Legal

Kim Kardashian West is leading a renewed call for justice in the death of Stephon Clark, who was shot and killed by police officers in Sacramento, after being contacted by his sister.

Kim is calling on her 179 million Instagram followers to sign a petition pressuring Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert to bring charges against the officers who fatally shot Clark back in 2018 in his grandparent's backyard.

KKW sprung into action after getting a series of Instagram DMs from Clark's sister, Tiana Parker, a model for KKW Beauty who approached Kim with her brother's story and her family's failed quest for justice.

A father of two, Clark was killed when he was just 22 years old after cops fired 20 rounds at him while responding to a call about someone breaking car windows in the night. Police said they believed he was armed, but investigators later discovered he was only holding a cellphone.

Kim responded to Tiana's cry for help ... telling her she was in contact with folks on the ground in Sacramento and promising to bring attention to Clark's death at the hands of police.

Quinton Dunbar wants to be allowed to leave Florida for his Seahawks duties ... the NFL player just filed a motion in court asking a judge for permission to travel despite armed robbery charges.

The Seattle defensive back says in the docs he's got Seahawks camp coming up this month ... and he wants the judge in his felony case to let him go to work.

In the docs, Dunbar says he's contractually obligated to be at the NFL workouts ... adding he's willing to give up his passport if the judge grants him permission to travel.

As part of the proposed agreement, Dunbar also says he'll provide his NFL itinerary and his Washington address to the court, and also promises to make himself available when needed in the case as well.

The judge has yet to grant the order ... but with Deandre Baker gaining permission a few weeks ago to travel for his Giants' workouts despite his armed robbery charges -- it seems Dunbar will get his wish.

As we previously reported, both Baker and Dunbar are facing SERIOUS time behind bars over their alleged roles in an armed robbery at a cookout on May 13 in Miramar, Fla.

Cops say witnesses told them after an altercation at the party, Baker pulled out a firearm and directed Dunbar to start taking expensive watches and cash from people.

At one point, cops say Baker directed a 3rd man -- who was wearing a red mask -- to shoot someone who had just walked into the party ... but fortunately, no one was actually shot.

Consider this a PSA for all "Karens" out there ... you most certainly CAN be legally refused service for not wearing a face mask inside a private business -- just like this woman.

It's unclear when this incident went down or where but the video was posted on TikTok Wednesday showing a Karen going ballistic on a poor dental worker after being denied for a teeth cleaning appointment. She was told the policy is no mask, no cleaning ... and she was pissed.

Check out the video ... Karen's heard saying, "you're gonna work on my teeth, not my nose." She then tried covering her face with her hand, but that got her nowhere ... and her rage just got worse.

And, when they brought up taking her temperature before she could enter, she claimed that's illegal because dentists aren't MDs. Well, neither is your average restaurant owner, Karen, and they're taking temps too.

Anyway, the woman went on to make threats about talking to her lawyer and suing the dentist ... blah, blah, blah. Reality is ... she's out of touch with reality.

Obviously, private businesses in general have the right to refuse service to customers who violate their mask-wearing policy.

Businesses are also protected, especially if local or state governments have issued the mandate, like in New York where Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order that would allow businesses to refuse service to patrons who do NOT wear a mask.

The Black man who says he was nearly lynched on the 4th of July has mixed feelings about the feds taking up his case -- because he doubts they truly care.

We spoke to Vauhxx Booker -- the alleged victim of a hate crime, who was pinned to a tree by white men, one of whom he claims threatened to "get a noose" -- and he says the FBI deciding to investigate is probably more about public pressure than wanting justice.

The reason he feels that way ... Vauhxx says the guys who allegedly attacked him last weekend are still not in custody, despite some pretty damn compelling video evidence.

ICYMI ... Vauhxx was at Lake Monroe near Bloomington, Indiana with 5 of his white friends, crossing a trail in the woods to catch an eclipse.

They came across this group of white guys on ATVs -- one of whom Vauhxx says was wearing a Confederate flag hat, while another allegedly cried out "white power." Vauhxx says they told him and his friends to scram because they were on private property.

