Legal

"Love & Hip Hop" star Masika Kalysha is taking Hazel-E and Zeus Network to court ... claiming she was attacked after a sit-down didn't go according to plan, and the network aired the incident over her objections.

According to legal docs, filed by Masika herself without an attorney, and obtained by TMZ ... the incident went down in August 2020 when Masika agreed to sit down with Hazel-E to hash out rumors Hazel allegedly spread about her.

Tensions were apparently still high after their chat, as the video shows -- Masika claims Hazel and a cosmetologist came into her dressing room and attacked her ... resulting in scratches, bruises, and a broken finger.

The incident was caught on camera, but Masika's attorney demanded Zeus not air or edit any footage of the assault -- but the footage came out anyway.

Masika says Zeus' security broke up the fight, but alleges one guard groped her groin and butt in the process, and remarked ... "She's thick as ****."

Masika is suing for sexual battery, fraud and wants $6 million in damages. She also wants all the footage of the fight to be taken down.

An eye-popping image of highly sensitive government documents recovered by the FBI during the Mar-a-Lago raid was released Tuesday night ... as the feds accused the 45th President of "likely" trying to obstruct their investigation by hiding the materials.

The stunning photo was part of a new 36-page Department of Justice filing and showed what appeared to be dozens of documents marked "Top Secret" and "Secret" strewn across a floor inside Donald Trump's mansion in Palm Beach, Florida.

In the filing, the DOJ said government docs kept in a storage facility at Mar-a-Lago were "likely concealed and removed from the storage room and that efforts were likely taken to obstruct the government's investigation." And several of these docs were found in Trump's desk.

So far, the feds say they have reclaimed over 320 classified docs from Mar-a-Lago, and more than 100 of them were snagged during the FBI search on August 8.

The DOJ's latest filing came in opposition to Trump's formal request to appoint a special master to review the documents removed from Mar-a-Lago. The feds argue that Trump has pushed an "incomplete and inaccurate narrative" and they needed to correct the record with this latest filing.

As you know, FBI agents swarmed Mar-a-Lago earlier this month while executing a search warrant to get back hundreds of classified documents Trump allegedly took from the White House after he lost the election.

A&E is pissed over a new police show on Reelz, claiming the producers of their popular "Live PD" franchise are running a copycat version on a rival network ... and now they're suing.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, A&E claims the new Reelz show "On Patrol: Live" is a blatant rip-off of their law enforcement reality series ... and they're asking a judge to shut down the alleged copycat version of "Live PD" and fork over any profits they've made from it.

Remember ... "Live PD" showcased police departments across the country enforcing the law in real-time, with Dan Abrams hosting from a studio and guiding the action. The show aired from 2016 to 2020, when A&E pulled the plug on it in the wake of nationwide protests against police brutality.

In the suit, A&E says Big Fish, the production company behind "Live PD," cloned the show for Reelz ... using the same format, re-enlisting Dan as host and marketing "On Patrol: Live" as the return of "Live PD" on TV.

A&E says Reelz ignored their warnings and pushed through with the new series, which recently started airing and has been a big hit.

In the suit, A&E claims Reelz was struggling to get eyeballs in 2021 when they were the 89th ranked TV network in total viewers ... and A&E says Reelz is now getting millions of viewers for 'On Patrol.'

A&E says the OG "Live PD" spawned tons of authorized spin-offs, but the Reelz show did not have their blessing ... and now A&E is going after Reelz for money and an injunction stopping 'On Patrol' from copying "Live PD."

Michael Jackson's estate just scored a big legal win ... preventing a potential sale of MJ property the estate claims was stolen from the singer's home right after his death.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, a judge issued a preliminary injunction barring Jeffre Phillips from selling any items he allegedly removed from the residence back in 2009.

TMZ broke the story ... Michael's estate claims Phillips was engaged to one of MJ's siblings and used the chaos and sadness around Michael's death to take a bunch of personal and private property from MJ's Carolwood House.

