Legal

Colin Kaepernick is offering to cover legal bills for the "freedom fighters" on the ground in Minnesota ... claiming he's already put together a team of "top" defense attorneys.

"In fighting for liberation there’s always retaliation," Kaepernick said Friday morning ... "We must protect our Freedom Fighters."

"We started a legal defense initiative to give legal representation to Freedom Fighters in Minneapolis paid for by [Know Your Rights Camp]."

Kaepernick has donated a ton of his own money to the org. over the years -- but says they're also accepting donations from outside supporters.

The Know Your Rights Camp expanded on the initiative ... saying they have already "identified and teamed up with top defense lawyers in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area to provide legal resources for those in need."

"When there is an injustice within our community, it is our legal right to address it, by any means necessary."

"If you, or a loved one is in need of legal assistance, or has been arrested while fighting injustice in the Minneapolis area, please complete the form below with as much detail as possible."

On Thursday, Kaepernick tweeted out his support for a revolution after the killing of George Floyd ... saying, "When civility leads to death, revolting is the only logical reaction."

He added,  "The cries for peace will rain down, and when they do, they will land on deaf ears, because your violence has brought this resistance."

"We have the right to fight back!"

So far, protestors have set fire to multiple buildings in Minnesota including a police precinct.

Merritt and Crump just finished speaking and answering questions about the tragic killings of Arbery and Floyd — as well as Breonna Taylor’s in Louisville at the hands of police in a case of mistaken identity — and revealed potential next steps to get justice for them and their families.

Merritt spoke first, and suggested it’s time for economic boycotts and sanctions in the communities where these killings have happened, to send a message that racism, police brutality and injustice will not be tolerated any longer.

Crump touched on all 3 cases, but said they are just a microcosm of what he calls a “pandemic of racism” in America. He predicts, unless there is serious action taken in the country in the next month or 2, there will be another unjust killing of an unarmed black person.

Both lawyers called for murder charges for all the police officers involved in Floyd’s death — not just the one who kneeled on his neck — much like they called for the man who recorded video in Arbery’s slaying to be charged with murder … and he eventually was.

Crump also called for the Attorney General of Minnesota, Keith Ellison, to step up and take over the Floyd case, because he believes the current prosecutor’s claim that there’s not enough evidence to bring criminal charges is unacceptable.

Along with highlighting the issues in the Arbery and Floyd cases, Merritt, Crump and Jones made it a point to emphasize Taylor’s story … which has not received as much national attention as the other killings.

The lawyers are also representing Breonna’s family, and are pursuing justice for her just as vigorously as they are for the 2 men. Crump encouraged people to listen to the 911 call made in Taylor's killing to fully understand the injustice that was done to her.

Attorneys representing the families of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery will be holding a virtual press conference ... and TMZ's streaming it live.

Civil rights attorneys, Ben Crump and Lee Merritt, will be speaking Friday morning -- along with the news commentator and criminal justice reform advocate, Van Jones -- as part of a Team Roc Facebook presser called "Next Steps in Pursuit of Justice."

Crump is currently representing Floyd's family, and following the developments Thursday -- in which federal and state prosecutors announced they are not yet charging the 4 officers involved in Floyd's arrest and death -- he told us the family is outraged and crestfallen.

Crump, speaking on behalf of the family and millions of others who saw the video of Floyd being suffocated by cop Derek Chauvin's knee to his neck, doesn't understand how the video doesn't provide enough evidence for charges in George's killing.

Merritt is the lawyer for Arbery's family. As you know, 3 men have now been charged for murder in that case -- father/son Gregory and Travis McMichael, who ambushed Ahmaud as he was driving, and William "Roddie" Bryan, the man who recorded video of the incident.

The virtual press conference begins at 8 AM PT and is being put on by Team Roc.

Boxing star Jermall Charlo is a suspect in a police investigation of a brutal assault that allegedly took place over the weekend ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Cops in Fort Bend County, Texas tell us they responded to a Missouri City residence at around 10 PM on May 23 ... initially for a welfare check.

But, officers say when they arrived ... someone reported there was an aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury during a party at the residence -- and they launched an investigation.