When they refused to leave, it escalated into what you see here. Vauhxx sincerely believes he would've been hanged if his friends didn't intervene, but he's less thankful about how local cops dealt with the situation.

He tells us the officer ended up lecturing him about property rights, instead of arresting the men for allegedly trying to murder him. As a result, he says he's lost faith in the system ... but still wants his day in court.

The organizer of a "Trump Supporter Gathering" at the site of slain singer Selena's statue in Corpus Christi, TX is getting shut down by the city, but he's vowing to do it anyway.

We broke the story ... Joe Michael Perez already got threatened with a lawsuit from Selena's dad, Abraham Quintanilla, Jr., for allegedly infringing on her name, image and likeness for the July 11 event. Now, he's also running the risk of becoming a criminal.

Shelly Rios, Corpus Christi's Interim Program Manager for Cultural Services & Special Events tells us ... Perez would normally be issued a "spontaneous demonstration permit" for his planned public event, but it got rejected ... and not because of his politics.

Instead, the problem is the coronavirus. Texas currently doesn't allow for groups of more than 10 people to congregate in a space, so Rios says if Perez and other Trump supporters show up at the statue ... law enforcement will instruct them to leave.

Perez says his group of at least 150 people is defiant, and still planning to go. He says if police arrive, he'll tell them they are there peacefully and won't leave.

As we told you ... Perez has been using a photo of him taken last month -- when he put a Trump hat on the Selena statue -- to promote his Trump-stumping event on Facebook.

Selena's father warned Perez to delete the Facebook event page and stop producing Selena-related merchandise ... or he'd sue him.

The feds in R. Kelly's case want to keep potential jurors protected -- even by armed guards, at times, because they feel Kelly's legal team poses a threat to jurors, but the singer's team's not having it.

The feds filed legal docs in the Eastern District of NY requesting the jurors remain anonymous and partially sequestered because they fear Kelly's team could mess with the jurors.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, the feds say they want the jurors' identities, addresses and places of employment to be kept under wraps from the defense and prosecutors. They also want the U.S. Marshals to escort the jury in and out of the courthouse, and make the jurors eat lunch together so they're not bombarded by intense media coverage.

The feds insist the jurors' identities are not crucial to the jury selection process and argue "these measures are necessary to safeguard the jurors and the fair administration of process."

The prosecution claims Kelly and his associates have previously attempted to obstruct justice ... calling Kelly "the leader of a racketeering enterprise he created and used for decades to sexually abuse and exploit women and girls for his own sexual gratification, including through the use of bribery, kidnapping and forced labor." The judge has yet to sign off on the government's request.

Remember, the government in the past has contended Kelly "has a history of coercing women to write letters containing false and embarrassing allegations" so he can later use them as blackmail.

R. Kelly's lawyer, Steven Greenberg, tells TMZ ... he's all for the Marshals walking the jury in and out of the courthouse saying, "They don't have to put up with [the] circus of outside influences and agitators like the Weinstein jurors."

But, he also says, "It's absurd not to know where people are from or what kind of employment they are engaging in. Those are essential things to understand -- how people think and view things. Imagine if there's an FBI agent on the jury or a district attorney or someone who works for a battered woman's shelter. The stuff about Kelly tampering and being dangerous is just a regurgitation of their same argument which we disagreed with all along."

Blue Jays player Reese McGuire is breathing easier heading into the MLB's rebooted season ... the catcher just cut a plea deal with prosecutors in his public masturbation case, and received nothing more than a slap on the wrist.

A spokesperson for the State Attorney's Office in Pinellas County, FL tells TMZ Sports McGuire pled nolo contendere to a reduced 2nd-degree misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct on July 1.

In exchange, his punishment was nothing more than fines and court costs ... the spokesperson said.

It's a big deal for McGuire ... the 25-year-old was accused of exposing his penis and masturbating inside his car in a public parking lot in Dunedin, FL back in February.

