Legal

Josh Duggar's just been hit with charges of receiving and possessing child pornography following his arrest by federal agents in Arkansas.

According to the legal docs, the "19 Kids and Counting" star knowingly received child porn in mid-May 2019. He's accused of knowingly possessing images of child pornography, including images of minors below the age of 12.

Duggar's been charged by indictment with receiving and possessing child pornography -- one count each. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years of imprisonment and fines up to $250,000.00 on each count.

He's been ordered to forfeit any material related to the case to authorities, including turning over any and all computer equipment.

Duggar appeared before the judge at the Western District of Arkansas Federal Court from jail via Zoom, where he entered a plea of not guilty on all counts.

A court hearing's set for next week to determine if Duggar will be granted bond release, but he's to remain in custody until then. The judge ruled if bond is granted ... Duggar will be required to stay with a third-party custodian, and that person can't have unsupervised minors in the home.

His trial is scheduled for July.

We broke the story ... Duggar was arrested Thursday by the feds in Washington County, and was being held in a detention center without bail.

The reality star's mug shot, obtained by TMZ, showed him posing with a strange smirk on his face.

As we reported ... Homeland Security agents visited the Arkansas car dealership where he worked back in November 2019, raiding his office in connection to a federal probe.

Duggar's legal counsel Justin Gelfand, Travis W. Story and Greg Payne, tell us, "Josh Duggar has been charged in a two-count indictment. He has pled not guilty to both charges and we intend to defend this case aggressively and thoroughly."

Diplo's going after an ex-fling in a new lawsuit ... claiming she's dangerously unstable because she won't stop harassing him or his family with explicit and racist messages.

The famous DJ filed docs claiming Shelly Auguste is a "relentless and unstable fan who manipulated herself into" his life years ago, but won't take no for an answer after he rebuffed her.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Diplo claims Auguste's gone to extreme and dangerous lengths to harass him ... like creating fake social media accounts and flooding the DJ and his family with sexually suggestive messages.

Diplo, who says he had a brief consensual relationship with Auguste in 2019 before things went south in 2020, claims she bombarded him with 44 messages that included videos and voice recordings involving Diplo.

What's more ... Diplo claims she also sent sexually explicit photographs and videos of him to his friends and family. He also claims she'd show up unannounced to his house ... and he became so fearful about her erratic behavior he says he was forced to sell his house last month.

As if things couldn't get any worse ... Diplo claims Auguste sent his baby mama racist and disturbing messages earlier this month, saying things like, "ugly dark skin bitch" and "Go kill yourself I know I see right through you you're not gorgeous."

As we first reported ... Diplo got a restraining order against Auguste back in December. At one point, she also got a temporary restraining order against him after making her own allegations of revenge porn, which Diplo denied ... that restraining order was eventually tossed.

He's now suing for stalking, trespassing and distribution of private materials ... or revenge porn. His attorney, Bryan Freedman, tells TMZ ... "As this Complaint makes clear, my client and his family have been harassed, stalked and abused by Ms. Auguste for far too long -- and it’s time for the courts to step in and put an end to her appalling and dangerous behavior."

Esme Bianco -- best known for her role as Ros on "Game of Thrones" -- claims she was drugged, tortured and raped by Marilyn Manson in a bombshell new lawsuit.

According to the docs -- obtained by TMZ -- the actress met the shock rocker in 2005 through his then-fiancee and he expressed interest in casting her in some film projects ... then she says he hit her up again after his divorce in 2007.

Bianco claims this is when he made his first "sexual overtures" toward her by requesting nude photographs, but he played it off as a joke. According to the docs, Manson flew her to L.A. in early 2009, purportedly to film a music vid for his song, "I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the Movies" ... and this is when years of abuse began.

The actress claims upon arrival she learned there was no film crew, just Manson, and she was expected to stay with him, be on call 24/7 and wear lingerie as her "costume." She alleges she was given drugs and alcohol and subjected to threats of violence and rape, and according to the docs ... was tied to a prayer kneeler and beaten by Manson with a whip he told her was utilized by the Nazis. She claims Manson also electrocuted her.