Cops are mum on the details of the allegations -- we're working on it -- but they do say they have identified Charlo as a suspect in the case.

The 30-year-old WBC middleweight champ has NOT been arrested at this time.

Charlo is one of boxing's biggest suspertars ... he's 30-0 in his pro career with 22 knockouts.

Some of the people protesting George Floyd's killing are resorting to looting ... as the tensions between citizens and cops in Minneapolis continue to escalate.

As the second day of demonstrations continued Wednesday -- hundreds came face-to-face with officers armed with riot gear -- some groups of protesters started looting a Target store.

As you can see in the video, folks are piling tons of goods into carts and baskets. The looters are running off with TVs, groceries and clothes.

The Target store is near the intersection where Floyd was killed after a now-fired cop killed him during an arrest for an alleged forgery.

As we reported ... footage of the incident shows an officer pressing his knee down on George's neck for several minutes, ignoring Floyd's pleas that he could not breathe, all while witnesses recorded video and shouted at officers that George was slowly dying.

The protests began in earnest Tuesday night in Minneapolis, with demonstrators clashing with cops who fired tear gas canisters and pepper spray into the crowd.

Less violent protests have sprung up across the country too ... including one very large one moving through Los Angeles.

Demonstrators from Black Lives Matter are protesting Floyd's death, and the protest has engulfed an overpass near the 101 Freeway.

Justin Theroux's ongoing war with his neighbor is getting uglier ... because he claims the guy's been making threats of domestic abuse against his elderly wife.

The actor's filed legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- seeking civil or criminal punishment for his NYC neighbor, Norman Resnicow, because he alleges Resnicow's rage-filled outbursts violate a restraining order put in place as part of their ongoing litigation.

Justin asserts Resnicow's prohibited from harassing or intimidating potential witnesses in the case, including other residents of the building ... which includes his 71-year-old wife.

Theroux claims he's heard Resnicow threatening her with violence multiple times since Governor Cuomo issued a stay-at-home order in March. He says 2 days after the order ... Resnicow locked his wife out of their home because he was mad she wasn't wearing a mask, and angrily screamed at her to leave.

Justin recorded the incident, as well as the second incident later that night, when he says he heard Resnicow "erupting in rage" at his wife back at their home. Resnicow's heard calling her a "stupid woman" and "f***ing moron" on the recordings ... and Justin says he feared for her safety and police were called.

About a month later on April 30, there was another alleged incident which prompted Theroux to call the cops ... but he says Resnicow pretended to not be home when they arrived.

Then, on the evening of May 3, Justin claims he heard a loud verbal attack by Resnicow on his wife and began recording. According to the audio, Resnicow's angry that his wife wants to go out, and says to her ... "No you don’t, because I’ll break your teeth. No, you sit down in your f***ing seat. Sit down in your fucking seat and watch the show."

Resnicow accuses her of "going out deaf" because she listens to podcasts, and adds ... "Sit down and shut up. You’re not going anywhere. You’re not going anywhere. You’re not—you’re gonna watch. Wanna get it? You want broken teeth? I’ll break your f***ing teeth."

Theroux says he called 911 again and police arrived, but he does not know the outcome of their encounter with the Resnicows.

Justin claims other residents in the building have filed affidavits saying these incidents can be traumatic, and Justin says the outbursts caused him "anxiety that continues long after the incidents themselves have ended."

He's asking the court to hold Resnicow in contempt and potentially impose a fine or imprisonment on him. As we've reported ... the nasty fight between the 2 neighbors has gone on for 3 years -- but this is another level.

George Floyd's family wants the 4 officers involved in his death arrested, charged and tried for murder -- as their attorney says America needs a state of emergency ... to protect black people.

George's brother, Philonise Floyd, and cousin, Tera Brown, spoke with us Wednesday on "TMZ Live" and reacted to the surveillance video showing the initial moment George was put in handcuffs.

They were, understandably, distraught over what we've all seen in the footage -- George peacefully responding as an officer arrested him ... never physically resisting arrest.

