Crime

A woman was shot in the leg during a protest Friday night near the Wendy's where Rayshard Brooks was shot in the back and killed.

The protest, which was held on Juneteenth, was peaceful until suddenly, shots rang out. Eyewitnesses say they heard around 20 shots, and you can certainly hear a number of them in the video.

The woman who was shot was conscious and her injuries seem to be non-life-threatening. She was taken to a hospital by ambulance.

It was the third shooting in Atlanta Friday night, as the city grapples with the tragic death of Rayshard Brooks and the arrests of the 2 officers.

WWE superstar Matt Riddle says allegations he sexually assaulted a female wrestler in 2018 are "completely false" ... claiming the accuser is an obsessed, delusional liar.

The woman behind the allegation is Candy Cartwright -- who is a pro wrestler on the indy circuit.

Cartwright levied some heavy claims against 34-year-old Riddle on Twitter this week -- describing an alleged 2018 incident when the two were on the road with other performers.

"During the van ride, when the 3 other wrestlers had fallen asleep, Matt asked me to 'hop on his d***.'"

"When I refused (although we had previously been together I was incredibly uncomfortable in that setting) When I said no, he grabbed me by my throat, choked me and said 'what if I just made you?'"

Cartright says she ultimately performed oral sex on Riddle "to get out of having intercourse with him. It was incredibly humiliating."

She added, "It is never ok to put your hands on a woman, it's also not ok to not listen when she says no."

Unclear if Cartwright ever went to police with the allegations. She says she was inspired to speak out by other "brave women" who have come forward about sexual misconduct claims.

But, Riddle, through his attorney, is calling BS on the whole thing.

"The allegations by this independent female performer are completely false and another attempt to harass and humiliate Mr. and Mrs. Riddle and to try to tarnish their reputation in the community," attorney Daniel Rose says.

Rose says the Riddles believe Cartwright has had an unhealthy obsession with Matt for at least the past 2 years.

WWE has also issued a statement on Riddle saying, "We take any allegation of this nature very seriously and are looking into the matter."

The org. added, "Individuals are responsible for their own personal actions. WWE has zero tolerance for matters involving domestic violence, child abuse and sexual assault."

"Upon arrest for such misconduct, a WWE talent will be immediately suspended. Upon conviction for such misconduct, a WWE talent will be immediately terminated. WWE’s ability to fine, suspend or terminate a WWE talent will not be, however, limited or compromised in any manner in the event incontrovertible evidence of such illegal misconduct is presented to WWE.”

The Kansas City cop who shot and killed Cameron Lamb is now charged with manslaughter, but Lamb's parents are expecting even more consequences after getting a face-to-face promise from President Trump.

Laurie and Aqil Bey were at the White House earlier this week with their attorney Lee Merritt, and had a chance to discuss Cameron's death with the President. They say he was polite and attentive during the meeting, and said he would put the feds on the case.

They say it was a heartening convo, and now they're hoping POTUS follows through. There are a lot of loose ends in the puzzling case.

Thursday evening, a grand jury indicted officer Eric DeValkenaere, charging him with involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action for the reckless death of Cameron, a father to 3 young boys.

ICYMI ... Cameron was backing his truck into his garage last December when 2 plain-clothed officers burst onto his property without a warrant and without announcing themselves as cops.

DeValkenaere says he fired the fatal shots because he thought Cameron had a gun in his hand, but his partner has testified Cameron's hand was empty.

Merritt says the feds need to step in and investigate the entire KCPD, because the family has good reason to believe a gun was planted in the garage to make it look like Cameron was armed.

Brett Hankison, one of the 3 Louisville cops who fired their weapons during the deadly March 13 raid at Breonna Taylor's home ... is about to be tossed off the force.

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer just announced Hankison will no longer be employed by the Louisville Metro Police Department.

A letter from police Chief Robert Schroeder says Hankison had "violated obedience to rules and regulations," and use of deadly force while serving the no-knock warrant at Breonna's home.