Bianco claims she was manipulated into believing this was all part of the music video shoot, and he assured her it was being edited. She says he then visited her in May 2009 in London and they began a sexual relationship, though she claims he was controlling and degrading.

According to the docs ... Bianco claims they kept a long-distance relationship going until 2011, when Manson convinced her to move to L.A. to live with him and promised her film roles. She claims during this time she endured constant abuse, including sleep deprivation, verbal abuse and tantrums if she expressed discomfort over the "violent and sexually graphic films" he allegedly played in his apartment.

She claims Manson once chased her around the home with an ax, and on another occasion "cut Ms. Bianco with a Nazi knife during sex, without her consent, and photographed the cuts on her body." She says he also posted the photos online without her consent.

Bianco says Manson used a pattern of using "drugs, force, and threats of force to coerce sexual acts" from her on multiple occasions, and claims he raped her around May 2011.

She also accused him of sexual battery during her time with him in L.A. in 2011. According to the docs ... "These acts include spanking, biting, cutting, and whipping Ms. Bianco’s buttocks, breasts, and genitals for [Manson's] sexual gratification," and all without her consent.

Bianco's lawsuit does not say if she reported the alleged rape or abuse to police. We've reached out to Manson's camp ... no word back yet.

Josh Duggar is in custody in Arkansas ... federal law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

The reality star was arrested Thursday by federal agents in Washington County, and he's being held in a detention center without bail.

We've obtained Duggar's mug shot, showing the former reality star posing with a bizarre smirk.

As we reported ... back in November 2019, Homeland Security agents were crawling around the car dealership where Duggar works in Arkansas, raiding his office in connection to a federal probe.

Josh's only current legal dispute, as far as we know, is a civil lawsuit filed against him for real estate fraud. It would appear his latest arrest is for something far more severe, though it's unclear exactly why he's been taken in.

Ghislaine Maxwell is sleep deprived and things are so torturous for her behind bars she's suffered a black eye ... so claims her attorney in a letter and photo she filed in court.

Maxwell's attorney, Bobbi Sternheim, filed docs attaching a picture showing what Jeffrey Epstein's associate is looking like these days while locked up at NYC's Metropolitan Detention Center.

It's clear she's suffered a bruise under her eye, but how she got it is a mystery. Her lawyer's filing included a letter to the judge stating Maxwell only noticed the bruise after catching her reflection on a nail clipper. She doesn't have a mirror.

Sternheim says Maxwell -- who's accused of trafficking underage girls to have sex with Epstein -- doesn't know how she got the bruise. It appears prison officials aren't buying that, because Sternheim claims officials threatened to put Maxwell in a Special Housing Unit unless she spilled the beans on how she got the bruise.

But, Sternheim says if Maxwell's ever placed in SHU "it would be ironic" because "it would signal that Ms. Maxwell needs protection from the very staff so intent on protecting her, since she has no contact with anyone but staff."

BTW ... there's one theory on how Maxwell got the bruise. Sternheim said, "There is concern that the bruise may be related to the need for Ms. Maxwell to shield her eyes [using a sock or towel] from the lights projected into her cell throughout the night."

Sternheim's concerned about Maxwell's sleep disruption every 15 minutes to check on her breathing ... to which the attorney also objects, saying it's a "myth" that "Maxwell's conditions of confinement are related to her being a suicide risk."

Ahmaud Arbery's mother is squashing her beef with an organization that's been raising funds in her son's name, but without her permission -- they've settled the dispute without going to court.

Wanda Cooper's lawyer, J. Carter, tells TMZ ... Ahmaud's mom settled her trademark dispute with the 2:23 Foundation last week, avoiding the hassle of a lawsuit.

As we first told you, Wanda claimed the 2:23 Foundation was using her son's name and likeness ... hauling in massive amounts of cash donations even though she hadn't given her blessing.

We're told the settlement terms call for the 2:23 Foundation to phase out their usage of the marks, for the org to be dissolved and for $345,306 in donations to be transferred to Wanda's newly established foundation, The Ahmaud Arbery Foundation.

