Legal

The legal battle between Casey Kasem's children and his widow, Jean Kasem, is finally over -- they've reached a settlement, but not everyone in the family's happy.

Casey's children filed docs requesting dismissal of their wrongful death suit against Jean. The court's signed off on the dismissal this week -- and a source connected to Casey's daughter, Kerri Kasem, tells us both sides agreed on a settlement.

However, we're told Kerri's upset about how it all came to an end. We're told she's "distraught and heartbroken" because she feels her sister and brother and 2 attorneys forced the settlement on her.

You'll recall ... Kerri, Julie and Mike Kasem sued Jean back in 2015, claiming she'd caused their father's death as a result of allegedly blocking him from seeing his kids before he passed. They also claimed she'd been abusing him while he suffered from dementia.

The children were accused of conspiring to kill him, but they were ultimately cleared of that ... with authorities calling BS.

Jean herself also dodged criminal charges for the same allegation, but the kids went after her in civil court ... and the case had dragged on for the past 4 years.

Casey -- the legendary radio DJ -- died in June 2014 from a combination of sepsis, UTI and a staph infection ... something the children claimed was exacerbated by an unattended bedsore Jean allegedly neglected.

"The Real Housewives of Atlanta" star Eva Marcille's baby daddy has officially been slapped with charges for his courthouse scuffle with cops ... including a felony.

A Georgia grand jury has indicted Kevin McCall Jr. on 3 counts for his role in the escalator altercation last month with a sergeant, which stemmed from Kevin refusing to stop recording on his phone in the courthouse.

According to the legal docs ... the charges include obstruction of a law enforcement officer by use of threats or violence, terroristic threats and criminal damage to property in the second degree. The latter is the felony count.

The indictment alleges McCall wrestled with the officer and attempted to strike him, resisted arrest and made threats of aggravated assault. As for the felony criminal damage to property ... McCall's accused of intentionally damaging the sergeant's eyeglasses.

As we reported ... Kevin revealed surveillance footage of the escalator tussle, which shows the cop chasing him down in an effort to detain him before making a tackle. Another officer then steps in to assist.

McCall believes the video supports his claim that he's the victim in the ordeal. He also told us he plans to sue the cops because he thinks he was targeted due to his black skin ... and he also claims he got injured.

We broke the story ... McCall was originally in court to fight Marcille for child custody but started beefing with the courthouse cop because he refused to stop recording on his phone. Kevin was live streaming the inciting incident ... and is seen on the vid repeatedly calling a cop a bitch and challenging him to take off his badge and fight.

Bikram Choudhury -- the guy behind Bikram Yoga -- is not currently being investigated for rape despite a damning new Netflix documentary, but he ain't exactly out of the woods yet.

The 75-year-old was painted as a conniving serial rapist in "Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator" -- with several women explaining how Bikram abused his power to sexually assault them.

The burning question at the end of the documentary ... how the hell was Bikram NOT hit with criminal charges???

The L.A. District Attorney's Office acknowledges a case was submitted in 2013 involving 4 accusers -- but at the time "it was determined that there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges."

Here's the breakdown as to why prosecutors shot down each allegation  ...

Alleged Victim 1 (Claimed she was sexually assaulted at Bikram's home in 2005) -- "No other witnesses were present and no physical evidence was recovered."

Alleged Victim 2 (Claimed she was sexually assaulted at Bikram's home in 2006) -- "No one witnessed the assault."

Alleged Victim 3 (Claimed she was raped twice in 2011) -- "No percipient witnesses or corroborative evidence are available."

Alleged Victim 4 (Claimed she was raped three times in 2010) -- "No percipient witnesses or corroborative evidence are available."

The D.A. also notes the statute of limitations had expired on Alleged Victim 1 prior to reporting.

But, even though those cases didn't go anywhere, the D.A. tells TMZ it will conduct a "complete and thorough review" if law enforcement presents any new allegations to the office.

Our LAPD sources tell us there are no current investigations but as one person put it, "If a victim does come forward, the LAPD will investigate."

Law enforcement sources tell us ... people involved in the previous investigations strongly believe the accusers ARE credible, but it's difficult to get a conviction without witnesses or physical evidence.

Of course, Bikram is currently on the lam ... he fled the country after he was hit with a $6.8 million judgment in 2016 after his former lawyer, Minakshi Jafa-Bodden, sued him for wrongful termination and sexual harassment.

Jafa-Bodden -- who was featured heavily in the Netflix doc -- claimed she was fired after investigating claims Bikram raped a female student.

For his part, Bikram has denied raping anyone -- claiming he doesn't need to rape because there are plenty of women around the world who would willingly have sex with him.