The letter also says, Hankison "displayed an extreme indifference to the value of human life when [he] wantonly and blindly fired 10 rounds into the apartment of Breonna Taylor." The chief also calls out Hankison for firing on someone he did not know posed a threat, and also for firing through a patio door without knowing who or what was on the other side of it.

As we've reported ... the 3 officers -- which includes Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove -- had been placed on administrative reassignment but were still part of the force, until Hankison's Friday firing.

On Thursday, KY Attorney General Daniel Cameron addressed the investigation into Taylor's death, saying his team was working nonstop ... but had nothing to report yet in terms of possible charges for the officers.

Instead, he pled for patience and peace and vowed to follow the truth and be "thorough and fair" to everyone involved.

Former NHL player Daniel Carcillo -- a Stanley Cup winner -- claims he was terrorized and sexually hazed during his time in junior hockey ... and now, he's suing over it.

Carcillo, in a new lawsuit filed in Toronto, alleges that when he was in the Ontario Hockey League -- one of the 3 major leagues that make up the Canadian Hockey League -- he was violently hazed on a daily basis.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, 35-year-old Carcillo says he was peed and spat on by veterans, smacked in the bare butt by a sawed-off goalie stick, and also forced to attend and participate in sex orgy parties.

And, those are some of the more tame allegations brought up against the OHL and CHL in the suit ...

Carcillo -- who played for the OHL's Sarnia Sting and Mississauga IceDogs before his NHL career began -- was joined by another plaintiff in the lawsuit, and together they claim they've seen terrifying hazing going down in all parts of the CHL.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs -- who say they represent a greater class of junior hockey league players as well -- say players were forced to masturbate in front of their teams as well as ordered to sexually assault teammates.

The plaintiffs also allege players had to consume others' saliva, semen, feces and other bodily fluids. They also say they know of players shoving brooms, hockey sticks and food into each others' anuses.

Carcillo claims all of the hazing he went through was unchecked by members of his teams' coaching staffs and front offices ... and even after investigations into the incidents, Carcillo says nothing was done.

In the lawsuit, Carcillo says the experiences left him "permanently traumatized" ... and is asking for damages from the CHL -- among other things.

The investigation into Breonna Taylor's death -- at the hands of Louisville cops -- should be addressed Thursday by KY Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who's now special prosecutor on the case.

TMZ will be live streaming Cameron's news conference in Frankfort at 3 PM ET. While his office says it will be "informational only" -- meaning charges won't be announced -- Cameron certainly has a lot to address regarding the case ... including allegations of a cover-up.

It's interesting because earlier Thursday ... a courthouse in Louisville was boarded up and staffers were told to leave the building. Word is they were informed no charges were going to be filed against the 3 Louisville Metro Police officers who fired their weapons March 13 while raiding Breonna's home ... and they're anticipating rioting in response.

Our sources say, the AG is not making any such announcement and doesn't know how that rumor started.

As for those 3 cops -- Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove -- none of them have lost their jobs or been suspended. All 3 have simply been placed on administrative reassignment for now.

As we've reported ... Breonna -- a 26-year-old ER technician -- was shot 8 times after the officers arrived in plainclothes shortly after midnight to serve a no-knock warrant as part of a narcotics investigation.

Though police claim they announced themselves, Breonna and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, allegedly didn't hear them, and Walker fired on the officers after they used a battering ram to open the door.

Walker says he thought the cops were intruders, and Breonna was killed in the ensuing gunfire. According to Taylor's legal team ... they have 16 neighbors who claim the plainclothes officers didn't announce their presence before going inside.

Even worse -- the initial police report about the raid stated there were "no injuries" ... which obviously doesn't make any sense. The major issue with the case, unlike George Floyd's killing, is no audio or video of the incident has surfaced ... at least not yet.

We broke the story ... Breonna's mother and attorneys believe there may be more evidence than law enforcement has been willing to disclose, and are demanding the release of documents and any footage available. Taylor's side believes a "cover-up" might be afoot.

