Legal

Lawyers representing L.A. County are trying their best to keep hardcore Kobe Bryant fans off the jury in their crash photos case against Vanessa Bryant ... new court documents, obtained by TMZ Sports, show.

The attorneys submitted a list of questions they want to ask potential jurors ... and it includes several Kobe-related questions presumably designed to weed out any super fans who have immense Kobe/Lakers bias.

Some of the proposed Bryant questions include: "How would you describe your feelings toward Kobe Bryant?" and "How would you describe your feelings toward the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team?"

If the answers showed a juror would be less than likely to objectively look at the evidence in the case ... the lawyers would use it as a basis for striking that person from the jury pool.

Other questions the lawyers are hoping to ask also include ones that help show if a person has a particular bias against law enforcement, such as "Have you ever had had a negative experience with a Los Angeles County Sheriff or the LA County Sheriff's Department?"

As we previously reported, Vanessa is suing the county of Los Angeles, alleging officials took pictures of Kobe's dead body and then showed them off at a bar and an awards banquet.

The county, meanwhile, has argued that officials on the crash site only took pictures as "part of doing their jobs," while contending that none of the photos were publicly disseminated in a way that would be harmful to Vanessa.

Ex-Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores is adamant he still wants a job in the NFL ... but understands his scathing lawsuit against the league could damage his chances at ever getting a gig again.

Flores -- who's suing the NFL and 3 teams over alleged racist hiring practices -- opened up in an interview with "CBS Mornings" on Wednesday ... saying his legal action is about much more than his career.

"I love coaching, I'm gifted to coach, I know that," Flores said. "The relationships I built with players, coaches, support staff, I'm gifted to coach, I love coaching and I want to coach ... This is bigger than coaching. This is much bigger than coaching."

Flores said he contacted the other 2 teams he's still interviewing with for an HC job -- the Texans and Saints -- and gave them a heads up about the lawsuit ... and added if given the opportunity, he would still happily lead an NFL team again.

"I understand the risks, and yes, it was a difficult decision," he said. "I went back and forth."

When asked about comparing the NFL to a "plantation" ... Flores explained he knew it was time to leave a lasting impact on the league.

"We didn't have to file a lawsuit for the world to know that there's a problem from a hiring standpoint in regards to minority coaches in the National Football League. The numbers speak for themselves. We filed a lawsuit so that we could create some change and that's important to me."

"I think we're at a fork in the road right now -- we're either going to keep it the way it is, or we're going to go in another direction and actually make some real change where we're actually changing the hearts and minds of those who make decisions to hire head coaches, executives, etc."

As we reported, Flores filed his lawsuit after he said he received texts from Patriots head coach Bill Belichick that revealed the New York Giants decided to hire Brian Daboll before ever giving him the chance to interview for the job.

Flores felt like he was only being interviewed to satisfy the league's Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview a minority candidate when a head coaching job opens up.

Flores also appeared on ESPN's "Get Up" just minutes ago ... saying he's willing to sacrifice his career to make a serious difference in the league.

"If I never coach again and there's change," he said, "it will be worth it."

Jeff Zucker just dropped a bombshell at CNN -- he's resigning as network president, because of a romantic relationship he kept hidden ... one that only came to light during the Chris Cuomo investigation.

Jeff, who is also stepping down from his post as chairman of WarnerMedia's news and sports division, blasted out a memo to co-workers Wednesday ... saying that during the Cuomo probe he was asked "about a consensual relationship with my closest colleague, someone I have worked with for more than 20 years."

He doesn't say the relationship itself is the problem, he says it's because he lied. Jeff wrote, "I acknowledged the relationship evolved in recent years. I was required to disclose it when it began but I didn't. I was wrong."

Jeff did not name the colleague who he had a relationship with in his memo ... but CNN says the person is Allison Gollust, the network's chief marketing officer.

CNN says Allison is keeping her job.

It's interesting the Cuomo investigation also took down Zucker ... remember, Jeff initially stood by Chris when the anchor came under fire for advising aides to his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, on how to fend off a sexual harassment scandal.

