Legal

Natalia Bryant -- Kobe and Vanessa's oldest daughter -- has been granted legal protection from someone she says poses a serious risk to her safety.

Natalia had court in L.A. Wednesday, where she gave some powerful testimony about things she claims 32-year-old Dwayne Kemp has done over the last few months to put her at risk.

Natalia called into the hearing and testified she doesn't know Kemp, but is terrified of what he's capable of -- scared at any moment he could show up. She called his actions "unsettling" and claimed at one point he even contacted her eyebrow beautician, offering to pay for services Natalia had completed.

Natalia's attorney Nick Sanchez tells TMZ ... the judge was convinced Kemp is dangerous enough to warrant a 3-year order of protection. Just as the temporary restraining order required ... Kemp now must continue to stay at least 200 yards away from Natalia, her home, her job, her car, school and sorority house at USC.

As we reported ... the 19-year-old got the TRO last month, claiming he’d been stalking her and was under a delusion they were in a romantic relationship. She says he started contacting her 2 years ago, when she was still only 17.

Under the new 3-year order ... Kemp cannot possess or purchase any firearms, and he has 24 hours to surrender any weapons he currently owns.

The collapse of the famed crypto exchange FTX is spurring lots of finger-pointing, but on the issue of whether its celeb spokespeople are partially to blame ... Congress has different opinions.

We got Rep. Al Lawson Wednesday at Reagan National Airport, where we asked what he made of all the famous folks who served as ambassadors for FTX in its heyday -- which undoubtedly influenced normies to invest, and potentially lose buckets of cash amid its bankruptcy.

The Florida congressman makes no bones about it ... telling us accountability has to be shared by all parties involved, including the rich and famous -- whom he says can survive financial loss way better than your average Joe.

He also offers some advice on any future crypto endorsements ... warning celebs (and everyday laypeople) to proceed with caution, 'cause this biz is a high-risk gamble.

On the flip side ... Rep. Ritchie Torres actually defended FTX celebs when we caught up with him on Capitol Hill -- this amid ongoing congressional hearings on the matter, where lawmakers are trying to make big picture decisions about crypto.

Check out his take -- it's the opposite of Rep. Lawson's ... as he thinks this disaster falls into the lap of one person and one person only. Hint: the dude's in the criminal hot seat now.

Gunna has ended his months-long incarceration by pleading guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge in the YSL RICO case.

The Grammy-nominated rapper entered a pre-negotiated plea known as an Alford plea Wednesday and was sentenced to 5 years -- with one year commuted for the time he's already served. The remaining 4 will be suspended, pending community service and other special conditions.

In a statement, Gunna says he didn’t think of YSL as a gang circa 2016 when his rap career began to pop off, and only focused only on the entertainment aspects … even if it meant an exaggeration of the “Black urban” lifestyle.

He also laid emphasis that his guilty plea didn’t mean any cooperation against any other YSL members … and his Alford plea acknowledges his own association with YSL.

Gunna says he’s looking forward to giving back to his community and wants to youth to know that gangs and violence are gateways to their destruction.

A woman in AZ just found out the hard way inflatable green companions don't count for the carpool lane ... even during the holiday season.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety says the driver was spotted in the HOV lane Tuesday morning with a "Seusspicious-looking 'passenger.'"

The dept. says a trooper stopped the woman and discovered the passenger cruising with her was an inflatable Grinch. What's more -- cops snapped a pic of the infamous Whoville resident as proof the woman tried to pull a fast one.

The department continues, "While we appreciate the festive flair, this is illegal & the driver received a citation for the HOV violation." It then goes on to ensure AZ drivers are educated on traffic laws, especially with an increase in cars on the road during the holidays.

Julia Haart is no longer facing the lawsuits her estranged husband, Silvio Scaglia, filed against her -- but she still stands to gain even more of a win in the long term.

Sources familiar with the matter tell us Scaglia dropped his claims against the "My Unorthodox Life" star -- this after they filed dueling lawsuits, accusing the other of malfeasance tied to their fashion talent management org/shared company accounts.

