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A new bill proposed in Texas could charge transgender people with a state felony if they lie about their biological sex assigned at birth ... and two lawmakers are defending the harsh punishment.

Texas State Reps. Steve Toth and Nate Schatzline joined us on "TMZ Live" Tuesday and we asked them about the proposed bill that would add a new form of fraud related to gender identity.

As Toth and Schatzline explain, the bill -- Texas House Bill 3817 -- says a transgender Texan would commit "gender identity fraud" if they lie on state records or to employers about their biological sex ... and they would be charged with a state felony, which is punishable by up to two years behind bars.

Le'Veon Bell is vehemently denying a woman's claims he raped her for years when she was an adolescent ... with his attorney telling TMZ Sports the default judgment in the alleged victim's favor is completely "bogus."

Jada Bell said in a lawsuit filed in Franklin County, Ohio last year that she's Le'Veon's cousin ... and when she was just six or seven years old, Le'Veon began having nonconsensual, incestual relations with her.

According to the suit, Le'Veon -- who Jada says is eight years older than her -- would use "slang terms" to direct her when she was just a minor, which incestual acts he wished for her to perform upon him."

Infamous wife-killer Scott Peterson got an ass-whoopin' from another inmate in a California state prison -- in an altercation over pickleball ... TMZ has learned.

Multiple sources tell TMZ ... Peterson got into the heated confrontation Sunday in the yard near his housing unit at Mule Creek State Prison, about 40 miles southeast of Sacramento.

Our sources say Peterson hit the ball directly at the other inmate, triggering the assault. We're told Peterson got "beat up" by the other prisoner, but his injuries were not serious enough to land him in the hospital.

Tourists hoping to marvel at a majestic black panther at a Chinese zoo may have thought they wandered into the hippo section ... because the predator's belly was dragging nearly down to the ground!!!

Superhero movies have given black panthers global notoriety in the past decade, but video from inside the Chengdu Zoo in Sichuan Province this week revealed a jungle cat more closely resembling Garfield.

The fat feline gingerly waddles around the enclosure ... each step appearing to be a calculated task to keep her stomach from scraping the dirt.

3/14 10:23 AM PT -- Emily Osment is officially a single woman ... a judge just signed off on the split.

Emily Osment is making a clean break from her estranged husband ... because she just filed docs settling their divorce in near record time.

Emily filed the settlement docs on Monday, after she beelined it to court Friday and filed to divorce her husband Jack after only 5 months of marriage.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Emily and Jack each gave up their rights to seek spousal support and they have signed a confidential marriage settlement agreement.

Fascinating twist in the story of the dead body caught by fishermen in the waters off Massachusetts ... turns out the corpse was meant to be buried at sea and no foul play is suspected, according to authorities.

The Suffolk County Chief Medical Examiner in Boston just announced the body is a woman in her 60s with cancerous tumors all over it. The M.E. says the unidentified body was embalmed and apparently intentionally deposited into its watery grave.

Prosecutors say the case is now closed, adding the dead woman will likely stay nameless forever.

Wendy Williams is at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City for an independent examination as to whether her cognitive functions are sufficiently intact to end her guardianship.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... a caregiver not associated with the guardianship -- Gina Monterroso -- ordered the trip and the test ... this after the NYPD paid a visit to Wendy Monday morning to determine if, as Wendy says, she's effectively being held prisoner.

The NYPD has asked about Wendy being confined to the memory unit of the assisted living facility, where she cannot leave the floor without permission. She rarely gets out.

Wendy Williams' guardianship is being investigated by Adult Protective Services in New York City, and TMZ has obtained the call for help that sparked the whole thing.

A caregiver not associated with the guardianship -- Ginalisa Monterroso -- sent a letter recently to APS formally requesting a probe into what she saw as "troubling circumstances" surrounding Wendy's treatment.

In the letter, obtained by TMZ, Ginalisa raises issues about Wendy's restrictions at a New York assisted-living facility, where she's confined to the 5th-floor memory unit and not allowed to leave without approval from staff.