Michael's estate claims Phillips used a 9-day stay at the Carolwood House to swipe the singer's iPhone, California driver's license, prescription pill bottles with pills inside, handwritten notes and some clothes, including the pajamas Michael was wearing in the final hours before his death inside the famous estate.

What's more, Michael's estate alleges Phillips also stole a resuscitator tube that may have been used on the King of Pop.

The legal development comes just before a new TMZ documentary, "TMZ Investigates: Who Really Killed Michael Jackson," airs Tuesday on FOX at 8/7c.

Joe Rogan says VP Kamala Harris is a hypocrite for advocating on behalf of Brittney Griner -- who remains in jail in Russia on drug charges -- when she's prosecuted people for non-violent drug offenses as Attorney General of California.

Rogan made the remarks during his 3-hour sitdown convo with Aaron Rodgers on his 'JRE' podcast, where the Packers QB seemingly agreed with Joe's stance on Harris.

"That's why the hypocrisy about the Brittney Griner situation was so egregious in this country," Rogan said. "Where Kamala Harris is talking about how horrible it is that Brittney Griner is in jail."

"Well, you put people in jail. You did. Thousands of people in jail for marijuana. Yeah, it's crazy," Rogan continued.

Harris served as the first woman District Attorney in San Francisco's history ... and became the 32nd Attorney General in California, holding the position from 2011-2017.

Rogan accused Harris and the White House -- who just announced a loan forgiveness program -- of failing to deliver on its campaign promises, specifically addressing non-violent people serving lengthy prison sentences for weed ... which has since been made legal in many states.

"How come you guys didn't exonerate people that were in jail for marijuana when you said you were going to?" Rogan said. "They said that they were going to make marijuana federally legal."

"They said they were going to exonerate prisoners who were in jail for non-violent drug offenses. This is what they said. None of that has happened."

Rodgers, who also addressed his vax controversy during the show, sided with the 'JRE' host, saying, "You mean a politician said something they ran on and then didn't actually enact that said policy?"

Brutal couple days for former WWE superstar Velveteen Dream last week -- TMZ Sports has confirmed he was arrested TWICE in Florida.

According to court records, VD -- real name Patrick Clark -- was initially arrested on Aug. 20 by the Orlando Police Dept. and booked on misdemeanor charges of battery and trespass on property after warning.

It's unclear what the wrestler has exactly been accused of -- we're working on it -- but the records show his attorney filed a written plea of not guilty and his arraignment hearing, set for September, was canceled.

Just six days later, on Aug. 26, Clark was arrested again in Orange County, Fla., according to jail records.

Orange County Corrections Department officials tell us he was booked on an out-of-county warrant for a violation of probation by the Orlando Police Department.

We're told it all stemmed from a previous drug case against the wrestler in Seminole County, Fla.

OCCD officials say Clark is currently being held on a no-bond status and is still in the Orange County Jail. He is expected to be turned over to Seminole County soon.

The 27-year-old first joined the WWE in 2015 -- and he went on to become a star in NXT, showing off insane athleticism and over-the-top promos, stunts and moves. He was marred in controversy in 2020, though, following allegations that he sent indecent photos to underage kids. He vehemently denied the claims.

"Hey, hey we're the Monkees and people say we monkey around, but we're too busy singing to put anybody down."

With that kinda subversive language you can understand why the FBI investigated 60s hitmakers, the Monkees ... said absolutely no one -- and now the band's lead singer wants answers from the feds.

Micky Dolenz filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday to "obtain any records the FBI created and/or possesses on The Monkees as well as its individual members."

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ, Micky filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the Bureau back in June, and he says it acknowledged getting his request ... but since then it's gone radio silent.

As ridiculous as this sounds, because it is, it's already known the FBI was watching closely when The Monkees went on tour in 1967. It came out a decade ago an informant went to one of the shows and reported "subliminal messages" on the screen behind the band.

