Developing Stories

We're told reps from PCDSS came a callin' and interviewed a number of people, including Brooke Mueller, the nannies, the housekeepers (yes, plural) and others. We do not know if they spoke with Charlie, but we do know the reps concluded the kids were in no danger.

As for Brooke, we've learned she wants to come back to L.A. with the kids and resume cohabiting with Charlie. As we first reported, lawyers for both Brooke and Charlie are trying to get the protective order modified so Brooke and Charlie can resume living together.

We're told the only real stumbling block is who will monitor the conflicted couple. We're told the prosecutor wants a public agency in Aspen to make sure Brooke is safe, but Brooke is concerned that info about her attempt to repair the relationship might leak.

There are private agencies that provide monitoring services. The decision on who monitors Charlie and Brooke is the only potential point of conflict in modifying the protective order -- that is, unless the judge has his own issues.

Rush Limbaugh held a press conference Friday afternoon to tell the world he's just fine -- but we're told Rush is playing it safe anyway.

Sources tell TMZ that Rush has returned to his room at the Kahala Hotel and Resort -- the same place he experienced chest pains on Wednesday. But, we're told, Rush has asked hotel security to remain stationed outside his room 24/7 ... just in case something happens.

Rush went out of his way to praise hotel staff for taking care of him during his health scare.

Courtney Love does not deserve credit where credit is due, at least according to legal docs she just filed in a massive case involving American Express.

The credit card company has sued Courtney, claiming she owes $352,059.67 in unpaid charges.

But in the new countersuit, Courtney claims AmEx is guilty of sloppy business practices by issuing a "massive" number of cards in her name without her knowledge or consent.

One of Courtney's lawyers previously told TMZ AmEx issued 104 credit cards in Courtney's name and Courtney didn't make a single one of the charges in question.

Courtney claims she should have a zero balance.

She's suing AmEx for unspecified damages, as well as interest. Even if she wins, she won't get 18%.

An obsessed fan of Audrina Patridge received the best gift of all this holiday season ... community service (his other options were a lot worse).

Zachary Loring was sentenced to 30 days community service after pleading guilty to one count of vandalism for defacing an electrical box in Los Angeles. He was also charged with carrying a switchblade, but that count was dropped as part of the plea deal.

The court case is not connected to another legal problem facing Loring -- allegedly harassing Audrina. She obtained a restraining order against him after he allegedly showed up to her house and sent her creepy letters and drawings.

Loring was placed on 36 months probation and can't possess deadly weapons, aerosol paint containers, felt tip markers or indelible ink markers. He can carry a pencil.

Joe's lawyer, Brian Oxman, sent 2 subpoenas to the UCLA Medical Center -- the hospital where Michael Jackson was pronounced dead on June 25. Oxman is asking for a number of documents, including medical records, autopsy reports, autopsy photos, medications and prognosis assessments.

Joe Jackson tells TMZ his entire family is behind the subpoenas -- Katherine, the brothers and sisters, along with him. He says they all believe the medical records will show what was in Jackson's body when he passed and they believe the information will expose foul play.

We've obtained a letter sent to Oxman by estate lawyer Howard Weitzman, in which Weitzman calls the subpoenas "clearly improper." Weitzman claims the subpoenas violate Jackson's right of privacy and the physician/patient privilege. Weitzman also says the subpoenas are irrelevant to Joe Jackson's only legal claim -- a financial allowance.

UPDATE #3: A rep from the Rush Limbaugh Program released a statement saying, "Rush was admitted to and is resting comfortably in a Honolulu hospital today after suffering chest pains.

Rush appreciates your prayers and well wishes and he will keep you updated via RushLimbaugh.com."

Rush Limbaugh has been hospitalized in Hawaii after suffering chest pains -- this according to KITV Hawaii.

According to KITV, paramedics responded to a call at the Kahala Hotel in Honolulu at 2:41 PM and transported Rush to Queens Medical Center.

According to the report, Rush was in "serious condition" when he arrived to the hospital.

Attempts to reach a rep for Limbaugh were unsuccessful.

UPDATE #1: TMZ has confirmed paramedics did respond to the Kahala Hotel at 2:41 to attend to someone with "chest discomfort."