Philonise told us his brother was beloved by everyone who knew him, and said he wasn't shocked to see George was NOT resisting ... as the Minneapolis police first suggested in a statement about the incident.

His brother and cousin got emotional explaining what it was like watching the original video showing George slowly get killed on camera. When we asked what Philonise and Tera would like to see happen now, they didn't hesitate -- both want all the officers there on the scene, especially the one kneeling on George, to be arrested for murder.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey echoed the family's words during a news conference Wednesday afternoon, where he called for the Hennepin County District Attorney to charge the officer whose knee cut off George's airway.

Frey said the Floyd family "deserves justice."

We also spoke to the family's attorney, Ben Crump -- and he told us he is now demanding an executive order be issued announcing a state of emergency for protection of all African-Americans.

Jay-Z's legal eagle is keeping the pressure on Mississippi's infamous Parchman Penitentiary by filing a new lawsuit that calls out the prison's healthcare provider.

As we've reported, Jay's company, Roc Nation, backed a group of Parchman inmates suing Mississippi's Dept. of Corrections over filthy, violent, unhealthy and deadly conditions ... and all of that was before COVID-19 made things worse.

Now, attorney Alex Spiro -- who Roc Nation hired to rep the inmates -- has filed a new lawsuit against Centene ... the parent company of Centurion, which provides healthcare at Parchman. This time, Spiro's client is a Centene shareholder who's seen the brutal news about 40 inmates dying in Mississippi prisons, including Parchman, since December.

The shareholder suspects Centurion's alleged poor care is exposing the company to lawsuits and potentially tanking its stock. In docs, obtained by TMZ, the shareholder calls out Centurion for poor inmate mental health treatment, and a lack of testing in for illnesses -- a glaring issue for prisons amid the pandemic. In short, the suit alleges an "entire breakdown in [Mississippi prisons'] healthcare system."

Parchman, in particular, has been plagued by riots, fires and suicides -- videos from inside the prison showed the dire conditions allegedly exacerbated by the prison being woefully understaffed.

According to the suit, Centurion is actually losing money on its deal with the state of Mississippi -- which the shareholder suspects might be why the company's allegedly bailing on providing proper healthcare at the prisons.

The shareholder wants a judge to force Centurion to open its books to provide a full picture of where money is, or isn't, going when it comes to inmate healthcare.

Obviously, that information could also be crucial for the Parchman inmates' lawsuit. Fair to say, it's no coincidence Spiro is repping the shareholder as well as the prisoners suing Mississippi's DOC.

Jay-Z and Yo Gotti have both vowed they're in this for the long haul ... until the prison conditions vastly improve, and this could go a long way toward that goal.

Pablo Escobar's brother says his life was threatened because of lax security protocols on his phone ... so, now he wants Apple to cough up billions.

The notorious Colombian kingpin's bro, Roberto, is suing Apple for a whopping $2.6 BILLION, claiming someone hacked his smartphone and found his address through FaceTime, even though he claims an Apple employee assured him the iPhone X was the most secure on the market.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Pablo's brother bought an iPhone X back in April 2018, and he claims the security promise fell horribly flat. One year after buying the X, Roberto claims he got a life-threatening letter from someone named Diego, who said he found Roberto's address through FaceTime.

In the docs, Pablo's bro says he had to relocate for his safety, and lost a ton of money beefing up his security ... not to mention the emotional distress he says he suffered as a result of the security breach. Roberto claims he had several assassination attempts on his life before buying the iPhone X, and only bought the phone because he'd been assured his info would be safe from hackers.

In the suit, Roberto says he conducted his own investigation after receiving the letter, and found his iPhone had been compromised due to a FaceTime vulnerability.

Pablo's brother is not stopping at a lawsuit ... Roberto is also going after Apple's bread and butter.

Roberto just launched a limited edition gold-plated iPhone 11 Pro 256GB, which his Escobar Inc company is hawking for $499. Roberto says it's his way of fighting Apple -- selling their phones at a lower price, with gold-plating and sexy girls showing off the phones.

Pablo's brother says ... "Apple can never do that."

Roberto also bought and launched the domain name www.ripapple.com, which links to his gold-plated iPhone. He says the website will have "proof showing how the people of the world were scammed by Apple Inc, buying crap for crazy prices."