Tony Rock's giving Pete Davidson mad respect for making his fans sign very pricey non-disclosure agreements to attend his shows ... something he thinks is long overdue.

We got the comedian at LAX Monday and asked about the 'SNL' star's new million-dollar NDA policy ... he's fully behind Pete, telling us it's a bold but necessary move to balance power between stand-up comics and their fans.

Tony tells us the current culture -- where people bust out their phones to record everything and post it online instantaneously -- makes it hard for comics to try out new material ... and he's praising Davidson for "having the balls" to take a stand against it.

As he puts it ... the fans have gotten away with too much for too long, and it's time for a little get-back.

Rock admits the threat of a million-dollar penalty for breaching the NDA by simply talking about Pete's content might be too much ... but ya gotta start somewhere.

Tony also suggests other comics -- including himself -- should follow Pete's lead ... especially Eddie Murphy. As you may know, the legendary comedian's set to make a return to stand-up on Netflix ... and Tony thinks the NDA is absolutely necessary for Eddie to avoid his comeback getting spoiled.

Remy Ma's off the hook in her assault case -- a judge just dropped all charges against her.

The rapper was in an NYC courthouse Monday with her legal team, and prosecutors made it clear ... they couldn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt Remy had committed the alleged assault on "Love & Hip Hop: New York" star Brittney Taylor back in April.

They said there was no surveillance video capturing the alleged punch, and no witnesses had seen an altercation between them either. Thus, a judge dismissed the case entirely.

You'll recall ... Remy was initially slapped with 4 charges over this -- 2 counts of assault, 1 count of aggravated harassment and another count off harassment in the 2nd degree.

Remy always maintained her innocence, saying she had visual evidence she wasn't even at the concert where it allegedly went down.

Her attorney, Dawn Florio, tells TMZ, "Remy has always maintained her complete innocence as she never laid a hand on her celebrity-obsessed, clout chasing, credibility challenged accuser. Unfortunately, these manufactured allegations caused my client to suffer the indignities of having to wear an ankle monitor while having her freedom limited by travel restrictions and an 8:00 PM curfew."

She adds, "These restrictions have hurt my client's ability to perform, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars of lost income. District Attorney Vance’s office should be commended for its exercise of sound judgment in agreeing to dismiss these unwarranted charges."

Indianapolis Colts QB Chad Kelly is being sued by Von Miller's personal cameraman -- who claims Chad socked him in the face while drunk and high at a party in 2018 ... breaking his nose in the process.

The man behind the suit is Jackson Belcher, a videographer who's been working for Von Miller for years.

Belcher claims he was hired to cover Von's 2018 Halloween party at The Gothic Theater in Denver on Oct. 22 ... where he claims Kelly (Miller's Broncos teammate at the time) was boozing and using "recreational drugs."

In his suit, Belcher claims he went up to the 2nd floor to retrieve a camera when he was "inexplicably grabbed" by Kelly ... who was "obviously intoxicated, enraged and highly aggressive."

Belcher says Kelly punched him "directly on the bridge of his nose, causing him to fall into the group of people, and then onto a railing."

Multiple security guards raced over to restrain Kelly, according to the suit, but he kept fighting ... punching, kicking and throwing elbows at the hired muscle.

Belcher says he suffered a broken nose in the attack which required 4 surgeries to fix -- along with a head injury, concussion and physical and emotional trauma.

Later that same night, Kelly was arrested for breaking into a random person's home while dressed in his Halloween costume. He later pled guilty to 2nd-degree criminal trespass.

The Broncos cut Kelly -- but he was later picked up by the Indianapolis Colts, where he's still a backup QB.

Belcher is suing for assault, battery and more. He's demanding unspecified damages including the cost of his $14,000 camera which he claims was damaged in the attack.

Mohamed Hadid is either in denial, or splitting a very important financial hair ... when it comes to the bankruptcy docs he's filed over an infamous Bel-Air mansion project.

Gigi and Bella's pop was out in Bev Hills Saturday night when a paparazzo asked him about the news he's gone bankrupt. Mohamed seemed confused, at first, by the question. Fact is, the photog was a little off with the facts.

TMZ broke the story .. Mohamed did file bankruptcy papers last week in L.A., but it's his construction company, 901 Strada LLC, that's gone belly up ... not Mohamed, personally. Watch the video because Mohamed wants the pap -- and the world -- to know he's doing just fine.

As we reported, Hadid filed docs declaring the LLC is between $10 million and $50 million in debt. The company was building the massive Bel-Air mega-mansion, known as the Starship Enterprise, but last month a judge declared it a "clear and present danger" to the surrounding neighborhood.

The court agreed with complaints, from the city and neighbors, that the home sits on an unstable hillside and wasn't built up to safety codes. As a result, the judge says the Enterprise -- which Hadid planned to sell for $100 million -- has to be torn down.

