Crime

Rod Stewart started out 2020 as a criminal defendant, because we've learned he's been charged with criminal battery over a New Year's Eve incident at a swanky hotel.

Rod, Sean and the much of the Stewart family were celebrating NYE at The Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach. According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, a security guard named Jessie Dixon was working a private event in the children's area of the hotel when he saw a group trying to enter the area without authorization.

Dixon told cops the group got super loud and refused to follow his instructions to leave the area. Dixon says Sean then got nose-to-nose with him. Dixon put his right hand on Sean's chest and ordered him to back up. He says Sean then shoved him backward and then Rod got into the act and threw a punch, striking Dixon in his left rib cage area.

There is video of the incident, according to the police report, and cops say it clearly shows Rod and Sean as the "primary aggressors."

Rod spoke with cops and apologized, saying Dixon was argumentative with his family and they got agitated. People was first to report.

Dixon said he wanted to press charges, and both Rod and Sean have been charged with misdemeanor battery.

They're due in court February 5 for their arraignment.

We reached out to Rod's rep ... so far, no word back.

DaBaby got hauled away in handcuffs, and it's because cops want to hear what he has to say about a robbery ... TMZ has learned.

The rapper's been taken to police headquarters in Miami for questioning by detectives regarding a robbery Thursday around 12:30 PM. Seven cop cars were on hand when DaBaby was cuffed.

Check out the video of the alleged robbery. You see some guys -- we're told they are members of DaBaby's crew -- jumping a man and apparently taking his money and possibly some other property as well.

The 2 men who were featured in "Leaving Neverland" who accused Michael Jackson of molesting them as children have just won a huge legal victory ... because a California appeals court has just given them the right to sue for sexual abuse.

A trial judge threw out the cases of James Safechuck and Wade Robson, on grounds they waited too long to file their claim. When they filed their lawsuits, California law did not support their claim, because the statute of limitations required them to file before they turned 26. At the time they filed, Robson was 30 and Safechuck was 36.

But, a new law took effect on January 1, 2020, which allows sexual abuse victims to sue until they're 40. A California appeals court just ruled the new law allows both Robson and Safechuck to have their cases tried -- presumably before a jury.

It's a huge reversal of fortune. Up till now, the MJ companies have been able to fend off these claims based on the statute of limitations, but that's all changed as of New Year's Day.

It's gone from REALLY bad to MUCH MUCH WORSE for ex-NFL QB Trevone Boykin -- who's now facing shocking new criminal charges even though he's been locked up since November.

As we previously reported, the former TCU superstar has been in SERIOUS trouble with the law after he allegedly broke his girlfriend's jaw in an altercation in March 2018.

Boykin was out on bond while he was fighting the case in court ... but he was thrown back in jail in November after cops say he failed to charge his electronic monitoring device.

But, while the 2015 2nd Team All-American has been in custody ... investigators have been working on other cases involving the 26-year-old, which have now resulted in MORE criminal charges.

Here's a brief summary of what Boykin is now accused of:

New York Yankees pitcher Domingo German was just hit with an 81-game suspension ... this after the MLB concluded its investigation into allegations he committed domestic violence.

German was placed on administrative leave back in September after Major League Baseball was notified the 27-year-old had allegedly been involved in an altercation with his significant other.

Details of the allegations are unclear -- no police report was ever filed -- but what is known is the MLB clearly found the accusations to be credible.

"Having reviewed all of the available evidence," commissioner Rob Manfred said Thursday, "I have concluded that Mr. German violated our Policy and that discipline is appropriate."

According to the MLB, German will NOT appeal the punishment ... and has agreed to make a contribution to "Sanctuary for Families" -- a New York-area charity helping victims of domestic violence -- in addition to serving the ban.

Per multiple reports, the 81-game suspension is one of the most aggressive penalties EVER levied against an MLB player for dom. violence.

The suspension is retroactive ... meaning since German missed 18 games for the alleged incident in 2019, he'll only be required to sit the first 63 games of next season.

"Domestic violence — in any form — is a gravely serious matter that affects every segment of our society," the Yankees said in a statement. "Major League Baseball has taken the lead in our industry to make domestic violence awareness and prevention a priority, and we will continue to back those efforts."

"We are encouraged by Domingo’s acceptance of his discipline, and we sincerely hope this indicates a commitment to making a meaningful and positive change in his personal conduct."

A titan in the music biz is threatening a Guns N' Roses superfan with a huge lawsuit ... claiming the guy leaked a ton of the band's unreleased songs over the internet.