Wanda's new foundation, we're told, is officially launching May 8 to coincide with Ahmaud's birthday.

Ronnie Ortiz-Magro ended up getting arrested because cops say his girlfriend had visible marks on her body when they showed up, responding to her call for help ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us it was actually Ronnie's girlfriend, Saffire Matos, who called the police that night ... after they'd gotten into some type of argument that allegedly got physical. We're told when officers arrived, they spoke to both parties, and determined Ronnie was the aggressor.

As for why ... our sources tell us officers observed visible marks on Saffire's body which they determined she sustained during the alleged fight. We're told that was one of multiple observations that spurred police to slap the cuffs on Ronnie.

This is interesting because it shows Saffire had enough of a problem with whatever was going on to actually pick up the phone and dial 9-1-1. Since Ronnie's arrest, she tried to downplay the alleged violence.

She posted a statement in the aftermath, telling her followers not to believe media accounts of what had happened, insisting she and Ronnie were "fine."

Ronnie's attorney, Scott Leemon, tells us, "We are still investigating the incident of last week and have not yet received any of the police reports. Therefore, we will continue not to comment while our investigation is still ongoing. As we have all learned in the past, initial reports can be and are often incorrect.”

Of course, as we reported, this is bad news for Ronnie ... who's been down this road before with his ex, Jenn Harley. He ended up getting probation in that DV case -- and a judge could deem this latest arrest a violation of that probation.

Speaking of Jenn ... she drove all the way from Vegas to come get her and Ronnie's daughter, once she heard he'd been arrested.

Marvin Scott III -- a 26-year-old Black man who died last month in a Texas jail after being restrained to a bed for several hours -- died as a result of homicide, according to the medical examiner.

Scott was arrested for misdemeanor marijuana possession in a Dallas suburb on March 14, and though he was first taken to a local hospital for reportedly acting erratically ... he was later transported to the Collin County Jail in McKinney.

It was there Scott began "exhibiting some strange behavior" according to Collin County Sheriff Jim Skinner, and officials say he was subsequently restrained, pepper-sprayed and had a spit mask put on his face by detention officers.

According to reports, sometime during the several hours of being restrained to a bed, Scott became unresponsive and was later pronounced dead at a hospital. Skinner called it a "profound tragedy" at a news conference.

But, Collin County's chief medical examiner, Dr. William Rohr, is calling it a homicide. According to Rohr, his findings show Scott's cause of death was "fatal acute stress response in an individual with previously diagnosed schizophrenia during restraint struggle with law enforcement."

Scott's family says he had schizophrenia and was experiencing a mental health crisis while in police custody, and family attorney Lee Merritt claims Scott was using marijuana at the time of his arrest "to self-medicate after being two years diagnosed with schizophrenia."

Merritt tells TMZ ... he got the news about Marvin's death being ruled a homicide around the same time he learned the suspects in Ahmaud Arbery's killing were being charged with federal hate crimes, so it was a bittersweet day.

Lee, who represents Arbery's family as well, adds ... "I now have another uphill battle, having to fight the system for justice. Again, the cycle continues."

Worth noting -- the Collin County sheriff announced earlier this month that 7 detention officers who were allegedly involved in Scott's death have been fired for violating department policies and procedures.

Chrishell Stause is hoping Britney Spears' request to speak to the judge in her conservatorship means the singer's about to get exactly what she wants -- the power to tell her father to kick rocks.

We got the "Selling Sunset' star Wednesday evening in L.A. and she told us why she's all aboard the #FreeBritney movement. Chrishell's adamant Britney should be able to choose who's in charge of her estate.

The high-end real estate agent also thinks it ridiculous Britney's had to jump through hoops just to get to this point where she can tell the judge herself -- and she firmly believes a man would never be put in this position.

We also ask her about the comment she left on one of Britney's posts last month ... which was deleted. In case you missed it ... Chrishell says she left a comment on one of Britney's dancing vids -- the one where Brit included the caption, "I didn't watch the documentary but from what I did see of it I was embarrassed by the light they put me in."