Those included images of the Vietnam war, riots on the Berkeley campus and in Selma, Alabama -- aka, "left wing intervention of a political nature" ... according to the FBI, which was then run by J. Edgar Hoover.

Dolenz, who's now 77 and the only surviving member of the group, has had enough of the feds' bureaucratic red tape, and wants a judge to force the FBI to hand over all of its records on the band.

The parents of former Bills punter Matt Araiza say they've received "horrific threats of violence and death" in the wake of rape allegations made against the football player last week.

Araiza's mom and dad explained their situation in a lengthy statement to KUSI in San Diego on Monday evening -- saying "we have all been canceled" following a civil lawsuit that alleged Araiza participated in the gang rape of a 17-year-old in October 2021.

"There has been war waged on our son," the statement, which was attributed to "Mr. and Mrs. Araiza," read. "He has been tried and convicted in the media based on information released solely from the alleged victim and her attorney, much of it through social media."

"People have taken his information as factual, when it is not."

A woman ID'ed as only "Jane Doe" in court documents, filed last week, alleged that shortly after she showed up to a Halloween party at Araiza's home in San Diego when he was a member of the San Diego State football team, he and two of his teammates took turns raping her for over an hour.

Araiza denied the allegations shortly after the suit became public ... but the Bills cut him regardless on Saturday.

The 22-year-old punter's parents say it's been hell for them since ... adding in their statement, "[Matt] has been extorted, discriminated against, harassed and the subject of multiple and continuous threats of violence and death."

"Salacious rumors grew as fact," they continued. "There are multiple witness reports to deny the claims that are made against him. The legal system is designed to find the facts and make decisions. They should be allowed to do that."

Tyrese doesn't want to fork over spousal support, or the keys to a Range Rover, to his estranged wife ... though he IS willing to let Samantha Lee Gibson have one of their other SUVs.

The actor/singer is in court Monday for a hearing in his divorce case to lay out what he wants from the split.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Tyrese is looking to avoid sending Samantha monthly spousal support ... and he wants to hang on to a 2016 Range Rover, while offering to let her walk away with a less luxurious 2017 Land Rover Discovery.

What's more, Tyrese wants their prenup enforced ... and he's requesting joint physical and legal custody of their daughter, Soraya Gibson. He also wants final say on non-medical emergencies for their kid.

It's been a nasty divorce so far ... when Samantha filed in September 2020, she claimed Tyrese had locked her out of the house, an accusation he denied. As we reported, Samantha was gunning for $20k in monthly child support, which Tyrese claimed was "unreasonably high."

So, it will be interesting to see how Samantha reacts to Tyrese asking for her to get the down-market Rover, and no spousal support.

Kim Kardashian's signature shapewear company, SKIMS, says a woman who filed a lawsuit claiming SKIMS body tape ripped her skin off has it all wrong ... and the tape she actually used was an Amazon purchase that's not associated with Kim or SKIMS at all.

The woman, Noelle Mahasin Smith, filed a  lawsuit against SKIMS Monday -- claiming the company's body tape was ripping her skin off. The lawsuit was thin on specifics, but Smith says the body tape is directly responsible for the physical and mental pain she claims she endured by using it.

A rep for SKIMS tells us Smith didn't even purchase the tape from them, saying, "We take feedback from our customers very seriously. Upon further review of this specific complaint, we have discovered that the customer purchased what appears to be fake tape from Amazon, who is not an authorized or official retailer of SKIMS products."

Kim's SKIMS brand has become super popular in the market, the company rep continues, "Unfortunately counterfeit items have become commonplace for the brand and we strongly advise our customers to only purchase from SKIMS or any of our official retail partners which can be found on our website to ensure that they receive authentic products that meet our quality standards."

In comparing the products, you can see Kim's tape has the SKIMS marking ... much different than the one allegedly purchased on Amazon.

A man accused of impersonating a Patriots player in a wild ruse to fraudulently obtain and sell Tom Brady Super Bowl rings has just been sentenced to THREE YEARS in prison, authorities announced.