But, as the investigation dragged on, Jeff eventually distanced himself from Chris and dropped his support.

Steve-O and Chris Pontius are responsible for a 'Jackass'-style water stunt that left a man with a busted up head and a ruined life ... at least according to a lawsuit filed by the guy who claims he was injured.

The veteran stuntmen are being taken to court by Michael Vicens-Segura, who says he was approached by them back in 2018 to see if they could use his jet ski for a project they were filming in Puerto Rico.

Vicens-Segura insists the guys wanted to use it for a 'Jackass'-y feat -- where 2 guys are in the water on jet skis, facing opposite directions ... and attached to one another by a bungee cord, to see who would get yanked off first as they sped off.

Essentially, it's a jet ski tug of war ... and Vicens-Segura says the 'Jackass' guys have done something similar in the past -- in their movie, no less. It was called the BMX Tug of War.

Now, per the lawsuit, filed by attorney John Phillips and obtained by TMZ, Vicens-Segura was asked to hold one of the jet skis steady in the water because of the waves that day ... which he says he did. He claims, as Steve-O and Chris hit the gas, Steve's bungee cord snapped off the harness attached to his back ... which he says then flung in his direction and popped him hard on the side of the head, resulting in a massive gash.

Vicens-Segura says he had to be helicoptered to a hospital for emergency surgery, and even needed to be placed in a medically induced coma because he had a fractured skull and brain bleeding, among other things.

After several medical procedures, Vicens-Segura claims he was left in bad shape as he recovered ... and also had some pretty gnarly scars. He claims he's lost his ability to work, to think straight ... and continues to experience pain, suffering and agony because of what happened to him.

Of course, he's blaming Steve-O, Chris and others for the whole thing ... suing them for negligence and moreover the alleged incident. He's asking the court for more than $12 million in damages.

The NFL, the Cincinnati Bengals and the L.A. Rams are all suing potential Super Bowl ticket and merchandise counterfeiters ahead of the big game ... hoping to stop any such activity in its tracks.

The league and its two teams filed the lawsuit on Monday, TMZ Sports has learned, suing to get a court order authorizing them to seize any counterfeit merch it finds in the leadup to the matchup on Feb. 13.

In the docs, the plaintiffs say counterfeiting is a huge problem at the Super Bowl ... calling it a "multi-billion dollar" business that hurts both the NFL and its consumers.

The league, Rams and Bengals said in the suit they're anticipating "widespread" counterfeiting in Los Angeles the next two weeks ... and want the court order to help protect their brands and their fans from ending up with bootleg tickets and merch.

The league made it clear in the docs, though, that it does not know the names of the counterfeiters at this time ... but they'll amend their complaint to add the names as soon they find any culprits.

Kylie Jenner's not the only one dealing with the fallout from one of her obsessed fans ... because cops say they arrested the same guy at one of her neighbor's houses this time around.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... this week a guy named Jrue Mesgan, who was arrested just last month for showing up at Kylie's place and violating a restraining order, was busted again after entering a home super close to Kylie's place in Bev Hills.

We're told when police arrived, Mesgan was arrested for burglary and taken to jail. FYI ... burglary not only requires unlawful entry ... the criminal must also have an intent to steal or commit some other felony.  Cops aren't saying if Mesgan had such an intent.

Our sources say Kylie's security came over too and recognized the guy ... because he's been to her house on multiple occasions.

Cops sent the case to the D.A. for possible felony prosecution, but the D.A. wasn't into it and sent the case to the L.A. City Attorney, who hit Mesgan with 11 misdemeanors, including trespassing and violation of a court order.

More troubling news for NFL player Damon Arnette ... the former 1st round draft pick was arrested Friday night in Las Vegas after he allegedly threatened a valet with a gun, TMZ Sports has learned.

The 25-year-old cornerback was busted for assault with a deadly weapon, carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a controlled substance after a dispute allegedly occurred at the Park MGM on Las Vegas Boulevard.

It's unclear what drug Arnette allegedly had on him.

A witness tells us Damon attempted to retrieve a car without a valet ticket ... leading to a dispute. We're told Arnette pulled a gun, and the police were eventually called.