That alone would cost his company $500k, but in the clip it doesn't sound like Mohamed's planning to move the mansion off that mountain.

Former 'Rock of Love' star Lacey Sculls is loving the jury verdict in her ear biting case ... she's been acquitted on ALL charges.

A jury found Lacey, who tried and failed to lure Bret Michaels on his mid-2000s reality show, was not guilty of chewing some guy's ear during a road rage incident.

We broke the story ... Jorge Magana filed suit against Lacey and her hubby, Jonny, back in 2018, claiming Jonny pulled him outta his car and repeatedly punched and bit him, and alleging Lacey scratched his face and chewed off a portion of his ear.

You'll recall ... cops investigated the incident, and Lacey and Jonny were busted on multiple felony charges, including assault and battery with serious bodily injury.

Prosecutors later tacked on an additional felony charge for Jonny, claiming he used his car to assault another man who allegedly witnessed the incident.

Pete Davidson seems to be over chastising misbehaved crowds at his stand-up shows -- so now, he's putting his money where their mouths are with a very expensive NDA.

According to reports, the 'SNL' star has recently been having fans sign non-disclosure agreements in order to see his live shows ... one of which was put on blast by an annoyed ticket holder who posted screenshots of the alleged document that she says was emailed to her prior to the show. It was for his SF stop right before Thanksgiving.

The woman says the agreement has strict rules -- no phones inside, and no commentary about his content in any way, shape or form thereafter, especially online.

Oh, and if ya break those rules and get found out by Pete and co. ... you're subject to a million dollar fine, plus any other expenses incurred for your conduct. The document reads, "In the event of breach of this agreement, individual shall pay company, upon demand, as liquidated damages, the sum of one million dollars, plus any out of pocket expense."

It's not uncommon for comedians to demand phones be surrendered before coming into a venue that's gonna host them ... but the million-dollar NDA seems pretty over the top.

Then again ... Pete has had issues lately with stand-up gigs, whether it's for one reason or another. And on at least one occasion, he's unloaded on his audience for crappy etiquette.

R. Kelly's GF, Joycelyn Savage, might not be behind that bogus Patreon account -- but her parents don't want anyone claiming they started it either, and they're ready to sue over it.

Timothy and Jonjelyn Savage have fired off a cease and desist letter earlier this week to blogger Tasha K, claiming she's been defaming the couple with several social media posts regarding R. Kelly, Joycelyn and her family.

In the letter, obtained by TMZ, the Savages say Tasha made "utterly false statements" regarding alleged drug abuse, possession of a "black box full of audio recordings" and accusing the parents of creating the Patreon account, purportedly owned by Joycelyn.

You'll recall, Patreon shut down the account after a series of posts seemed to reveal Kelly's alleged abuse of Joycelyn -- however, Patreon said it could NOT confirm Joycelyn was the account holder.

Meanwhile, Tasha claimed on her YouTube channel ... she believed Joycelyn's parents were behind the account. The ATL blogger also posted what she claims is an audio recording of Joycelyn's father talking to R. Kelly's team, and saying Kelly can have his daughter.

As we've reported, Tasha K.'s already in a nasty legal battle with Cardi B.

The Savages attorney, Gerald Griggs, says Tasha's statements are "defamation per se in that they depict our clients as engaging in fraudulent activity that violates civil and criminal law."

Mohamed Hadid has declared bankruptcy on behalf of his company that owns his mansion ... this after a judge told him he's gotta tear down his $100 million Bel-Air home.

Mohamed's company, 901 Strada LLC, filed docs in federal bankruptcy court the day before Thanksgiving, declaring he has between $10 million and $50 million in debt.

According to the docs, Mohamed says his Bel-Air mansion needs immediate attention -- it needs to be physically secured or protected from the weather.

That's notable because as we've reported ... a judge says Mohamed's gotta demolish the 30,000-square-foot crib because it's unsafe for a myriad of reasons and the property is a "clear and present" danger to Hadid's neighbors.

You'll recall ... Mohamed's neighbors and the city are concerned the mansion is on an unstable hillside and wasn't built to safety standards.

In the docs, Mohamed says he's over $386,000 in debt to a design and management company and over $200k in debt to a building materials company. He says he owes over $93k to a demolition company and owes over $35k to plumbers.

OG KISS guitarist Ace Frehley stormed into the home he shares with his estranged girlfriend, forcefully took his belongings, then left her high and dry ... so she claims in legal docs.

Rachael Gordon was granted a temporary restraining order against Ace -- who she says she's been with for 11 years -- after what sounds like a bizarre and frightening incident at their house.