In the police report, obtained by TMZ Sports, cops say they saw McGuire with his shirt "barely covering his genitals" and his sweatpants around his ankles when they arrived on the scene.

Cops say during questioning, McGuire told them, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, this is really embarrassing." Cops also say McGuire added, "I really shouldn't have been doing that."

McGuire was arrested and initially hit with 1st-degree misdemeanor "exposure of sexual organs" ... and was facing up to 1 year behind bars if convicted.

At the time, the Blue Jays said in a statement, "[McGuire] has been in communication with the club and we are working to gather more information."

"Out of respect for the legal process, neither he nor the club will comment any further at this time."

The team told us they have no further comment when we reached out again Wednesday.

The father of the late singer Selena is going after a man planning a rally for Donald Trump at her memorial statue ... threatening to sue if he goes through with it.

According to a cease and desist letter sent by Abraham Quintanilla, Jr.'s legal team to Joe Michael Perez ... Abraham owns the rights to his daughter's name, image, likeness and trademarks.

He claims Perez is infringing upon all of the above by organizing his "Trump Supporter Gathering" at Selena's statue in Corpus Christi, TX. It's scheduled for July 11, and Perez is using Selena's name and image to promote it on Facebook.

In the letter -- obtained by TMZ -- Selena's dad says her name and "treasured legacy" have never been associated with partisan politics and claims Perez has associated her with Trump without permission by promoting his event ... which features an image from last month of Perez putting a Trump hat on her statue.

Abraham also says linking Selena to a single politician -- "particularly with the divisiveness and discord commonly attributed to Donald J. Trump" -- is damaging to her brand and her name.

The letter also points to Perez using "Bidi Bidi Trump Trump" as a promotional slogan, claiming it infringes upon her famous "Bidi Bidi Bom Bom" song ... and accuses him of using her image to sell merchandise, as well.

Selena's father's warning Perez to delete his Selena-themed July 11 Facebook event page -- and stop selling Selena-related gear -- or else ... a lawsuit's on the way.

Perez tells TMZ, he's ignoring the cease and desist letter and ... "We are going to continue with our gathering on July 11 at the Selena Statue in Corpus Christi, Texas to show support for Trump for all races and ethnicities."

Jordana Brewster is waving the white flag on her marriage ... because she just filed for divorce.

The "Fast and the Furious" star filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court last week to divorce film producer Andrew Form after more than 13 years of marriage.

Jordana and Andrew tied the knot way back in May 2007 in a super-private wedding ceremony on Nevis Island in the Caribbean. They dated for two months before getting married, meeting on the set of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning." Jordana starred in that movie, which Andrew produced.

It's not clear what led to the split, but Jordana and Andrew reportedly separated earlier this year and it's said to be amicable.

The estranged couple will have to settle child custody and/or support issues --- they have two young sons, 6-year-old Julian and 4-year-old Rowan.

We reached out to reps for Jordana and Andrew ... so far, no word back.

Dan Bilzerian fired a whistleblower who sounded the alarm on strange spending patterns at Dan's cannabis and CBD company ... at least according to a new lawsuit.

The popular playboy poker player and cannabis sector CEO is being sued by Curtis Heffernan, who claims he was fired from his job at Dan's weed company, Ignite, after noticing some company funds were being spent on things that seemed personal ... and then blowing the whistle.

According to the lawsuit obtained by TMZ ... Heffernan, who was Ignite's Executive VP, claims he flagged tons of purchases to the company board, such as lavish spending on a $75,000 paintball field, $40k on a rock climbing wall, $60k on a 'Star Wars' gun set, $31k on pool renovations, $50k on a bed frame, $15k on a ping pong table and $88k on a vault.

In the docs, Heffernan claims Dan's company was also burning tons of money on luxury yacht rentals, plus transportation for hot models ... and he says he found other "business expenses" that turned out to be charges for groceries and various household items.

According to the suit, Heffernan claims he told the board at Ignite the company could not afford to keep spending money in the same manner during the pandemic, and in response, Dan falsely accused him of doing drugs and he got canned.