UPDATE: 11:29 PM EST -- Sources inside the hotel tell TMZ the hotel took drastic measures to get the mystery patient -- reported to be Rush Limbaugh -- out of the resort without being seen.

We're told hotel security shut down a wing of the hotel and the guest elevators -- the patient was transported using the employee elevator bank.

Prosecutor Arnold Mordkin filed a motion in Aspen yesterday opposing dismissal of the protection order. Both Charlie and Brooke want the order 86'd.

A judge will decide on Monday.

As we first reported, the struggling couple wants to reconcile.

TMZ has obtained the menu from Oneida Correctional Facility -- where Plax is currently serving a stint for that whole gun in a nightclub thing ... and as far as the food goes, New Year's Eve is the same as every other night.

Plax's last dinner of 2009 will consist of:
-- Breaded Chicken Patty
-- Seasoned Chicken Gravy
-- Whipped Potatoes
-- Steamed Collard Greens
-- White Bread/ Margarine
-- Orange Gelatin
-- Ice Tea

TMZ has learned Dr. Arnold Klein, who treated Michael Jackson for decades, had an office employee who just died ... an employee who had a history of drug abuse, even while working for Dr. Klein.

Bruce Ayers, who worked for three years as Dr. Klein's research assistant and confidant, was found dead on a sidewalk on December 18 in Los Angeles.

Dr. Klein tells TMZ he fired the 44-year-old Ayers in February, after learning Ayers was allegedly stealing drugs and money from Klein's office.

We're told Dr. Klein stored certain drugs at a pharmacy he used to fill prescriptions for patients. When the drugs would expire, there was a protocol for destroying them. But Klein says Ayers would go to the pharmacy and get expired Demerol for his own use -- and the pharmacy gave it to him. Klein says the pharmacy violated protocol.

We're told Dr. Klein knew Ayers was a drug addict when he hired him but at the time Ayers was on the wagon. Klein says it became painfully obvious at the beginning of 2009 that Ayers' drug problem had resurfaced. Several members of Klein's staff told the Dr. they would quit unless he fired Ayers.

And, we're told, after Ayers was fired, Klein's staff realized 100 Percocet pills were missing.

We've learned Ayers, who met Michael Jackson many times while working for Klein, had a history of abusing pain meds.

When Ayers' body was discovered, authorities found hospital records showing that he had been admitted to three different hospitals since August, in each case for pain issues -- and in each case he was discharged with various meds.

The L.A. County Coroner has deferred Ayers' cause of death, pending toxicology tests.

We've learned Brooke has hired famed criminal defense lawyer Yale Galanter, who represented OJ Simpson for years. Galanter tells TMZ Brooke did not recant the story she told cops on Christmas Day -- that Charlie allegedly held a knife to her throat and threatened to have her killed. But, Galanter says, Brooke did "minimize her story, like many wives in a similar situation do, when they realize their husband could go to jail."

Galanter tells TMZ he will file papers with the Aspen court this morning, asking the judge to allow Brooke and Charlie to resume contact with each other "so they can work on resolving the conflicts in their marriage." Galanter says Brooke and Charlie love each other very much, calling what happened on Xmas, "one bad night."

Galanter, who is currently in Aspen, says he was specifically hired to make sure prosecutors don't "overreact" and charge Brooke with lying to cops. He says, like many women who find themselves in similar circumstances, Brooke didn't realize that Charlie would be arrested after she called 911. So, Galanter says, Brooke soft-pedaled her story to a female cop hours after the 911 call but insists she did not recant.

Snooki is an "embarrassment to the human race" -- at least according to one pissed off group of Italian-Americans.

It's the latest insult in a furious back-and-forth between the "Jersey Shore" star and UNICO -- the Italian American organization pressuring sponsors to bail from the MTV show.

Snooki had lashed out at the group during an interview with Steppin' Out magazine, saying "I just have one thing to say to Domino's, Dell, UNICO and all the other haters out there ... F**K YOU! If you don't want to watch, don't watch. Just shut the hell up! I'm serious. F**K YOU!"

Re-enter UNICO, who proclaimed, "She is not an embarrassment to Italian Americans -- she is actually an embarrassment to the entire human race!!!!"

Your move, Snooks.

Lohan's lawyer is on the attack, claiming Erin made the whole thing up -- after Mike "terminated" their engagement.