Of course, Breonna's story is one of several about black Americans being killed by cops that has sparked nationwide protests to end racism and police brutality ... and the movement's still demanding justice for her.

"That 70's Show" star Danny Masterson has been charged with rape -- this after being accused by multiple women of sexual misconduct and assault over the years.

The charges against Danny were announced Wednesday by Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey, who says her office has charged the actor with three counts of felony forcible rape involving three different women ... all of whom are being identified as Jane Does.

The alleged rapes -- according to the D.A. -- occurred between 2001 and late 2003 ... right in the middle of the sitcom's run.

Danny's attorney, Tom Mesereau, tells TMZ ... "Mr. Masterson is innocent, and we’re confident that he will be exonerated when all the evidence finally comes to light and witnesses have the opportunity to testify."

He adds, "Obviously, Mr. Masterson and his wife are in complete shock considering that these nearly 20-year old allegations are suddenly resulting in charges being filed, but they and their family are comforted knowing that ultimately the truth will come out. The people who know Mr. Masterson know his character and know the allegations to be false."

The actor has been publicly accused of rape before, and each and every time ... he's vehemently denied it.

If convicted on all charges, Danny faces 45 years to life behind bars. It's unclear if he's been taken into custody yet, but the charging documents state that his recommended bail be set at $3.3 million.

Another big break for Miami Dolphins star cornerback Xavien Howard ... the NFL will NOT suspend him over his domestic violence case -- TMZ Sports has learned.

26-year-old Howard was accused of roughing up his fiancee during an argument at a Davie, Fla. residence back on Dec. 29.

According to the police report ... Howard allegedly grabbed the woman and pushed her against a wall. Officers in the report stated they noticed scratches, redness and an abrasion on the alleged victim after they responded to the scene -- and arrested Howard shortly after.

In the 911 call from the incident ... Howard's fiancee seemed to insinuate the alleged attack was NOT an isolated incident.

But, prosecutors dropped the criminal case against Xavien back in February, saying, "The victim said she did not want to proceed with prosecution."

They added, "She also stated that it was a 'situation that got out of hand' and she has no fear of the defendant and no fear for her safety."

We're now told the NFL has concluded its independent investigation into the matter ... and has decided it will NOT force Howard to miss any games over the arrest.

Brandishing his semi-automatic rifle at a group of black men who'd simply parked near his home was enough for a white guy in Virginia to get busted by cops.

This wild incident was caught on camera Sunday in Partlow, VA, where Dennis Lee Berry allegedly approached a squad of motorcycle riders who pulled over near his home to catch their breath and re-route.

One of the bike riders says Mr. Berry sprung up on them with an AR-15 cocked and seemingly loaded ... asking if they lived there, and then demanding they leave.

Some of the interaction was captured on video ... the men (4 of whom are black) tried talking him down, and questioning why he seemed so ready to shoot. They also pointed out they didn't appear to be on his property.

Welp, after some back and forth -- without any bullets flying -- the cops showed up and sorted things out. Berry was arrested for brandishing a firearm. He was released on bond, and the rifle was seized as evidence.

According to the Spotsylvania Sheriff’s Office -- which responded to the call -- the bikers had, in fact, pulled into a private neighborhood ... but acknowledge the men didn't see a "No Trespassing" sign when they did it.

Tyrell Robinson -- a former winger for legendary soccer club Arsenal -- is now facing prison time after pleading guilty to allegations he performed sexual acts with a 14-year-old.

22-year-old Robinson, according to multiple reports, showed up to Bradford Crown Court in England on Tuesday to fess up to the charges.

The ex-Bradford City player reportedly admitted to engaging in sexual activities back in August 2018 with a 14-year-old ... while also admitting he made and distributed an indecent picture of a child as well.

It should be noted Robinson did DENY a charge in court that he distributed an indecent photo of a child back in 2017 ... and prosecutors are not moving forward with that charge.