She claims in the docs, he returned home from a business trip unannounced and barged in with muscle -- a male and a female bodyguard -- along with his daughter, Monique.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer allegedly refused to talk to Gordon as he went into his office to gather up his guitars and gold records. Rachael says the female guard threatened her with physical violence and Monique screamed at her ... "You are a skank. My family will kill you."

According to the docs ... Gordon claims as quickly as they stormed in, Ace and his crew took off, leaving her "in shock, afraid, filled with anxiety" and "paralyzed with fear."

A friend of Rachael's witnessed the alleged incident, and claims in docs ... Frehley, Monique and the security guards "looked like they were on drugs."

Gordon also alleges Frehley's exhibited physical and troubling behavior with her in the past, claiming he once threw a knife on their bed and said something like ... "you know what that can do to you."

Frehley's filed legal docs of his own, claiming the accusations against him are "unfounded, false, and baseless" ... and he's requesting to introduce the testimonies of 7 witnesses he believes will support dismissing the restraining order.

There's more, though -- Gordon's also seeking money from the ex-KISS member. She claims the home ambush happened as their lease was up, and says she needs the dough to get a new place ... because she doesn't work and Ace allegedly controls their finances.

She wants $11k for rent and deposits, $20k for moving expenses, and for Ace to cover all the costs of their vehicles. She also wants him to fork over $25k for legal fees.

Paypal cofounder Peter Thiel is pissing off a neighbor who claims Peter's new mansion caused a landslide that buried the dude's home ... according to a new lawsuit.

Peter is being sued by his neighbor, Kevin Keenan, who claims the City of Los Angeles won't let him live in his own house after it was damaged by a landslide emanating from Peter's hillside property.

In the suit, Keenan claims he never had any issues with landslides in his Hollywood Hills hood until Peter moved in next door and demolished an old house to build a new one.

Keenan claims Peter's new estate sits on an over-steepened slope which is a violation of building code, and after heavy rainfall earlier this year, a bunch of dirt and rocks from the hill gave way, burying Keenan's home and backyard.

According to the docs, Keenan claims Peter has done nothing to repair or fix the hillside, and he and his attorneys have ignored Keenan's request and government orders to do something about the slope.

In his suit, Keenan says he can't remove the dirt of debris from his own home until Peter stabilizes the hillside, and thus Peter is the one preventing him from living under his own roof.

Keenan is going after Peter for damages and he wants the judge to order Peter to fix the hill.

Chris Tavarez, from the Disney Channel hit "K.C. Undercover," isn't getting off easy in his domestic violence case with his girlfriend ... and his past is a big reason why.

The L.A. County D.A. has charged the 27-year-old actor with one count of felony domestic violence with a prior conviction. That prior is from a plea deal Tavarez took in 2018.

According to the City Attorney's Office, Tavarez was charged with 2 counts of spousal battery for an incident that occurred in June 2017. He pled no contest to one count, and had to serve 180 days in jail, complete a 52-week Domestic Violence Treatment Program, pay a fine and was ordered to stay away from the victim. The second count was dismissed.

He was also placed on 36 months summary probation, which means his latest arrest could mean a probation violation.

We broke the story ... Tavarez was busted after he allegedly flew into a rage during an argument with his GF and pushed her, which caused her to hit her head and suffer a concussion.

Stella Maxwell can rest easy -- at least for the next 5 years -- because the man who allegedly threatened to rape her and set her house on fire has just been ordered to stay clear of her until 2 Presidential elections from now.

The supermodel filed docs back in Oct. against Ruben Velazquez, whom she claimed threatened her on Instagram, and even showed up in person several times to her house.

As we reported, Velazquez allegedly sent horrifying messages like, "I'm thinking of burning your house" and referred to himself as her husband, saying, "we are going to f*** Stella." The messages allegedly continued, with lines such as "I will find you" and "I [will] leave you in a wheelchair."

He even allegedly sent her a pic of her own house, which he seemed to have taken himself -- standing just a few feet away.

Velazquez has also been charged with criminal threats and harassment.

Rudy Giuliani's seen the writing on the wall -- about President Trump possibly rolling over on him -- and it makes him laugh, because he insists he has an impeccable track record.

We got Trump's attorney Monday evening at Reagan National, and remained defiant after the reports of a new federal investigation into his consulting biz. There's also been a buzz POTUS might throw him under the bus to save his own hide.

Hizzoner told us he's confident his nearly 30 years of friendship with Trump means there won't be any double-cross. Giuliani added he's got 50 years of "ethical, dedicated practice of the law."

The former NYC Mayor also had a brash message for the feds -- come get me!

Rudy said, "the people pursuing me are desperate, sad, angry, disappointing liars" ... and made it clear, in his eyes, they'll have egg on their faces if they try to take him down.