without any bullets flying. You can even see the tiger has a collar on, and seems pretty comfortable when the human wrangles it in on their front yard.

At this point, there's really not a whole lot of context other than this tiger appears to have been somebody's pet in one of the surrounding houses ... and it escaped somehow.

Of course, 911 was called over this ... but word is once they arrived, the tiger had already been stashed into a vehicle and driven away. It's unclear if anybody was charged yet -- but the police are certainly aware of it.

It's illegal to own exotic pets like this in the City of Houston, but you can, apparently, have a tiger in the surrounding unincorporated Harris County, assuming you have all the right paperwork and a boatload of insurance.

Considering this one was nowhere to be found when cops showed up, something tells us it wasn't meant to be there in the first place.

'Tiger King' star Jeff Lowe says he received a creepy, anonymous letter from someone indicating they know where Carole Baskin's missing ex-husband is ... though it's similar to a theory she's already shot down.

Jeff tells TMZ ... the letter was sent to his Tiger King Park in Oklahoma in May 2020, but the envelope only had the zoo's address on it, no name or return address. He says all they know is it was postmarked in Providence, Rhode Island.

As you can see in video of Jeff and his wife, Lauren, opening the letter back then ... it contains a single piece of paper with a handwritten note -- "The corpse lies under Her House." It's signed by "The Faithful Witness."

We're told Jeff and Lauren were speaking with a federal agent about the letter, and she claims she also informed law enforcement in Hillsborough County, FL ... where Don Lewis went missing in 1997.

Jeff and the agent on the phone speculate about what exactly the letter is alleging, but the gist seems clear ... the person who sent it believes Don's body is buried somewhere on Carole's Big Cat Rescue property in Tampa.

Here's where things get a bit weird -- even though Lauren says Hillsborough County authorities requested the letter in May 2020 ... Jeff refused, saying 'Tiger King 2' producers advised him to hold onto it.

Jeff says filming's wrapped now, so they are finally sending the letter to the Hillsborough County authorities, where he claims cops are planning to test it for DNA and fingerprints. We reached out to the Hillsborough Co. Sheriff's Office, they say they won't talk about evidence.

As we previously told you ... there's a Facebook group that also believes Lewis is buried on Baskin's property -- specifically under a septic tank system -- but she posted a video in August 2020 attempting to debunk that.

Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit was allegedly juiced up when he won the race, because he apparently tested positive for steroids.

The legendary Bob Baffert, the horse's trainer, broke the news Sunday that the test results showed the presence of corticosteroid Betamethasone. It's kinda technical, but the sample came back positive for 21 picograms of the drug. It's used as an anti-inflammatory.

This means the horse could be disqualified. BTW ... Medina Spirit is the only horse in the race to test positive.

Baffert denies doing anything wrong ... "I don't know what's going on, but there's something that is not right.” It's not official till the split sample comes. Usually, we wait for that, but I wanted to get in front of it."

Facts are facts, and this would be Baffert's 5th medication violation since May, 2020.

The good news for bettors ... they won't have to give their money back. The bad news for Baffert, the trainer and the jockey ... they'll have to return their winnings if their appeal fails.

If Medina Spirit is stripped of the win, it'd be the first DQ since 1968, when Dancer's Image won but was later disqualified for an anti-inflammatory drug.

A woman and a toddler were reportedly shot in broad daylight just now in Times Square -- a random act of violence in which the suspected gunman still hasn't been caught.

Cops have swarmed the area and barricaded the streets, where they say gunfire erupted between West 44th Street and 7th Avenue around 2 PM PT. Law enforcement sources tell us one of the bullets struck the woman.

The child is also said to have been hit, but it's unclear where. In any case, both of them were rushed to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition ... so it seems they're gonna make it. We're also hearing that a third person may have also been shot in the chaos.

The most disconcerting part -- besides somebody trying to gun down a lady and a kid in the middle of the day -- is the fact that the person who did this has NOT been caught yet ... as we're told they're still on the loose as of now. That might explain why there's such a massive police presence right now ... presumably, they're scouring the streets for the shooter.

No word yet on a motive, but this appears to have happened out of nowhere ... which makes it all the more terrifying. People captured video of people running upon initial word that a shooting had taken place ... as well clips of the aftermath as cops stood by controlling the crowd and securing the scene. Another video -- taken from an Earth Cam towering above Times Square -- seems to show the exact moment the shots were fired, two of them.

Someone also appears to have snagged video of the moment the victims were rushed into an ambulance by EMTs. Witnesses reportedly say the toddler was bleeding, and the woman was crying. Based on this video, it also looks like some people were booted from the bus.

It's an awful way to help people get ready for the re-opening of Broadway and other NYC venues that have been shuttered during the pandemic. As if folks hadn't already been on edge, this news certainly won't help them feel any safer ... especially considering Times Square is one of the most visible and frequented areas in the city.

If this can happen there, it's not a good omen for what could happen else in NYC.

Henry Golding says the latest heinous attack in San Francisco makes it painfully obvious America needs more awareness about Asian hate -- but he's hopeful we can put an end to it.

The "Crazy Rich Asians" star was in Beverly Hills when we asked him about the recent attack on 2 elderly Asian women, which he calls horrific and cowardly.

As terrible as that situation was -- thankfully, both women survived and a suspect's been arrested -- Henry tells us people are standing up to Asian hate and violence more and more ... and he believes it's making a difference.

Sadly, the harsh reality is that these attacks keep happening, so the actor says there's still a need to educate loved ones about the dangers and keep spreading awareness. To that point, we also got his take on what Hollywood's doing to help the movement.