But, a judge told him he now faces time behind bars over his guilty pleas ... saying incarceration will be on the table at a sentencing hearing at a later date.

Details surrounding the alleged 2018 incident with the 14-year-old are unclear ... but authorities said early in the case they were hitting Robinson with an "engaging in penetrative sexual activity with a child" charge.

Robinson, who will reportedly be on a sex offenders' registry after his guilty pleas, was seen leaving court in a black mask and red, puffy jacket.

A statue of African-American icon Arthur Ashe has been vandalized with "White Lives Matter" and "WLM" in Virginia ... and now police are investigating.

The monument was tagged in white spray paint early Wednesday morning ... and law enforcement says they have info on potential suspects.

The original vandalism was later written over with "BLM" in red spray paint ... and local reports say community members were already trying to remove the graffiti by the time cops arrived to the scene.

Ashe -- who broke barriers in the sport of tennis in becoming the first black man to win the Wimbledon, Australian Open and U.S. Open -- was honored with a statue in his hometown of Richmond in 1996.

It's worth noting ... the Ashe tribute is part of Richmond's Memorial Avenue, which is filled with statues to Confederate leaders that have been attacked by protesters following George Floyd's death.

Breonna Taylor's family attorney wants Louisville police to follow in the footsteps of the NYPD and get rid of plainclothes officers ... something he believes could've saved her life.

One of the Taylor family's attorneys, Sam Aguiar, tells TMZ ... Breonna would still be alive today if plainclothes units were not the ones serving the no-knock search warrant that ended in her death.

The family's legal team thinks the search warrant would have been properly executed if the officers were in uniform. Aguiar says 16 neighbors claim the plainclothes officers didn't announce their presence before going inside, and he doubts things would've gone down the same if the cops were wearing badges.

The way Aguiar sees it ... when police "don’t put on the uniform and they don’t put on the badge, it lets them have the sense that they can just go rogue.”

Aguiar thinks the plainclothes units almost exhibit gang mentality. He says they beat down doors when executing search warrants, never announce themselves as police and make it difficult for bystanders to know they are police because they don't arrive in cop cars.

Louisville should take a page from NYC and disband plainclothes units, Aguiar says, and he thinks change could be on the horizon because over the last few years, the city's plainclothes units have fallen under tremendous scrutiny.

As you know ... Louisville has banned no-knock warrants in the wake of Breonna's death, and is now requiring the use of body cameras by anyone executing a search warrant. But, the Taylor family's attorney wants to see more reforms.

For instance, Aguiar says Louisville Metro PD needs to pay officers more, hire better ones, keep the best and get rid of the bad apples.

The details of Breonna Taylor's killing are being swept under the rug and hidden from public view by top city officials like the mayor ... so says her family's legal team.

Attorneys repping Breonna's fam tell TMZ ... a hard deadline came and went Friday, at which point the Louisville Metro Police Department and the City itself -- at the direction of Mayor Greg Fischer -- were supposed to produce crucial docs pertaining to the investigation.

Specifically, we're told her lawyers asked for an official autopsy report, personnel files for the cops involved in her death, and the Mayor's internal communications about all this too.

Her legal team says NONE of the docs were produced as of Monday -- after over a month of stonewalling and what they characterize as a refusal to comply with their open records requests. The attorneys tell us they believe this is due to an attempt to cover up her death.

They do note the City tried claiming there was a misunderstanding in the back of forth of their requests -- but even after that, the attorneys say they still came up with only a few of the requested documents.

The team writes, "We intend to seek all sanctions available for these blatant and willful violations of CR 45 (a KY subpoena rule). Meanwhile, we present this information so that the public is able to see the lengths that the city will go to in order to withhold the truth and keep Tamika Palmer from learning the facts surrounding her daughter’s murder."

It's interesting ... Breonna's family attorneys are strongly echoing what Beyonce herself said in an open letter to Kentucky's Attorney General -- that the process has stalled, and that his office needed to take over ASAP, while committing to transparency along the way.