Heffernan is going after Bilzerian for damages.

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

Donald Trump's a phony, a liar and above all else -- a cruel and dangerous egomaniac now in charge of America's well-being ... according to Mary L. Trump, the President's niece.

Excerpts from Mary's new book, "Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man" have been released, and in it, she alleges her uncle was the original Felicity Huffman ... and not for acting.

Mary claims Trump cheated on a college entrance test -- the SAT -- by paying someone else to take it for him in Queens, NY ... and that high score helped him get into Wharton Business School at Penn.

Trump's niece, who is a clinical psychologist, also says her uncle developed "twisted behaviors" from an upbringing in the rich and notorious real estate family led by his father, Fred Trump Sr. ... which led to him implementing "cheating as a way of life."

She says his own sister -- Maryanne Trump Barry -- referred to him as a "clown" when he began running for prez, and was baffled by Christians supporting him. According to the book, Maryanne said of her brother ... "It’s mind boggling. But that’s all about his base. He has no principles. None!"

As for 45's cruelty and narcissism ... Mary alleges, before her father -- Donald's older brother -- Freddy, died from an alcohol-induced heart attack in 1981, the family sent him to the hospital alone. Donald, she claims, went to the movies instead.

The tell-all book's publication is being challenged by the Trump family -- who cite a confidentiality agreement from nearly 20 years ago -- but so far ... a judge is NOT blocking its planned release next week. Advance copies have already gone out to several media outlets.

Mary has been estranged from the family for years and is the first Trump member to break ranks and divulge alleged family secrets.

The judge is expected to rule soon on whether or not she violated her confidentiality agreement.

Breonna Taylor's shooting death stemmed from a city operation to clear her neighborhood undergoing gentrification ... so claims the family in new legal docs.

The Taylor family attorneys filed docs to amend the wrongful death lawsuit against the 3 cops involved in Breonna's death. According to docs, the family claims Breonna's home was raided by police because there was "a political need to clear out a street for a large real estate development project" ... adding Breonna’s death was the result of “a newly formed, rogue police unit violating all levels of policy, protocol and policing standards.”

In docs, the family says that this year alone, over a 3-week span -- and less than a month before Breonna's death -- 8 homes in her neighborhood were demolished in an effort to speed up a multi-million dollar development plan.

The family wants to make one thing clear ... that while there is no doubt gentrification of the West Louisville neighborhood could be a good thing, "the methods employed to do so have been unlawful and unconscionable."

The family says Breonna's death could have been avoided had cops surveilling her home simply ran the tags on Breonna’s and her boyfriend's cars. They say "it would have been clear that neither of these vehicles belonged" to the suspects cops were looking for that night.

But, by focusing on Breonna's home -- some 10 miles away from the redevelopment site -- cops thought they were targeting some of Louisville's violent crime and drug rings. The reality is, according to docs, the occupants "were not anywhere close to Louisville’s versions of Pablo Escobar or Scarface. And they were not violent criminals. They were simply a setback to a large real estate development deal and thus the issue needed to be cleaned up.”

The family points out in the suit, the first 5 no-knock warrants of the ENTIRE YEAR were executed for this project alone -- including the home of Breonna ... a woman with no criminal history and no drugs in her home.

Ben Crump, one of the family's lawyers, tells TMZ ... "Connecting the dots, it's clear that these officers should never have been at Breonna Taylor's home in the first place, and that they invaded the residence with no probable cause." He goes on to say, "The officers who robbed Breonna of her life -- and Tamika Palmer of her daughter -- exhibited outrageous, reckless, willful, wanton and unlawful conduct."

A spokeswoman for Mayor Greg Fischer told the Louisville Courier-Journal the allegations are "outrageous" and "without foundation or supporting facts." The spokeswoman added, "They are insulting to the neighborhood members of the Vision Russell initiative and all the people involved in the years of work being done to revitalize the neighborhoods of west Louisville."

Kanye West's been having some very good days lately ... and it looks like he wants to make "West Day Ever" the next extension of his booming brand.