If he wins the lawsuit, Roberto says he will share the dough with people who bought iPhones and "ultimately donate it all."

We reached out to Apple ... so far, no word back.

A Beverly Hills plastic surgeon's blowing up on TikTok after posting a video suggesting Hailey Bieber's had some work done on her face, but now it's got him in legal hot water with Hailey and Justin.

Dr. Daniel Barrett's been hit with a cease-and-desist letter by the couple's lawyers, who claim he's using Hailey's name, image and likeness in his video without permission to advertise his practice and "spread false, uncorroborated claims that Mrs. Bieber has undergone plastic surgery."

On top of that, Barrett's being accused of copyright infringement for his use of lyrics from Justin's song, "Sorry," in the TikTok caption.

In the vid, which was posted over the weekend, the plastic surgeon compares a 2011 photo of Hailey to a more recent one and one from 2016. He says he thinks the physical changes are impossible without some cosmetic procedures ... specifically to her nose.

Barrett also speculates Hailey's undergone genioplasty and has lip fillers.

Hailey and Justin's legal team say the TikTok includes a number of violations, including "misrepresentation, defamation, slander, false light, violation of rights of publicity, copyright infringement, trademark and service mark infringement" and more.

They're demanding Barrett take down the video and issue a public retraction in the next 24 hours ... or else the legal fury is coming.

Dr. Barrett tells TMZ ... he doesn't believe his comments in the video are disparaging, and he finds it "crazy" that the Beibers want to chase him down for something like this.

He says his video is intended to educate about plastic surgery, and he does not plan to remove it and will deal with the legal ramifications.

The lawyer for Ahmaud Arbery's family says the federal authorities met with them last week and said they have launched a criminal investigation into the conduct of 2 district attorneys and members of the police department that allegedly covered up Ahmaud's killing.

Lee Merritt appeared Monday on "TMZ Live" and said the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia informed the family they were looking at both civil and criminal action against the officials.

Merritt also talked about the text message the police sent to a homeowner, telling him if there was "action" on his doorbell he should call Gregory McMichael, one of the accused murderers.

Merritt worries the police conduct may have effectively deputized the elder McMichael, such that the citizen's arrest laws don't apply and he would be treated as a law enforcement officer. As you know, McMichael's son, Travis, is the one who fired the shots, but Merritt says it could still be a problem given what the police did.

Elon Musk and Grimes pushed the envelope thaaaaat much too far because it turns out their baby's name is against the law!!!

As you know, Elon and Grimes had a baby boy earlier this month, whom they named X Æ A-12 Musk.

But then, people started digging in and found under California law, birth names must be limited to the following characters ... abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.

Grimes clearly got the message, because someone noticed a change and asked, "Did you change the baby name because of California law?  What is the baby's new name?" She replied, "X Æ A-Xii," adding, "Roman numerals. Looks better tbh."

As for what it all means ... the X stands for an unknown variable, Æ is like AI, and if you know anything about Musk he's intrigued and concerned about it.

Grimes explained A-12 -- "A-12 = precursor to SR-17 (our favorite aircraft). No weapons, no defenses, just speed. Great in battle, but non-violent."

The "A" has musical significance to Grimes ... it stands for "Archangel," her favorite song.

As for how to pronounce ... Musk told Joe Rogan, "I mean it's just X, the letter X. And then, the Æ is, like, pronounced 'Ash'... and then, A-12, A-12 is my contribution."

Here's "Floribama Shore" star Kirk Medas pulling the ol' "don't you know who I am?" card on cops during his arrest down in Georgia ... and it backfires in spectacular fashion.

Kirk was arrested for disorderly conduct this month in Woodstock, GA ... and he tried to tout his celebrity status as he was being hauled off in handcuffs.

Kirk yells, "I'm on a TV show by the way," as cops slap on a pair of cuffs and curious bystanders laugh as they try to figure out exactly what the hell he's famous for.

Kirk ain't lying ... dude was a regular on the "Jersey Shore" spin-off ... but it seems he doesn't really know his audience. The bystanders definitely didn't know him.