As TMZ first reported, Erin made the allegations in legal documents she filed yesterday in NY, in which she asked the judge to drop Michael's harassment lawsuit against her. In the docs, Erin claimed Mike once kicked her in the vagina.

But Team Lohan is refusing to back down, claiming Erin's story is a "desperate attempt to dismiss the allegations against her."

Robert Halderman's lawyer, Gerald Shargel, filed legal papers asking that the charges against his client be dismissed. In the papers, Shargel notes that when news of Tiger's infidelity surfaced, Mistress #1, Rachel Uchitel, reportedly inked a multi-million dollar settlement in return for her silence -- with the help of Gloria Allred.

Shargel notes, "Their behavior was capitalist, not criminal."

Halderman's lawyer says his client essentially just "offered to sell his very marketable story to David Letterman." Shargel says that celebrity misdeeds have "significant fair market value" and they are "routinely suppressed through private business arrangements."

Shargel's point -- Rachel and Gloria didn't get prosecuted, so why should Halderman?

Teddy Riley -- a singer from the R&B group Blackstreet -- is accused of using a guitar from the video game Rock Band in a violent attack on his daughters.

Teddy's 18-year-old daughter Taja Riley was granted a temporary restraining order against her dad -- claiming 43-year-old Teddy abused her and her older sister by "stomping, punching and bashing them" in his L.A. home on December 23.

In the documents, filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Taja claims at one point Teddy, "lifted a Rock Band guitar and threatened to kill person(s) w/ it."

Taja claims she suffered several injuries in the alleged altercation -- including "bashes to temple, contusion on face" and "pain in knee."

TMZ has learned the Pitkin County Department of Social Services is "aware" of the alleged incident between Sheen and his wife Brooke Mueller -- and the department is considering whether to pursue an investigation.

Sheen and Mueller have two 9-month-old children together -- and Charlie has two young daughters from his relationship with Denise Richards.

Officials at the PCDSS tell us, "When there is a domestic dispute and children are present in the home, we are always notified."

The official added, "If the family is vacationing in Pitkin County, and we feel that a thorough follow up is needed, we will contact the department where the family resides."

We contacted L.A. Child Services for comment -- but they refused to comment on the situation.

Officer Rick Magnuson says in the affidavit when he responded to the location, dispatch had told him that the knife Sheen had allegedly threatened Mueller with was a switchblade, "like a pocket knife."

Magnuson says when he arrived he did not notice "any obvious injuries" on Mueller. When Magnuson arrived, Sheen was upstairs and Mueller was in the kitchen.

Magnuson took Sheen into the basement to talk, where Sheen said he had been having marital problems lately and that she "abuses alcohol." Sheen says Mueller began arguing with him at 3:30 AM and the argument escalated when she threatened to divorce him and take the children.

Sheen says the catalyst for the argument was when he "shared a song for his daughter whom he fathered with another woman" which made Mueller jealous.

Sheen says both parties were yelling at each other and they had each slapped the other on the arm during the argument. Sheen denied pushing or striking Mueller. Sheen says at one point he took Mueller's eyeglasses and broke them in front of her.

Sheen denied threatening Mueller with a knife or strangling her. He did acknowledge having a folding knife in his travel bag which was just outside the bedroom. Officer Magnuson went with Sheen to look inside the travel bag and saw a dark colored, locking knife with a 4-inch blade. The blade was locked in the open position.

The affidavit goes on to say another officer interviewed Mueller, who said she and Sheen were arguing in the bedroom and she said she wanted a divorce. She says Sheen became enraged, grabbed her by the upper part of her throat while straddling her on the bed. She says Sheen then pulled out a knife and held it to her throat, saying, "You better be in fear. If you tell anybody, I'll kill you."

Mueller says Sheen added, "Your mother's money means nothing. I have ex-police I can hire who know how to get the job done and they won't leave any trace."

Mueller then says Sheen got off of her after she told him, "You're right. You're right. You're right. I'm sorry. I love you."

Magnuson says he then observed "red marks on the upper part of the front of her neck." Mueller says the marks were made as Sheen held her down on the bed. Mueller says Sheen placed a medium-sized, folding knife, blade exposed, next to her throat while he straddled her on the bed. Mueller says she was in pain and afraid she was going to die while Sheen's hand was on her throat.

Magnuson then placed Sheen under arrest.