The apparent presidential candidate is much better at filing paperwork with the trademark office than he is with the Federal Election Commission ... because he filed docs last month to slap the 'West Day' slogan on clothing and shoes.

Ye, however, has yet to officially register to run for Prez despite his announcement over the weekend.

As for "West Day Ever" ... Kanye filed trademark docs on June 26 covering more than 100 different types of apparel -- t-shirts, hoodies, tracksuits, bomber jackets, turtlenecks, jumpsuits, g-strings, beanies, blazers, infantwear, footwear and everything in between.

The date is significant because it was the same day news broke that the rapper landed a 10-year deal with Gap to launch a new clothing line called Yeezy Gap.

That was when Kanye first tweeted the slogan, saying ... "YEEZY AND GAP FORM PARTNERSHIP #WESTDAYEVER."

He's since used the hashtag to promote the release of a shoe and new music, as well -- and it will likely be a big part of his 2020 campaign ... whenever that starts.

Of course, Kanye needs to do a lot more than just distribute some hats and shirts. He still needs to register with the FEC, present a campaign platform and collect enough signatures -- not just Elon Musk's -- to get on the November ballot.

The war between Antonio Brown and his rape accuser is raging on ...

The former NFL All-Pro now claims Britney Taylor is "hiding" from giving a live deposition -- and he's asking a judge to force her to show up in person for the depo ... or, if not, throw out the lawsuit.

But, Taylor's attorney tells TMZ Sports ... that's all a bunch of B.S., saying, "It's not that she's hiding, it's just that Florida's a little infected [with coronavirus] right now."

Here's the deal ... in new court docs, Brown's attorneys say they're trying to get Taylor to sit for a live depo to question her about her allegations that Brown sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions.

In the docs, though, the attorneys say Taylor is only willing to meet with them over Zoom ... something they say they're NOT OK with.

"The nature of her allegations," Browns attorneys say in the docs, "coupled with the fact that she has absolutely no corroboration for her claims mandate that a live deposition of Ms. Taylor be had."

They now want a judge to FORCE Taylor to show up in person -- while following all proper COVID-19 safety guidelines -- or throw out the case.

But, when we spoke with Taylor's attorney, David Haas, he told us the only reason Taylor is refusing to show up in person is because of the global pandemic.

Haas says his client is willing to answer questions but adds "we're just trying to keep her safe."

A ruling on the motion from the judge has yet to come down ... but Haas says he expects it to be denied.

As we previously reported, Taylor -- who met Brown while the two attended Central Michigan -- is suing the NFL player, claiming, among other things, he violently raped her in 2018.

The "Karen" who spewed multiple racist tirades in Southern California has just been charged with battery ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the notorious SoCal "Karen" is 56-year-old Lena Hernandez from Long Beach, and on Friday the Torrance City Attorney's Office charged her with misdemeanor battery.

Our sources also tell us a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has issued an arrest warrant for Hernandez, who has not been apprehended yet.

The battery charges are related to an incident that occurred Oct. 11 at a mall in Torrance, and was reported to police later that day.

There's no video of that incident, but as we reported ...  Hernandez was recorded during a racist rant in a Torrance park last month. She was yelling at a young woman who was trying to work out in the park.

Video of another incident involving Hernandez, this time in a parking lot, also surfaced and is believed to be from the same day as the park incident.

Our law enforcement sources say there is not enough evidence for prosecutors to file criminal charges against Hernandez for the incident at the park.

Jennifer Grey and Clark Gregg have separated after nearly 2 decades together ... and say they're heading for divorce.

The "Dirty Dancing" star and her "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." star husband announced their split in dual social media posts Friday ... revealing they separated in early 2020 after getting married in July 2001.

The actors wrote ... "After 19 years together, we separated in january, knowing we’d always be a family who loves, values and cares for each other. we recently made the difficult decision to divorce, but we remain close and are deeply grateful for the life we’ve shared and the wonderful daughter we’ve raised."

They added ... "p.s. totally crying as we post this."