This is just the latest issue with the former Ohio State star. Arnette was cut by the Raiders in November after a video surfaced appearing to show Damon threatening someone with a gun.

Arnette is also being sued by a woman who claims he hit her car, injuring her, and left the scene of the accident after an October 2020 crash.

After a standout season at Ohio State where Arnette earned 2nd Team All-Big Ten honors, he was the 19th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

In 2 seasons with the Raiders, Arnette played in 13 games, racking up 29 tackles. After Vegas cut him, he signed as a practice squad player with the Miami Dolphins.

Damon was recently signed by the Kansas City Chiefs to a reserves/futures contract ... meaning he isn't on the active roster right now, but the team has his rights for next season.

Tyga and his ex-GF Camaryn Swanson were spotted out together for the first time since she accused him of domestic violence ... and though they seemed to be boo'd up, they are NOT together again ... at least, not yet.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Tyga and Camaryn are not together romantically. For now, things are casual. We're told that the two are easing back into hanging out again, since Tyga made headlines for allegedly getting physical with her during an argument a few months back.

And, they don't seem to be reuniting under the radar either.

Camryn recently celebrated her 23rd birthday in Cabo with her family and friends. And, although Tyga wasn't able to make it, he managed to celebrate her bday with her at celeb hotspot restaurant Nobu in Malibu.

Though our sources made it VERY clear that they are not a thing, they seemed to be getting on pretty well ... judging from the photos.

As we've previously told you, Camaryn accused Tyga of putting his hands on her when they got in an argument at the rapper's home, back in October. He was arrested for suspicion of domestic violence ... Tyga later turned himself in to LAPD and his bail was set at $50k.

We recently learned Tyga will not be charged with a felony for the case, The L.A. County District Attorney's Office has passed the case to the City Attorney.

Rob Riggle claims his estranged wife kept a watchful eye on him during their divorce, by secretly recording him with a hidden camera planted in his home ... and now he's suing.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Rob says he started to feel as if he was being watched shortly before his wife, Tiffany, filed for divorce.

In the docs, Rob claims the couple was trying to save their marriage by "nesting" -- staying in separate homes and taking turns living with the kids in the family home -- and he got the sense Tiffany was surveilling him because she seemed to have info about his whereabouts and private messages.

Rob claims he discovered a substantial amount of money missing from a lockbox in his home office shortly after Tiffany filed for divorce ... and he says he confronted her about it because she had access to the home, but claims she denied knowing anything about the missing cash.

Not long after, Rob claims Tiffany hacked into his Apple account and downloaded his texts, contacts, photos and emails ... and then he says things got even more disturbing.

Rob claims Tiffany somehow had knowledge of private conversations he'd had in his home with his girlfriend and assistant, and Tiffany -- or other anonymous sources -- would email or text them referencing the private convos.

As a result of the alleged leaks, Rob claims he and his GF devised a misinformation scheme, planting false info to test whether any of it would leak out ... and he claims his suspicions were confirmed.

According to the suit, Rob had his home electronically swept for devices ... and he claims a hidden spy camera was discovered in a smoke detector above his desk in his home office.

Rob says the device had a memory card with over 10,000 videos with sound on it, and the device appeared to be installed in August 2020 and was transmitting or recording all video and voice activity in the home for at least 7 months.

What's more, Rob claims there is an image on the device showing Tiffany standing on a ladder and installing the spy camera, plus another showing her sitting on the floor of his home office counting cash, which he thinks is the missing money from the lockbox.

Rob's going after Tiffany for damages ... and he wants an injunction barring her from recording him and forcing her to turn over all recordings and copies.

Tisha Campbell is pissed off about a scary run-in with men she believes were sex traffickers, and she's got a warning for any others in the town where she's currently working.

A source close to Tisha tells TMZ the incident went down in Brownsville, Texas, about 10 minutes from the Mexican border ... where Tisha is working on an independent film.

We're told someone from a hotel she was staying at gave her a number to call for a taxi -- as Tisha explains, there weren't any Ubers available in the area. But, when the taxi pulled up, Tisha alleges a man hopped out of the backseat, and barked at her to get in the vehicle ... and that's when she knew things were very sketchy.

