Family

Nick Reiner won't face the death penalty in his criminal case ... and it seems the public won't be clued in on certain details of the case -- because the Los Angeles County District Attorney says his siblings don't want grand jury testimony released to the public.

Los Angeles D.A. Nathan Hochman spoke to the assembled media outside the Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Downtown Los Angeles Tuesday morning ... confirming our report that his office won't pursue the death penalty.

D.A. Hochman noted his office thoroughly reviewed the case, listened to Nick's siblings Jake and Romy Reiner's desires ... and decided that life without the possibility of parole -- the other max sentence for Nick -- is sufficient.

Gladys Knight's son is worried her husband is going to push her so hard to keep working that it will kill her.

Shanga Hankerson told The Detroit News that William McDowell -- the R&B legend's husband and manager -- is working her too hard. The alarming comment comes after his mother announced last month she'd be cutting back on her live performances amid concerns from her fans and people on tour.

Gladys has played multiple shows recently, and her son says of her husband, "He never intended to stop any tour dates, as you can see for yourself."

Shanga then dropped the hammer ... "My belief and fear is that he intends to literally try to work her until she passes away. And you can quote me on that."

Alix Earle's stepmom is opening up about her involvement in the scandal surrounding former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's resignation.

Ashley Earle -- who went by Ashley Dupre -- got into the nitty-gritty of her escort days in a new piece for Elle.

She wrote ... "At 19, while working as a cocktail waitress, a man approached me and told me I could make $1,000 an hour going on dates with high-profile men. My first answer was no, but I kept his card."

Ashley says she eventually gave the man a call, explaining she wanted money and independence.

7:56 AM PT -- Donald Trump Jr.'s wife, Bettina Anderson, says the Russian oligarch is a "dear friend" who "very generously hosted two nights of celebrations for us AFTER our wedding."

Bettina says only family members were invited to the actual wedding ceremony and the rest of the weekend's lavish festivities were "an extraordinarily generous wedding gift from a friend."

She added photos from the weekend and said, "Friendship doesn't require a political motive. Generosity doesn't automatically come with an agenda. And sometimes a wedding gift is simply a wedding gift."

Donald Trump Jr. apparently had one helluva wedding hookup ... because a Russian oligarch with close ties to Vladimir Putin reportedly bankrolled the lavish affair.

According to ProPublica, Russian businessman Umar Kremlev spent hundreds of thousands of dollars helping pay for Don Jr.'s extravagant May wedding to Bettina Anderson in the Bahamas.

The outlet reports Kremlev paid to rent out one of the private islands used for the celebration, where guests stayed and where a reception was held ... and he also allegedly covered other pricey extras, including the fireworks show.

Patrick Clancy and his new wife are continuing to move forward after the mistrial in Lindsay Clancy's murder case ... stepping out for a low-key Hamptons coffee run.

TMZ obtained a photo of Patrick and Rachel Danis inside the Milk Pail on Saturday, where the two appeared to be grabbing drinks and browsing the shop.

Patrick kept it casual in a pink polo and shorts, while Rachel stood nearby a few feet behind him.

Lady Gaga's clearly a protective mom ... holding her baby tightly in the first photos taken of the pair together.

The singer-songwriter was spotted recently holding her swaddled child close to her chest while walking with her fiancé, Michael Polansky, and a friend.

Gaga kept her head down ... walking quickly with her crew in Northern California -- where Page Six reports she's been laying low in recent weeks to enjoy some private family time.

Lil Durk's father, Big Durk, is celebrating his son's courtroom victory ... telling TMZ it's an incredible moment for the entire family.

Big Durk spoke with our cameras outside court Friday in downtown Los Angeles just minutes after a jury found Lil Durk not guilty on all five charges in his federal murder-for-hire case.

He tells TMZ he's "bursting with joy" and can barely contain his happiness ... adding the entire family is on a "high" following the verdict.

12:13 PM PT -- Video from inside the courtroom shows KJ's lawyer talking to the judge during the hearing, explaining why KJ's case should play out in juvenile court to keep things away from the media and public. The attorney also mentions the polygraph test Kim claims her son took and passed.

The judge did not make a ruling on the juvenile court ask ... taking more time to mull it over.