As for the arrest ... cops say they were responding to a call regarding a drunk and disorderly male, later identified as Kirk, who had been kicked outta Pure Taqueria.

Police say bar staff told Kirk he had to hit the road after he threw up, and that's when he allegedly became belligerent. Medas was cited for misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

In the video, you hear bystanders saying cops have their guns trained on Kirk ... but the cops say they just pulled out tasers.

Ryan Leaf has been arrested for misdemeanor domestic battery in Palm Springs, CA ... TMZ Sports has learned.

The former NFL quarterback was taken into custody around 2 PM PT on Friday, May 22nd.

According to jail records, he was booked for domestic battery -- and bail was set at $5,000.

As of now (the time of this post), Leaf is still in custody.

44-year-old Leaf is listed on his booking sheet as 6'6", 250 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes.

We're working on the details ...

Of course, Leaf was the #2 overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft -- but his career flamed out fast and his life fell apart soon after.

Leaf has been arrested multiple times for things like drug possession and burglary ... but he had sobered up and became a program ambassador for an organization that runs sober houses in multiple cities including L.A. and N.Y.

He's recently been covering college football for ESPN.

Jaime King and Kyle Newman are in an all-out war for their kids ... with Kyle now saying he needs sole physical custody because her alleged opioid and alcohol addiction is out of control.

The director requested an emergency hearing Friday morning, asking the judge to let him take custody of their 6 and 4-year-old sons, James and Leo. According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Kyle claims the actress/model has "spent the last decade high" and refuses to get any meaningful help for her opioid addictions.

Kyle says things came to a head on January 12, when he and 14 of Jaime's friends staged an intervention ... begging her to get help. He gave her an ultimatum -- get treatment "or the kids and I need to leave for their own safety."

Kyle claims Jaime went to Cirque Lodge rehab facility in Utah, but left shortly after arriving because she tried to check in with a bunch of pills on her ... including Adderall and Clonazepam.

In the docs, he says Jaime was working in Canada in early February and asked him to send the boys to spend a couple weeks with her -- but 3 days into the visit she sent them back to Kyle. He claims she later admitted she was having an affair and using booze and drugs at the time.

Kyle says he and the boys have been quarantining in Pennsylvania, and Jaime has only seen them for 3 days in the past 2 months. On May 15, he says he and Jaime were laying out plans to divorce, when she accused him of "stealing" their kids ... even though she was the one who insisted they go to Pennsylvania. He tried to reassure her, but claims she got angrier and threatened to ruin him.

TMZ broke the story ... Jaime filed divorce docs on May 18, and also requested a restraining order to keep Kyle away from her and the kids. As we reported, the judge ruled the boys could remain with Kyle, who says Jaime blindsided him with her court filings.

Two nannies and one of Jaime's former assistants submitted declarations, describing her alleged addiction to opioids, and claim she's putting the children at risk by -- among other things -- driving with them while under the influence.

Kyle is asking for sole physical custody, shared legal custody and wants Jaime out of the family home in L.A. ... so he can live there with their sons.

Friday morning, the judge rejected his emergency order for custody, and said both sides can argue their cases at a later court date. So for now, it's status quo ... the kids can remain with Kyle in Pennsylvania.

We've reached out to Jaime's camp, but no word back yet.

A North Carolina man named Jesus has confessed after vandalizing a local church's historic stained glass window ... this according to cops.

Police arrested Jesus Jose Arellano after he used a foot-long sandstone rock to smash a Tiffany glass window at Grace Moravian Church. The stained glass window, which dates back nearly 100 years to 1925, now has a 2-square-foot hole thanks to Jesus.

Cops say Jesus confessed to his sins when he was arrested the day after the vandalism -- in a nearby cemetery, no less. Jesus was charged with injury to real property.

Jesus had to work pretty hard to vandalize the church ... cops say he used the sandstone to break through 6 inches of Plexiglass before smashing the stained glass window.

Neil Ruth, the church's pastor told WXII the Grace Moravian is a symbol of kindness in its Mount Airy community, and he found it odd Jesus would do such a thing.