The "Martin" star explains she told the guy "no", but he and the driver kept demanding she get in their ride. She never did.

Our sources say Tisha's been working a project with sex and human trafficking expert Toni Rivera on trafficking ... so she was hyper vigilant for just such a situation. Tisha says she eventually told both guys to "f***off!" before going back to the front desk.

Apparently, the lady working there had no idea why Tisha was given that number to call a cab -- she tried asking who the driver was, but that's still unclear.

Tisha didn't contact cops, as we're told the employees at the hotel made sure she got out of there safely.

We still don't know who gave her the number or if they believed she was being set up ... but Tisha is sure about one thing. As for the alleged traffickers, she says ... "They got me f***ed up. I ain't Gina bitch!!!"

Joe Exotic, will get out of prison earlier than expected -- but not as early as he had hoped -- the court just knocked one year off of his 22-year sentence.

A judge this past summer ruled the sentence for the murder-for-hire conviction was erroneous, because the trial court miscalculated the 2 charges on which Joe was convicted.

There was a chance the 22-year sentence would be reduced to 17 years, but that didn't happen. Rather, a federal appeals court just shaved a year off the 22-year sentence ... clearly not what Joe was hoping for.

Joe's serving time for allegedly trying to hire two men to kill his nemesis Carole Baskin, as well as crimes against animals. Baskin and her husband attended the hearing Friday as well.

Back in November, TMZ broke the news that Joe had been transferred from his prison in Texas to a facility in North Carolina … as he battled aggressive cancer and needed more medical attention. He originally requested to be let out of prison for treatment, but we don't yet know the decision on that.

Joe's team has yet to respond to the news.

Britney Spears will sit for a wide-ranging deposition ... that is, if her father gets his way because Jamie Spears' lawyer has fired off an email to Britney's attorney asking to set a date for a depo.

Jamie Spears' lawyer, Alex Weingarten, sent the email Wednesday to Britney's lawyer, Mathew Rosengart. In the email, obtained by TMZ, Weingarten writes, "We write to advise that we intend to depose your client and would like to discuss a mutually agreeable date to conduct the deposition."

The email goes on, "Of course, we will also discuss scheduling Mr. Spears' deposition with you and work with you to find a mutually agreeable date for that to proceed as well."

The email says Weingarten would agree to have Jamie deposed first, followed immediately with Britney's depo -- either the next day or the same week.

Weingarten says he'd like the depos to go down in early March.

Sources with knowledge tell TMZ, the proposed deposition of Britney Spears would be wide-ranging. As you know, Britney leveled numerous allegations against Jamie during the court hearing in June ... claiming her dad refused to let her get married and have a baby. She also said she was held against her will in a treatment facility. We're told those issues will be part of the depo.

Our sources also say they want to ask Britney about "child safety and [possible] drug use," among other issues.

As we reported, Rosengart has made it clear ... he wants to question Jamie Spears on numerous issues related to allegedly mismanaging the conservatorship and using it for personal gain.

Chael Sonnen is still undefeated ... battery charges against the 44-year-old retired MMA star were dismissed in Las Vegas, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

The American Gangster was slapped with 5 battery citations after an alleged brawl at a Las Vegas hotel the night of December 18 ... where Sonnen was accused of roughing up numerous people.

However, a judge in Nevada dismissed all 5 misdemeanor battery charges against Chael on Thursday.

"This matter was dismissed by the court on its own based upon the fact that the citation’s notice to appear failed to comply with the legal requirements as set forth by Nevada law," the Clark County District Attorney told us when we asked for an explanation.

It's important to note, the 5 citations were dismissed "without prejudice" ... meaning the state can refile the charges if they choose.

For his part, Sonnen's been mum ... opting not to address the incident.

Despite laying down his gloves in the Bellator cage back in June 2019, Chael's as popular as ever ... becoming one of the most respected MMA analysts in the world.

As a fighter, Sonnen was one of his era ... beating Rampage Jackson, Wanderlei Silva, Shogun Rua, and Michael Bisping.