New footage shows authorities removing a decomposed body from a fishing vessel in Boston ... after a group of Massachusetts fishermen caught the body in their net.

TMZ obtained photos and videos showing the body being lifted from the boat and onto a pier in Boston's Seaport District ... with officials from the Medical Examiner loading the corpse onto a gurney and into an SUV.

A heavy police presence was there when the body, wrapped in a tarp, was removed from the boat ... with Massachusetts State Police and Massport cops, in addition to the fire department and EMTs.

New York authorities have launched two separate investigations into the circumstances surrounding Wendy Williams' guardianship ... TMZ has learned.

Sources connected to Wendy tell TMZ ... Wendy just had an interview with Adult Protective Services, which also has made phone calls to people close to Wendy, asking about her living conditions in a New York assisted living facility.

As TMZ reported ... Wendy is locked on the 5th floor in the memory unit, where she cannot leave the floor without approval from an attendant. Numerous people connected to Wendy say she has no memory problems, and therefore, keeping her in that memory unit is inhumane.

Model Ivana Knoll -- known as the World Cup's hottest fan -- claims she was asked to turn down her hotness at the start of her DJ career ... but she tells TMZ Sports she has no plans to be just one of the guys.

The Croatian beauty -- who boasts nearly three million followers on Instagram -- opened up about her foray into the music industry during a conversation with Lucas Widman ... and revealed one early concern had nothing to do with her abilities on the turntables, but rather her appearance.

Knoll broke down a request from one agent in particular ... who suggested she give off more of a "sexy boy" look.

A fishing vessel off the coast of Massachusetts made a shocking discovery while out in the water last week ... pulling up a dead body in their net -- and, TMZ has obtained a photo of the grisly scene.

A source with direct knowledge tells TMZ ... the fishermen pulled the body out of the water early Wednesday morning about forty miles from Boston.

We're told the crew wasn't pulling up much in the way of fish that morning ... and, they were surprised when this particular net was so heavy -- with tons of fish covering the body.

Travis Kelce's playing days may be coming to an end soon, but Henry Winkler is making it clear he thinks the NFL star's acting career is just getting started ... telling TMZ Sports he loved the dude in "Grotesquerie."

We caught up with Henry out in Los Angeles this week ... and he had nothing but praise for the way Kelce played a flirty ex-stripper in his son Max Winkler's new horror drama series.

The Fonz said Kelce gave off a "warm and professional" vibe during the show, while calling the footballer's portrayal of Ed Lachlan "great."

Master P is jumpin' into his new gig as head honcho for the University of New Orleans' basketball program ... and the rap legend may have a secret weapon when it comes to landing top talent!

Ellen DeGeneres! Yes, you read that right.

TMZ Sports caught up with P in Los Angeles this week and we asked him whether he was concerned he wouldn't be able to lure hoopers to NOLA.

Jaylin Lane's friends and family ain't the only ones who are going to be pumped to see him drafted into the NFL next month ... a local car dealer will be pretty pleased too -- 'cause he tells TMZ Sports he's planning to buy a new ride with his first rookie check.

The Virginia Tech wideout -- who absolutely tore up the league's combine in Indianapolis last week -- said on Friday one of his first orders of business after he gets settled into his new team will be to cop a truck.

Lane told us it won't be anything fancy -- he just simply wants his parents to stop having to pay for his current ride ... a Ford Fusion.

Tupac Shakur's expansive posthumous catalog could grow even bigger ... if any hardcore collectors have the cash to unearth some of his pre-Death Row Records tracks!!!

Momentsintime.com is selling the lyrics and audio capsule of unreleased Tupac music stemming from late 1990 to early 1991, when the late rap martyr was recruited for his budding talent.

Tupac composed and recorded an unreleased album for a group called Jesse and the Kidz ... which never dropped due to the unspecified death of one of the band members.