According to federal prosecutors, 25-year-old Scott Spina was sentenced on Monday morning ... over eight months after he pleaded guilty to five charges.

As we previously reported, Spina was accused of obtaining a Super Bowl LI ring that had been awarded to a New England player for his role on the 2016 championship team by giving the football player a bad check.

Officials claim once Spina got the ring, he turned around and sold it to a broker for $63,000.

Then, prosecutors say, he began an elaborate scheme to fraudulently make even more money off the situation.

Officials said when Spina got the title bling, he also received information that allowed the former player to buy more Super Bowl rings -- albeit smaller ones -- for family and friends.

"Spina then called the Ring Company, fraudulently identified himself as [the former player], and started ordering three family and friend Super Bowl LI rings with the name 'Brady' engraved on each one, which he falsely represented were gifts for the baby of quarterback Tom Brady," officials said in court documents. "The rings were at no time authorized by Tom Brady. Defendant Spina intended to obtain the three rings by fraud and to sell them at a substantial profit."

Authorities say Spina did ultimately sell the Brady rings -- and one of them ended up going for a staggering $337,000.

Prosecutors say Spina eventually fessed up to the crimes -- and struck a plea deal to close out the case.

Several hooded men reportedly broke into FC Barcelona striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's home in Spain on Monday morning, beat him and then robbed him at gunpoint.

The horrifying incident, according to Spanish newspaper El Pais, happened at Aubameyang's residence in Castelldefels at around 1 AM ... when at least four people invaded the soccer player's home while armed with guns and iron bars.

Once inside, the men allegedly forced Aubameyang and his wife to open a safe inside the home. They then, according to El Pais, took several pieces of jewelry and other valuables, before fleeing the property.

Thankfully, Barcelona team officials have told multiple media outlets the 33-year-old footballer and his wife are doing OK, and did not suffer serious injuries.

Aubameyang had been with FC Barcelona just hours before the incident for its game against Real Valladolid. He was an unused substitute in the team's 4-0 victory.

Cops have reportedly launched an investigation into the robbery, though arrests have not been made.

Britney Spears' story is worth a lot of dough -- but she's forgoing a payday to sit down and speak her truth ... and instead, doing an impromptu YouTube dump that's 20 minutes long.

The singer posted a 22-minute clip on the video platform Sunday out of nowhere, and if you watch it -- you'll see she's spilling her guts about everything ... with specific focus on how exactly the conservatorship started and what she remembers during those many years.

BS starts out by saying that she's got a lot on her mind, and noting that while she's been offered lucrative deals for exclusive interviews -- like with Oprah, for example -- she says she finds that notion "irrelevant' and apparently thinks selling your story like that is tacky.

Instead, she's giving it straight to the people ... diving into how things started when she was spiraling in the mid-2000s. She says when the conservatorship began, she didn't understand why ... but all of a sudden, her dad was running the show and was very controlling. Britney claims he told her, "I'm Britney Spears and I'm calling the shots."

She also says a woman introduced the idea to Jamie, and that her mom helped him follow through. Britney calls it "pure abuse" and recounts being held down on a gurney as paparazzi and helicopters swarmed her pad the day she was put in a psychiatric hold.

Speaking of paps, Britney says this of her infamous episode ... "The extent of my madness was playing chase with paparazzi, which is still to this day one of the most fun things I ever did about being famous." She says she doesn't know what was so harmful about that.

She goes on to describe what it was like working under the conservatorship, and it sounds miserable. Britney says she felt like a robot who was under the direct control of her father.

Britney says that after her Vegas residency ended in 2017, a new show was in the works ... and she says that when she was rehearsing for it, she stood up for herself about a certain dance move -- saying she simply voiced her preference. After that, she says she was shipped away to a facility, under the guise of seeking treatment and worrying for her dad's health.

While there, Britney says she was heavily medicated ... this after she claims her father threatened her with a major legal battle that he thought she's apparently lose.