Here's the deal ... Guns N' Roses claims Rick Dunsford leaked 97 previously unreleased songs over the web after obtaining the recordings from a storage unit auction, and UMG -- which owns the copyrights -- is threatening to sue him for a ton of money.

UMG's legal team fired off a cease and desist letter to Rick -- obtained by TMZ -- claiming Dunsford violated an earlier settlement agreement in which UMG paid him $15k to return the recordings.

The dispute traces its roots back to when Guns N' Roses' former A&R guy Tom Zutaut auctioned off a storage unit filled with digital recordings of GNR music from 2000 and 2001.

Augustus Sol Invictus -- the guy who ran for U.S. Senate and once claimed he killed a goat and drank its blood -- has been arrested in Florida on a slew of charges including kidnapping.

Invictus was busted Monday for kidnapping, aggravated domestic violence and possession of a firearm used during a crime. The 36-year-old Orlando-based lawyer had been wanted in South Carolina on a fugitive warrant. Exact details of his alleged crimes are unknown.

According to the Miami Herald, Invictus was arrested at a mall in Melbourne, Florida. The media outlet reports he's being held without bond.

Invictus first made headlines in 2016 when he ran as a Libertarian candidate and challenged for Marco Rubio's Senate seat. During his failed campaign bid, Invictus claimed he slaughtered a goat and drank its blood as part of a pagan ritual.

The failed politician made headlines again in 2017 when he spoke at the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Invictus has denied being a white nationalist.

Bryshere Gray -- aka Yazz, aka Hakeem Lyon on "Empire" -- told cops he engaged in a food fight with a 7-Eleven clerk ... after she falsely accused him of spitting on the floor.

According to police body cam footage -- obtained by TMZ -- the actor was questioned about his altercation inside the Orlando store last month, which Gray claims started because the guy he was with spit on the floor and the cashier didn't approve. Imagine that.

Bryshere says she snapped, and even after he started cleaning up his friend's spit she continued to bark at him ... and then allegedly threw something at him.

Yazz says he returned fire by hurling a bag of chips at her before deciding to leave ... and he's sure the store's security footage will back up his claim she attacked first.

However, the clerk clearly points the finger at the "Empire" star as the spitter when she speaks with police, and tells them she wants to press charges because he cussed her out and threw stuff at her first. She's also confident the cameras will prove her right.

Law enforcement sources tell us no arrests were made due to the conflicting statements and a lack of physical injuries ... but the clerk does want to press charges. Gray told cops he didn't want to go that route.

Forget "Scent of a Woman" ... one guy allegedly had to get his hands on Picasso's pricey Bust of a Woman, for which he was arrested and has now been charged. Hoo-ah!

20-year-old Shakeel Ryan Massey was arrested this weekend for damaging the 1944 oil painting on display at the Tate Modern gallery in London ... valued at $26 million. It depicts French photog Dora Maar -- PP's old muse -- except all cube-y and abstract-like.

According to the BBC, the guy allegedly "attacked" the painting and left it ripped somehow. A Tate spokesman says the artwork is being assessed by their conservation team, and the gallery remains open. In other words, the painting -- a Picasso original -- is in surgery.

As for this young fella, he's reportedly been charged with criminal damage and appeared in court this week ... only to be told he'd be held in custody until a pre-trial hearing at the end of January. He's apparently already indicated he plans to fight the charge.

The painting is of other noteworthy value besides being done by the famous painter -- it's said to have been created in Paris during the final months of Nazi occupation.

Disney actor Devan Leos can breathe a huge sigh of relief ... he won't spend any time behind bars after striking a plea deal in his attempted murder case.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Devan pled no contest to 1 count of attempted murder back in April. He was sentenced to 5 years probation, 120 hours of volunteer work at a homeless shelter and 30 days with Caltrans. We're told the 1 count of assault with a deadly weapon was tossed.

The plea deal stems from an incident that went down in December 2018. Law enforcement sources say Devan -- who appeared in Disney Channel's "Mighty Med" -- and a friend were at a 7-Eleven convenience store in L.A. where they got into an argument with a transient.

We're told when Devan and his friend got back in their car, the transient kicked it as they were pulling away. That's when Devan allegedly drove toward the transient and accelerated several times before hopping the curb and knocking down the transient.

We reached out to Leos ... no word back yet.

A DoorDash delivery driver was shot and killed in an early morning armed robbery at a Denny's ... and a manhunt is on for the suspects.