Rayshard Brooks' family members say fake GoFundMe pages soliciting donations on their behalf have sprung up all over the crowd-sourcing site ... and they want 'em gone, immediately.

One of Rayshard's cousins, Decatur Redd, tells TMZ ... he and his other relatives have spotted a ton of fraudulent pages in recent days for Rayshard and/or "his family." He says it's a frustrating nuisance for the real family, because they've only approved one true GFM.

We're told Decatur reached out to GoFundMe to get these phony pages taken down, but hasn't heard back, so he's warning the public -- do NOT fall for these opportunistic rip-off pages.

We reached out, and GoFundMe says it's aware of the situation, and keeping an eye out for fakes pages. From the looks of it, some of them have been deleted already.

It also looks like the legit page is amassing the majority of donations -- upwards of $105k and counting. The phonies have a small fraction of that, so it seems most of the public is hip to the game.

Decatur also told us he wants Garrett Rolfe, the now ex-cop who shot and killed Rayshard, to be charged with murder. He stopped short of saying what he deserved as punishment, telling us it'll be up to a judge if Rolfe gets charged and or convicted.

As far as the Wendy's getting burned to the ground ... Decatur says he doesn't condone it, but admits it felt cathartic when he saw video of it. He described it as a release ... almost like the start of his healing.

It goes without saying ... Rayshard's killing has hit Decatur incredibly hard -- he was seen openly weeping and had to be held back during Monday's emotional news conference.

The latest scene of protesters attempting to topple a statue -- this one of a Spanish conquistador -- exploded in violence when an armed civilian militia allegedly opened fire on a New Mexico protester.

The militia -- an extremist group called the New Mexico Civil Guard -- was standing guard Monday over a statue of Juan de Oñate in front of the Albuquerque Museum. A group of protesters had gathered with the goal of taking it down ... as we've seen happen recently in several cities.

At one point, witnesses told police that somebody swung a pickax at the base of the statue ... and that's when shots rang out and people were screaming someone had been shot.

The victim was hit by one bullet, and fellow protesters huddled around him as he was laid out on his stomach. Eventually, EMTs arrived to bring him to a hospital ... he was later listed as being in critical but stable condition.

As for the militia, those who were dumb enough to stick around came face-to-face with members of actual law enforcement -- who proceeded to take several of them into custody.

Tear gas and flashbangs were used to contain the situation and to detain the armed men -- whom cops say were disarmed by the time they were done with them. It's unclear if police caught the actual shooter ... and the FBI's already been looped into the investigation.

Remember, protesters successfully dismantled several statues of Civil War figures and Christopher Columbus within the last 2 weeks. All of those incidents went down peacefully ... meaning, no one attempted to protect the statues.

Different story now ... at least in New Mexico.

Seeing live footage of George Floyd's arrest alarmed a 911 dispatcher enough, she called a police supervisor to respond to the scene ... this according to newly released audio.

In phone recordings between the 911 dispatcher and a Minneapolis police supervisor, you hear the dispatcher openly question if the officers needed to use the kind of force she'd seen as she watched live body cam footage from the scene.

The dispatcher says to the supervisor, "You can call me a snitch if you want to but we have the cameras up ... I don't know if they had to use force or not, but they got something out of the back of the squad [car], and all of them sat on this man, so I don't know if they needed you or not, but they haven't said anything to me yet."

The supervisor responds, "Yeah, they haven't said anything yet ... just a takedown, which doesn't count, but I'll find out."

The dispatcher replies, "No problem, we don't get to ever see it so when we see it we're just like, well, that looks a little different, but …" and the conversation ends.

It's unclear if the police supervisor responded to the scene before Floyd was loaded into an ambulance. However, no supervisors were there when Floyd was being killed on camera.

As you know ... the fatal incident started with a 911 call about Floyd allegedly using a counterfeit $20 bill, and escalated to accused-murderer Derek Chauvin pinning his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly 9 minutes as he slowly died in front of shocked bystanders recording footage.