This was a particularly dark chapter for her, Britney says, and it's clear Britney resents her family for putting her through that -- especially her mom, whom she says turned a blind eye. Remember, photos from that specific period showed Britney appearing very out of sorts, when her then-boyfriend Sam Asghari took her out for a bit around Easter time.

Britney describes more conditions placed on her during the conservatorship ... including absolute control of what she ate, where she could be, her schedule, her company, everything.

It was around this time -- 2019/2020, when the #FreeBritney movement was in full swing -- that Britney says she finally felt confident enough to take control of her life and attempt to get out of the conservatorship. She even shouts out #FreeBritny protesters who backed her.

Britney says she believes Jamie and co. thought she'd come crawling back and get into the cycle she'd been in for years, but instead ... BS says she got a lawyer and held her ground, refusing to fall back into their clutches and actually try to retake the reins of her life.

It's a lengthy confessional, but Britney's getting into all of it here ... more than we can write to in this post. As we all know, Britney did break free from the conservatorship in the end -- and now, she's telling her story on her own terms. And we're sure it's far from over too.

Kim Kardashian is living proof a charity event doesn't have to be downer ... at least when it comes to fashion, charity can be lit!

KK hit up the 4th annual fundraiser for the charity, This is About Humanity -- TIAH. It's an org that raises awareness about parents and children separated at the U.S./Mexican border.

Kim showed up in style, and gotta say ... Kanye may be long gone in terms of a relationship with her, but his fashion influence still lingers from her head to her toes.

Tickets for the event -- held in Brentwood, CA -- were certainly within her reach -- $1k a pop. The money goes toward legal representation for immigrant families.

Paul "PK" Kemsley, the husband of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Dorit ... won't be hit with DUI charges following his arrest last year ... because we've learned the case has been rejected.

The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office tells TMZ ... they reviewed PK's case but rejected it back in April based on an "insufficiency of the evidence."

Law enforcement tells us PK went from blowing a .081 in the field to a .076 at the police station -- the legal limit's .08. We're told the level change ultimately led prosecutors to decide not to charge him.

Back in December, PK's attorney, Alan Jackson told TMZ his client "regrets the fact he did not take alternate transportation home that evening."

Dorit ran into paps after word spread about PK's arrest ... she said he wasn't necessarily smashed, but he probably shouldn't have been behind the wheel in the first place.

As we reported, CHP said they pulled PK over after seeing his grey Bentley weaving in traffic on L.A.'s 101 freeway. If he had alcohol in his system and he was driving erratically the City Attorney could still charge him with DUI, even if he blew under a .08, but prosecutors say there was insufficient evidence.

FN Meka's problems didn't go away when Capitol Records pulled the plug on the controversial project -- the Black rapper whose voice was used for Meka has started the process to take legal action against the creators.

Kyle The Hooligan says FN Meka's creators stole his drip to create the character, and he's ready to see 'em in court. Kyle tells TMZ Hip Hop ... his attorneys already started the legal process to recoup his damages from both Brandon Le and Factory New this week.

Kyle says he was "young" when he met with Factory New, but says he was promised equity and ownership for helping voice and write the music for FN Meka.

He also claims he gave them all the "cool" ideas, and would've prevented hiccups like the police brutality photo from even happening.

Kyle's attorney, Andrew Orcutt tells TMZ, "Despite multiple requests, we have not received a response from or been put in contact with Factory New’s or Brandon Le’s legal representatives, nor have we received any formal offer for compensation. We are continuing to evaluate our options and are hopeful for a swift and just resolution to this matter.”

During all the industry backlash against Meka, we got hip hop veteran Krayzie Bone's take on everything, who said real rappers' jobs were in danger ... but Kyle actually disagrees.

Kyle raps for real, not just virtually, and saw the digital rapper horizon as a way for artists to expand their careers and portfolios -- but now he wants his case to shine a light on anyone else who's been ghosted in the music industry.