We're told Scaglia and Haart reached a settlement, in which he agreed to dismiss all of his claims -- including his $850k lawsuit against her. In exchange, Hart will no longer go after him to cover her attorney fees associated with his legal action against her.

Julia tells TMZ, "I believe the fact that Silvio withdrew these cases with prejudice, meaning dismissed permanently, on the day discovery was due, speaks volumes. No money was paid by me and I intend to continue to pursue my fraud and defamation litigation against Silvio, and others named in those cases."

BTW, their divorce battle is also ongoing ... and by the looks of it, will be anything but amicable.

Remember, Scaglia accused Haart of misappropriating funds -- in this case, allegedly withdrawing that $850k without prior authorization -- shortly after getting removed as CEO from their joint venture.

Scaglia claimed Haart had only been given permission to use $250k -- but suggested she yanked out way more in retaliation for getting fired. Oh, and she immediately filed for divorce too.

He's now dropped all claims of misappropriation of funds against Julia.

Of course, she countersued ... claiming Scaglia and Freedom had actually screwed her out of hundreds of millions of dollars she claimed she was owed via stock options.

Kelly Clarkson got a restraining order against a woman who allegedly kept showing up at her doorstep -- but even after a judge signed off ... Kelly claims the lady won't stop coming around.

The singer's team filed new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, which claim that a woman by the name of Huguette Nicole Young has deliberately driven by KC's Los Angeles-area home at least once this week ... this after a TRO was granted last week to keep her ass away.

According to the docs obtained by TMZ, Kelly's head of security, Michael Lopez, says the team noticed Young's car -- which had previously been seen and identified by them from her past visits -- cruise by Kelly's property very early on Tuesday morning at around 1:45 AM.

Lopez even uploaded surveillance camera footage of what he says is Young's vehicle creeping across Kelly's driveway in the dead of night.

Remember, Kelly just successfully got a judge to sign off on a court-ordered temporary restraining order -- saying Young has been to her home nearly 20 times over 5 years.

Kelly's security team claimed Young has left gifts and other items at her front gate, and has been captured multiple times on surveillance.

There's more ... one of Kelly's former backup singers filed an additional declaration claiming that Young has actually been dogging Kelly around the country dating back to 2009. The singer says Young started writing letters and fan mail around that time.

Idaho police might have unearthed a key piece of video evidence in the murders of those 4 college students -- thanks to a gas station employee.

The overnight assistant manager told Fox News she recently had some downtime, so she reviewed the gas station's surveillance video from around the time of the November 13 early morning attacks. Despite not working that day, she said she had a "weird feeling" to go look at the footage.

It paid off ... she found a snippet that showed a white sedan barreling down the highway and turning onto a side street. The vehicle matches the description of a 2011-2013 white Hyundai Elantra police have been searching for since last week. Cops say they want to speak with the occupant(s) of the car, which was spotted near the crime scene the night of the slayings.

The gas station manager snapped a screenshot and emailed it to investigators through a tipline. Detectives went to retrieve the new evidence and are now pouring over hours of footage, trying to find more clues. They don't know yet if the video shows the actual car they're seeking, as they haven't been able to match license plates.

Moscow PD spokesperson Robbie Johnson tells TMZ ... they are having difficulties locating the Hyundai because the car is so common, but they have received "good tips." Neighboring police departments are also keeping an eye out for the car. Pullman PD, which is about 7 miles from Moscow, tells us they are "closely scrutinizing" all vehicles that look like the Hyundai.

As we reported, 4 University of Idaho students -- Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin -- were discovered fatally stabbed inside an off-campus house last month.

Tory Lanez has an answer for all the critics questioning why he’d bring his young son to his shooting trial involving Meg Thee Stallion ... and it’s all about support.

The rapper was in full-on dad mode Tuesday as he left the courthouse where Meg testified he shot her and wished he had killed her ... carrying his son on his back as he jogged out to his ride.

Tory was peppered with questions about the trial, including why he chose to bring his 5-year-old son, Kai'Lon, to court ... with Tory explaining how father and son are a support system for one another.

When Tory and his son arrived at court earlier in the day they raised eyebrows online ... because his kid has literally nothing to do with the case.