The 2 men entered the restaurant in Manassas, Virginia around 2:20 AM the day after Christmas while brandishing guns and were reportedly robbing the place when Yusuf Ozgur, a DoorDash employee, arrived to pick up an order.

Ozgur was tragically killed when he encountered the suspects as they were running out ... according to police.

Surveillance footage shows the men running into the Denny's with dark clothes, masks and gloves on before holding the place up. Prince William County police describe them as in their late teens to early 20s.

A Santa look-alike pulled a Robin Hood this week by robbing a bank and then making it rain for unsuspecting pedestrians.

David Wayne Oliver sauntered into an Academy Bank in Colorado Springs, allegedly threatened a teller with a weapon and left with an undisclosed amount of cash.

The 65-year-old faux Santa then walked outside and hurled the loot in the air, screaming "Merry Christmas" all the while, to the amazement of people who happened to walk by. Most of the people who scooped up the money returned it to the bank.

Oliver then casually walked to a nearby Starbucks where he waited for cops to come and hook him up.

Oliver is being held on $10,000 bail.

There are new perils for Mickey, Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck ... patrons at Disney World are grabbing them, and in Minnie's case ... the assaulter had allegedly done it to other characters at the park.

The 36-year-old woman who plays Minnie says she posed for a photo with a man and his wife earlier this month, and as they were taking the pic he groped her chest 3 times. She filed a police report against the 61-year-old man but ultimately decided against pressing charges.

Turns out the guy has a history at Disney World. He had an 'inappropriate interaction' with another cast member the day after his interaction with Minnie. The incident occurred at the Magic Kingdom, but Disney would not give specifics, except to say the man -- who was a member of the Disney Vacation Club -- is now banned from the theme parks.

There were other incidents as well. A woman who plays Mickey Mouse claims a woman patted her on the head 5 times, and apparently the shock caused her to endure neck strain.  The patron says she barely touched Mickey.

As for Donald Duck ... the 18-year-old in costume says a female patron repeatedly touched her on the arms, chest, belly and face.

Rich Homie Quan is off the hook in his seemingly endless drug case.

According to legal docs obtained by TMZ ... the drug case against the rapper has been tossed. RHQ's lawyer, Lucy Bell, tells TMZ it was dismissed due to a lack of evidence. Bell says the "tiny amount of marijuana" was in somebody else's pocket and RHQ was wrongfully accused. We've reached out to prosecutors to confirm that ... so far, no word back.

TMZ broke the story ... Rich Homie Quan and his crew were busted back in May 2017 in Wadley, GA on suspicion of a stolen gun and drugs. A few days later, the weapons charge was dropped but he was booked on felony possession of drugs with intent to distribute.

If convicted, he faced up to THIRTY YEARS in prison. But, Homie don't play that .. lucky for him, the case was officially dropped after the judge signed off.

Chris Johnson is breathing easier today ... TMZ Sports has learned the ex-NFL superstar only got a slap on the wrist after he was accused of choking a valet last year.

Back in April 2018, the former Tennessee Titans RB allegedly roughed up a nightclub valet in Hillsborough County, Florida.

According to court docs, Johnson is accused of placing a man in a chokehold and punching him the face.

In video of the altercation obtained by TMZ Sports, you can see the two interact ... but it's unclear if an attack ever took place.

In a separate video posted by the alleged victim, you can see the guy was rattled from the incident ... bleeding from his nose and saying he thought he was going to die.

Johnson was eventually hit with misdemeanor battery over the altercation ... but the 34-year-old fought the charge in court for months, and finally, earlier this month, he cut a deal with prosecutors to close out the case.

We're told Johnson agreed to enter into a pre-trial diversion program to eventually have the charge dropped.

Details of Johnson's exact program are unclear ... but we're told by officials that generally, defendants in misdemeanor intervention programs in Hillsborough County, Florida are required to pay some fines and restitution and complete community service.

The girl who infamously hurled a chair out of the 45th floor of a Toronto condo building can no longer be seen in Drake's new "War" video ... because the singer 86'd her.

Marcella Zoia was an extra in the vid, and people noticed ... many assuming it was Drake himself who decided to include her and they went after him hard. Drake made it clear ... he doesn't cast extras, but when he found out what was up, he took matters into his own hands and removed her.

Zoia has got some serious legal issues ahead of her. She pled guilty to mischief causing danger to life and is awaiting sentencing next month. She could get 6 months in jail. She doesn't seem particularly contrite over the whole thing ... she tried to use her new-found fame to become a social media influencer.