10:48 AM PT -- Kim Zolciak and her daughter Brielle Biermann were seen leaving after Court on Friday.

Kroy "KJ" Biermann Jr. had videos on his phone showing him having sex with an underage relative ... according to prosecutors in his sexual assault case.

Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann's eldest son appeared in a Georgia court Friday as part of a bond hearing ... and Page Six reports the prosecution claims investigators found videos on KJ's cell phone which they say depict the 15-year-old having penetrative sex with a relative under 12 years old.

It's unclear how old KJ was when the alleged videos were taken.

Deputy District Attorney Caitlin McGillicuddy claims there were "multiple encounters" on video found on KJ's phone. She also claims KJ uses "predatory, derogatory" language toward the alleged victim in the videos.

McKenna West's last-ditch bid to try taking her wild surrogacy case before the Supreme Court is being slammed by the biological parents of the critically ill baby she carried.

Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed's lawyer, Lee Budner, described the surrogate's latest legal attempt as containing "defamatory lies about Rumi's parents and his medical care, and mischaracterizations of the law."

The California couple's attorney pointed out court rulings in Alaska, California and Texas have already gone in their favor ... saying, "This means that every Court to consider McKenna West's claims has ruled that Rumi's parents are Omar and Nausheen." 

The autopsy for Raz B and Mona Li's 3-month-old son, Astro Monte Thornton, is complete ... but his cause of death remains a mystery.

The Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office tells TMZ ... they conducted the autopsy Wednesday, one day after Astro died. His cause and manner of death are both listed as pending investigation.

As we reported ... sources close to the family told us Astro's death this week was unexpected and sudden.

Kim Zolciak and her daughter Brielle Biermann left Kroy Jr.'s sexual battery hearing Friday ... keeping quiet as members of the media peppered them with questions about the case.

KJ's mom and older sister walked out of the Georgia courthouse in matching black dresses, with several officers providing them protection as they navigated a media scrum.

The two quietly climbed into a waiting black SUV, then drove off.

An 11-year-old girl in Oklahoma is under arrest for allegedly shooting and killing her 15-year-old brother.

Police say the fatal shooting went down Wednesday at a residence in Edmond, where the siblings were home alone. Cops were called to the home at 4 PM and found a boy dead from an apparent gunshot wound.

His sister was arrested Thursday and taken to a juvenile detention center, where she was booked on a complaint of second-degree murder.

Selena's brother wants his piece of the pie, and now he's suing his sister for more than $1 million to get what he claims is his fair share of their slain sibling's estate.

A.B. Quintanilla III slapped his sister Suzette with the lawsuit Thursday, claiming he entered into an agreement with other family members after Selena was shot to death in 1995 by Yolanda Saldívar.

In the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, A.B. says the agreement was executed by Suzette, Selena's mom, Marcella Quintanilla, Selena's husband, Christopher Perez, and A.B. himself. He says he "is a party to and intended beneficiary of the Agreement."

Late NBA star Jason Collins, who was the first openly gay player in the league, signed a will about how to handle his estate ... just months before announcing he had cancer ... TMZ Sports has learned.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, Jason left behind an estate with personal property totaling over $1.8 million ... although there could very well be substantial assets held separately in private trusts.

The docs included a will in which the late athlete said he left a written note in a safe-deposit box with instructions for the executor as to who should get his jewelry, watches, silverware, clothing, cars, and other personal effects.

Michael Jackson accuser James Safechuck and his mom are about to get grilled under oath ... as his long-running legal battle over his alleged childhood abuse by the King of Pop barrels ahead.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, James is scheduled to sit for a deposition Monday, Sept. 14 ... while his mother, Stephanie Safechuck, is slated to be questioned over two days -- Oct. 15 and 20.

Stephanie could be a key witness given just how close she says the Safechuck family became with Michael.

Lauren Boebert went to bat for her son Tyler in court Thursday ... asking a judge to punish him for his identity theft case without derailing his future as a young father.

The Colorado Congresswoman spoke during Tyler's sentencing hearing ... telling the judge she was there "as Tyler's mother" and "as a granny to his son" ... and insisting, "He's not a bad kid, he's not a bad man."

Lauren acknowledged Tyler was given a second chance with a deferred sentence, but failed to stay out of trouble ... later pleading guilty last week in a separate child abuse case.