This led some people to believe Britney didn't write her own captions ... including Chrishell, who commented, "Instead of dancing can we get a video of you typing your own captions next time? I want to believe you it's you speaking for yourself, but I am skeptical. We love you!"

Rudy Giuliani's apartment and office in Manhattan were crawling with federal investigators Wednesday ... we've confirmed they just executed search warrants as part of a criminal investigation.

Our law enforcement sources tell us federal investigators seized Giuliani's electronic devices from his home and his Park Ave. office space as part of a criminal probe involving his alleged dealings with Ukraine.

As you know, the feds are looking to see if Rudy, the former New York City Mayor and Donald Trump's attorney, illegally lobbied the Trump administration in 2019 on behalf of officials and oligarchs in Ukraine ... while those same folks were allegedly helping Giuliani dig up dirt on Joe Biden and other Trump political rivals.

The FBI and the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office had no comment on the raids. BTW, this is the same prosecutors' office Rudy once headed up back in the '80s.

"Seeking Sister Wife" star Dimitri Snowden no longer has to deal with a restraining order against him ... a judge just tossed the case.

Demitri was in court Wednesday when the judge dissolved the temporary restraining order his third wife, Christeline Petersen, got against him when she made allegations of domestic violence. The judge found Christeline did not meet her burden of proof.

Christeline testified what we had first reported ... claiming Dimitri slammed her head into the headboard and choked her during sex after she told him to stop.

Dimitri countered by showing text messages he claims Christeline sent him saying she liked the choking. In the end, the judge said she could not ascertain which party was telling the truth ... so she tossed the case. As for Christeline's separate allegations against Ashley -- one of Dimitri's other wives -- the judge tossed that case, as well.

As we first reported ... Christeline, who came to the U.S. from South Africa to be courted as a third wife on the TLC reality show, claimed in legal docs she suffered bruises, scratches and redness around her neck.

The men already charged for the alleged murder of Ahmaud Arbery are now facing federal charges as well -- the U.S. Dept. of Justice just slapped them with hate crimes.

The U.S. DOJ announced Wednesday Travis and Gregory McMichael, as well as William "Roddie" Bryan, were indicted by a federal grand jury on multiple charges ... including interference with rights and attempted kidnapping.

The McMichaels face even more counts -- using, carrying and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Travis was also indicted for discharging the firearm ... a Remington shotgun, according to prosecutors.

As it relates to the kidnapping claims -- the feds allege all 3 men attempted to unlawfully seize and confine Ahmaud by chasing after him in their trucks. Prosecutors claim they did this in an attempt to restrain him, restrict his free movement, corral and detain him against his will ... all while Ahmaud was running down a public street in Brunswick, GA.

The feds say Gregory McMichael also brandished a .357 Magnum revolver during the chaos.

The indictment also notes the McMichaels and Bryan are currently facing murder charges at the state level ... which is a separate case from these federal charges.

Ahmaud's mother, Wanda Cooper, tells TMZ she's grateful for the federal charges ... especially since this wasn't even a possible outcome not too long ago in the state of Georgia. It's only because of a new law they passed there last year that this could become a reality.

Famous Dex stole an expensive timepiece, and then made up a story about getting robbed to cover his tracks ... at least that's the alleged watch owner's story.

The rapper is being sued by a man who claims Dex agreed to advertise the guy's luxury watch on social media -- but in a lawsuit he's filed, the guy says his first meeting with the rapper went south quickly.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, he handed over the timepiece so Dex could check it out and take pictures for social media posts. He says it was all good until Dex drove off with it and went radio silent.

In the suit, he claims Famous Dex contacted him later, and claimed 4 men robbed him and took the watch. He's not buying that, and claims the robbery is BS -- he believes Dex still has the timepiece. According to the suit, he says he saw it on Dex's Instagram, and that Dex tried to sell it to a jeweler.

TMZ broke the story ... Dex even reported the alleged robbery to cops last month, telling them the crooks jacked a $50,000 watch and cash at gunpoint.