As we reported ... Megan's testimony was super emotional, touching on the impact this case is having on her ... including the notion that she wishes she was dead instead of having to deal with the trial.

Megan Thee Stallion is in court for the second day of Tory Lanez's shooting trial ... letting cameras know how she's feeling as fans cheer her on outside the building.

Megan stepped into a DTLA courthouse Tuesday ... giving a thumbs up when asked how she was doing. The rapper was also asked if she's nervous about the trial, but shakes her head at that one.

Meg had a bunch of fans in her corner, too ... with a group of her supporters holding up banners and signs -- and even wearing shirts that all say "We stand with Megan."

Not everyone is backing the Megan train, though -- as she walked into court, one person shouted out, "Why you lying on that boy?" No reaction from Meg and co., though.

As we reported, Tory's trial kicked off Monday, with both sides laying out what they say happened the night Meg was allegedly shot in the foot. Prosecutors clearly say Tory pulled the trigger, while Tory's attorneys have laid out alternative theories, including pointing out some possible fighting between Kelsey and Meg that night.

Megan will reportedly testify at some point during the trial -- but it's unclear when she'll take the stand.

Breonna Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, has settled 2 lawsuits against the city of Louisville over the botched raid at his apartment that took her life more than 2 years ago.

Walker's attorneys say he'll get $2 million from Louisville over his state and federal suits filed against the city. One of his lawyers, Steve Romines, said Breonna's death would "haunt Kenny for the rest of his life."

He added, "He will live with the effects of being put in harm’s way due to a falsified warrant, to being a victim of a hailstorm of gunfire and to suffering the unimaginable and horrific death of Breonna Taylor."

Kenneth claimed the police violated his rights by not announcing themselves in 2020 when they busted into his home, and that they used excessive force in gunning down Breonna. Remember, whether the cops actually knocked or not was the subject of much scrutiny.

After insisting they knocked and announced themselves several times, a handful of Louisville PD officers breached the premises ... and Kenneth opened fire, believing an intruder was trying to get into the home. When one officer was hit, they shot back and killed Breonna.

The issue of "no-knock" warrants fell under a microscope in the wake of all this -- while the officers did, in fact, obtain such a warrant ... they say they knocked anyway, but Walker has maintained all along he didn't hear a peep and was simply protecting himself.

None of the officers involved has been criminally charged in direct connection to Breonna's death -- only for conduct related to the case, like wanton endangerment. Walker was charged with attempted murder at first, but that was dropped.

Marc Anthony's failed worldwide virtual concert is sparking a legal war between the promoter and the streaming service ... and it's getting nasty.

The promoter, Loud and Live, is suing streaming platform Maestro ... claiming the streaming service didn't hold up its end of the bargain in a virtual event that spectacularly crashed and burned.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Loud and Live claims it approached Maestro about live streaming a Marc Anthony concert to a global audience during the pandemic, signing a deal after Maestro assured Loud and Live it could handle a stream with over 100,000 viewers.

But as we reported ... the live stream for Marc's April 2021 concert was an utter disaster, with folks around the world complaining about staring at nothing, but a blank screen for hours until the singer finally pulled the plug.

In the docs, Loud and Live says more than 100k fans shelled out between $25 and $40 for the live stream ... only for Maestro's streaming platform to completely fail.

Marc's 90-minute concert, which was performed live and recorded, was then released for free the following day on his YouTube account ... the same day Loud and Live says it started issuing refunds.

In the docs, Loud and Live rips Maestro ... claiming the streaming service misrepresented its technological capabilities.

Loud and Live says it suffered a huge financial hit -- paying Marc and Maestro up-front fees, then promoting and financially backing the concert before ultimately losing out on the streaming sales ... so, it's going after Maestro for damages.

Ben Simmons has found himself in the middle of Tory Lanez's high-profile assault case -- and now, the Nets superstar is defending himself after he was accused of messing around with Megan Thee Stallion.

On Monday, the defense gave their opening statement in Lanez's trial -- where he's accused of shooting Meg in L.A. in 2020 following an argument. While addressing the jurors, Tory's attorney suggested it could've been Meg's friend, Kelsey Harris, who fired the shots, after the women were feuding.