Nicki Minaj and her husband have a funny way of thanking security guards at her concerts ... at least according to one of them who claims Kenneth Petty ambushed and punched him backstage.

The guy was head of security for one of Nicki's concerts in Germany back in March 2019 ... and in a lawsuit, he claims the rapper was pissed at a security staffer for allowing a male fan to get onstage during the show. In docs, obtained by TMZ, Thomas Weidenmuller alleges Nicki yelled at the female security guard -- calling her a "f**king bitch" -- and recorded the whole thing.

Weidenmuller says the security guard was left in tears ... so, he interceded and went to speak to Nicki about the incident. According to the suit, Nicki screamed at him too, saying, "Who do you think you are?" ... and allegedly threw her shoe at him. He says her aim was off, and he escaped unscathed.

However, he claims he was later called back to Nicki's room for another discussion ... and while she ripped into him again, Kenneth allegedly came outta nowhere and punched him square in the face, breaking his jaw.

Kenneth packs one hell of a punch, apparently ... Weidenmuller says he's had 8 surgeries to fix his jaw, now has 5 plates in his face and will need an additional 6 operations to get right!!!

Chris Brown allegedly raped a woman on a yacht parked at Diddy's Star Island home ... this according to a new $20 million lawsuit.

The singer is being sued by a Jane Doe who says she's a professional choreographer, dancer, model and musical artist ... and she claims Chris went from being friendly to raping her, in a matter of minutes.

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ, the woman claims Chris grabbed the phone of a friend she was FaceTiming and urged her to come to Diddy's home ASAP on Miami's Star Island.

When she arrived there on Dec. 30, 2020, the woman claims Chris approached her and asked her if she wanted a drink, motioning her toward the kitchen area on the yacht.

In the docs, she claims she entered the kitchen with Chris, where he gave her a red cup with a mixed drink and they started talking. After he filled her cup a second time, she claims began to feel "a sudden, unexplained change in consciousness."

According to the suit, the woman claims she also felt "disoriented, physically unstable, and started to fall in and out of sleep" ... and that's when she says Chris led her into a bedroom while she was "drugged" and "half-asleep."

In the docs, the woman claims Chris closed the bedroom door, barring her attempt to leave, removed her bikini bottoms and started kissing her. She says she mumbled for Chris to stop, but he persisted and raped her.

The woman claims Chris ejaculated inside her, jumped up and announced he was "done."

She claims Chris texted her the next day and demanded she take Plan B. Although she was distraught, she claims she did exactly that.

She's suing Chris for $20 million in damages ... claiming the alleged rape is causing her severe emotional distress.

The woman's attorneys, Ariel Mitchell and George Vrabeck, tell us their client did not report the alleged rape to cops at the time because was a medical student and was embarrassed.

Mitchell and Vrabeck also say they're "committed to victims being heard and would urge anyone with information to contact them."

Apparently, the whole “self-isolate if you test positive for COVID” thing, doesn’t apply to everyone … at least, that’s what Sarah Palin seems to think.

Palin was spotted with former NY Ranger Ron Duguay and friends Wednesday night at Elio’s in New York. The issue? Palin, who is unvaccinated, tested positive for COVID two days prior ... causing a judge to delay her defamation trial against the New York Times.

Things got so overwrought, according to law enforcement, a heated dispute broke out between a stranger and Duguay.

We're told someone tried to record Sarah and Co., because it became big news she tested positive. Cops were called to the restaurant but no one was arrested.

Someone who worked at the restaurant scoffed at the criticism, telling the New York Post, "S*** happens. People come to eat. We are not the border police."

Palin and Co. did sit outside at Elio’s, but that wasn’t the case over the weekend. She was there a few days earlier and dined inside, which caused an uproar and forced her to return to apologize. When she came back to eat again, Elio’s said, “Palin returned to the restaurant to apologize for the fracas around her previous visit. In accordance with the vaccine mandate and to protect our staff, we seated her outdoors”.

We don't know if Palin got a negative result after her positive tests. Many doctors say the virus stays in the system of unvaccinated people longer than those who are vaccinated.