But, the plaintiff claims he was there when Dex talked to police, and somehow HE actually got handcuffed and detained for a while. He wasn't charged, but now he's suing Dex for at least $90,000 in damages.

Kodak Black just pled guilty to first-degree assault and battery in his sexual assault case in South Carolina, and he's been sentenced to 18 months probation ... TMZ has learned.

The rapper was originally indicted on a felony charge of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, but his attorneys, Bradford Cohen and Beattie Ashmore, tell us Kodak copped a plea to a lesser charge to put the case behind him.

As we reported, Kodak was charged for allegedly sexually assaulting a teenage girl back in February 2016 at a hotel. According to prosecutors, he pushed the girl into a wall and onto a bed before assaulting her, allegedly biting her breast and neck. Kodak had denied the allegations.

Ed Clements, the 12th Circuit Solicitor in Florence County, tells TMZ ... Kodak admitted in court he bit the girl, but apologized to her, on the record.

We're told Kodak was given a 10-year suspended prison sentence and placed on 18 months of supervised state probation.

While on probation, he will not wear an ankle monitor, but must let his probation officer know where he goes and where he lives.

The family's legal team is "deeply disappointed" by the judge's decision to keep the police footage from the public, saying ... "In this modern civil rights crisis where we see Black people killed by the police everywhere we look, video evidence is the key to discerning the truth and getting well-deserved justice for victims of senseless murders."

It adds ... "Just look at the murder of George Floyd – if the world had not seen that clear and disturbing footage, there might not have even been an ounce of accountability for those officers."

Brown's family lawyers vow to keep the pressure on until the body cam videos are made public and they "get to the truth."

All police body cam videos of Andrew Brown Jr.'s fatal encounter with cops in North Carolina will be viewed, but only by his family and not the media ... a judge just ruled.

The Pasquotank County judge just made the highly-anticipated and controversial decision after hearing arguments for the release of police video in the case of Brown's killing ... in which an autopsy revealed he was shot 5 times.

The judge ruled the footage should be available to the family within 10 days, but also ordered that the faces of any deputies and other identifying information in the video be blurred. The judge will reevaluate making it available to more eyes in 30-45 days.

As we reported ... Brown's family says it was one bullet to the back of his head that killed him, and the findings of the private autopsy released Tuesday show he also suffered 4 gunshot wounds to his right arm.

Brown's family and their legal team have been calling for the release of the full police body cam footage from last week's fatal shooting, claiming he was gunned down in an "execution" while cops were trying to execute a search warrant.

So far, the family says they've only seen a "snippet" of police body cam ... just 20 seconds of one deputy's body cam with the faces blurred of other deputies on the scene.

The family claims what they did see only confirms their belief Brown was murdered by cops. Since his killing, peaceful protests and demonstrations in Elizabeth City have continued daily ... with the mayor there declaring a state of emergency.

Britney Spears has a lot on her mind that she wants to tell the judge in her conservatorship case, and the biggest thing she wants to get off her chest is her dad's involvement in her life ... sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ.

Our sources say ... Britney is all but at war with her dad, Jamie. She is angry at him and has virtually no interaction with him anymore. A lot of this stems from her days growing up when Jamie was not present in her life. Britney's boyfriend, Sam Asghari, clearly shares her sentiment ... he's been open about his disdain for Jamie and what Sam calls his heavy-handed tactics.

We're told Britney has talked about how she wants her dad out of the conservatorship. As we reported, Jamie is no longer Britney's personal conservator, and he's sharing responsibilities managing her business affairs with a financial institution. Right now the only recurring business issues involve licensing and merchandising, so there's not much to do.

Our sources say Britney hasn't been specific about what she wants to say to the judge, but it's more likely than not she wants Jamie out entirely.

As you know, Britney has said she will not perform again unless Jamie is out of the conservatorship entirely, but that doesn't mean if he's out she will then perform. Fact is ... we know she hasn't talked to anyone in her camp about a desire to go back on stage, and she even said as much in a recent social media post.

We're told Britney has not expressed a desire to end the conservatorship, but it's almost certain that issue will be addressed when she appears before the judge ... addressed either by Britney or the judge.