Enter Simmons.

The defense claims Meg had a history of hooking up with men Kelsey's been with ... and accused her of doing just that with the NBA star, which they say caused a huge argument between the women.

But 26-year-old Simmons was quick to shut it down ... posting a viral video on his Instagram story of Rick Ross yelling, "Accusations. These are false accusations," during a segment with Swerve in Our Glory when the Florida rapper visited AEW Dynamite.

Ben didn't name Meg, Tory, or Kelsey in the post, but, c'mon.

It's only day 1 of the trial, but it's evident the defense's strategy is to convince the jurors that it was Kelsey who fired the gun, not Tory.

Even though the trial just started, it's a critical piece of information. If the defense can create reasonable doubt that Kelsey, and not Tory, fired the shots ... he'll be found not guilty.

Ashley Benson says a man has been stalking and harassing her and threatening to kill himself ... and now she's asking a judge for help.

The actress beelined it to court and filed for a protection order against a 20-year-old man she claims has been incessantly seeking a sexual relationship with her and is threatening to shoot himself if she doesn't at least interact with him, even though she says she never even gave him her number.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Ashley claims the guy keeps blowing up her phone ... and she says he's also messaging her incessantly on social media.

It sounds pretty scary ... Ashley claims the man often references the use of a gun ... and she says the guy sends her audio messages where he's sobbing and threatening to kill himself.

Ashley claims the man has been harassing her online for over a year but she says things ratcheted up recently ... she says he's tracked her location using social media and approached her in a frightening and threatening manner.

AB says she blocked the guy's phone number and he responded by calling her from 40 different numbers.

Former cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried has been arrested in the Bahamas ... and it appears his legal woes are only gonna get worse, with expected criminal charges in the United States.

Bahamian authorities announced SBF's arrest Monday, and Bahamas Attorney General Ryan Pinder added the U.S. filed criminal charges against the FTX founder. SBF was scheduled to appear Tuesday before a Congressional committee for a hearing on the crypto company's recent multi-billion dollar collapse.

The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams, says SBF was arrested "at the request of the U.S. Government, based on a sealed indictment filed by the SDNY."

It's unclear what criminal charges SBF is facing ... but Williams says the indictment will be unsealed Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, the Bahamas AG says the U.S. is likely to request SBF's extradition.

As you know ... FTX was once one of the world's biggest crypto exchanges, recently being valued at $30 billion before becoming insolvent and filing for bankruptcy.

Longhorns men's basketball head coach Chris Beard is in jail in Texas ... after officials say he committed an assault on one of his family/household members.

According to jail records, Beard was booked in Travis County, Texas on Monday at 2:18 AM ... on a charge of felony "assault on family/household member impede breath circulation."

A spokesperson for the Austin Police Dept. said officers were called to a residence in Austin "for a disturbance" at 12:15 AM -- and Beard was arrested a short time later. No further details surrounding the allegations have been released.

49-year-old Beard is in his second season at UT -- in 2021, he led the Longhorns to a 22-12 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance. This year, he got the team off to a 7-1 start.

The Longhorns last played on Saturday night, beating Arkansas - Pine Bluff, 88-43. Their next game is scheduled for Monday night against Rice. The school said in a statement Monday morning, "The University is aware of the situation regarding Chris Beard. We are continuing to gather information and monitoring the legal process."

Takeoff's alleged murderer, Patrick Xavier Clark, wants a taste of freedom at a discount ... asking a judge to reduce his bail so he can afford to get out from behind bars.

According to legal docs obtained by TMZ, Clark filed a motion in Texas Monday to reduce his $2 million bail ... his attorney, Carl Moore, says it's too much for his client to afford.

The alleged gunman wants a reduction to $100K, which he thinks he can pull together with the help of a professional bondsman. If granted, Clark says he'll stay with his parents, where he says he's always lived.

His legal team also says he'll wear a GPS monitor and abide by any curfew that may be imposed by the judge. Clark is also willing to surrender his passport and says he'll willingly follow any "no-contact" order with respect to certain people.

Takeoff was shot and killed outside a Houston bowling alley in November. Clark was arrested and charged with the murder of the Migos rapper.