Legal

The women accusing Deshaun Watson of sexual misconduct will NOT accept a financial settlement to drop their lawsuits against the QB, so says their attorney Tony Buzbee.

22 women are still moving forward with their cases against the Houston Texans superstar -- most of which allege Watson got sexually aggressive during what was supposed to be a routine massage therapy session.

Watson has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, through his attorneys -- though admits he did engage in consensual sexual encounters with some of the accusers.

Many feel Watson's admission has all but sunk his case ... and there are rumblings he's aggressively looking to strike a settlement agreement with the remaining accusers, in the hopes they will drop their cases so he can move on with his NFL career.

But Buzbee, who represents ALL of the women who have filed against Watson, told FOX 26's Mark Berman ... they are not considering a settlement, period. Instead, the accusers want the cases to play out in court.

"When asked about a settlement for each case, Buzbee said that is not happening," Berman reports.

Buzbee also claims 4 of his clients have met with NFL investigators but expressed concern about the way the league is handling the probe.

"Some of the women did not feel like they were being respected," Buzbee told Berman.

Buzbee says there are more women who want to meet with the NFL to tell their stories -- but he's not sure if he'll allow it because of the concerns of the first 4.

Buzbee also says between 8 to 10 of his clients have met with the Houston Police Dept. -- and praised the cops for the way they are handling the situation.

A couple of firefighters on the scene of the Kobe Bryant helicopter crash are getting their walking papers for snapping photos of crash victims ... so claims Vanessa Bryant's lawyers.

Vanessa's attorneys filed legal docs about scheduling the trial in her invasion of privacy lawsuit against L.A. County -- and, in the process, revealed the L.A. County Fire Department was mixed up in the photo taking and sharing.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, VB's legal team says they received paperwork from the fire department's own internal investigation and found that they'd sent 2 firefighters "intention to discharge" letters because they'd taken pics at the scene.

One of the firefighters, according to the docs, was just a safety officer there to secure the scene that day, but he took graphic shots of the victims' remains. Both firefighters apparently shared the pics with an L.A. County Fire media relations officer ... who then proceeded to send it around to other firefighters.

The media relations officer was reportedly sent a suspension notice. It's unclear if the firefighters have been fired yet ... L.A. County Fire isn't commenting.

Jack Harlow is finally speaking out about the fatal Louisville nightclub shooting for which his DJ's been indicted for murder -- and his first words are ones of sorrow and regret for the victim.

The rapper shared his thoughts Wednesday about the chaos he was smack in the middle of 2 weeks ago on the eve of the Kentucky Derby ... violence that led to a grand jury indicting his DJ, Ronnie Luciano.

Jack says, "My heart is broken by the events that occurred over Derby weekend. My heart breaks for Kasmira, her children, and everyone else touched by this tragic death."

He goes on to explain that he's been in touch with Kasmira's family, who've apparently been pretty receptive to talking. Jack adds, "Nothing can reverse what happened. Too many lives have been changed forever. My life will remain committed to making Louisville a better place."

As we reported, Ronnie turned himself in Tuesday after the grand jury indictment for his alleged role in the shooting.

It appears that Kasmira -- the 37-year-old woman who was killed -- was the one shown in our video ... which captured the moment a gunshot went off and sent everyone scrambling, including Jack, who was close to the action.

The family attorney for Andrew Brown Jr. can't reconcile the D.A.'s account of Andrew's fatal shooting with what he saw on deputies' body cameras -- and he says the only way to settle it is to release ALL of the video.

Chance Lynch joined "TMZ Live" Wednesday, telling us it's unfathomable where or how Pasquotank County District Attorney Andrew Womble -- or "the elected," as Lynch calls him -- is coming up with his assertion Brown threatened cops with his car.

Lynch says the full video he and Andrew's sons saw Tuesday does NOT support Womble's theory. If anything, Lynch says the officers are the ones who made contact with Brown when they walked up to him, not the other way around.

He's fully aware there's a major discrepancy between what he saw and what the D.A. is saying. He insists there's only one way to settle that ... and it's by letting the world see the video, so the public can judge for itself.

Lynch says he's certain it'll be clear Andrew never posed a threat to cops, and that what the family's been saying all along is true ... he was executed.

As we reported ... Lynch and Brown's immediate family saw the full police footage which Lynch says shows Brown sitting in his vehicle outside of his home as he was surrounded by deputies.

He says it was only AFTER cops fired the first shot when Brown put his car in reverse to get away from the hail of bullets -- but the deputies were not behind the vehicle.

The family said a private autopsy showed one bullet to the back to the head killed Brown. The findings of that report also show he suffered 4 gunshot wounds to his right arm.

Cops and FBI agents have 3 men in custody who they say pulled off a daring armed robbery and shooting outside Bev Hills hot spot Il Pastaio ... injuring one woman.

The feds say the suspects are members of the Rollin' 30s Crips, and each is charged with conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery for the violence that broke out at the restaurant back on March 4.

TMZ broke the story ... the armed robbery went down in broad daylight with the shooter and 2 accomplices going after a $500,000 Richard Mille watch a man was wearing. During the incident, a bystander ended up getting shot in the leg.

Additionally, the feds say the victim wearing the watch was held at gunpoint. During the struggle for the watch, the gunman fired 2 shots -- one of which hit the woman who was sitting nearby.

According to the feds, one of the alleged gang members' DNA was found on the robbery victim's clothing, and surveillance footage all 3 scouting the area before the robbery. Bev Hills cops, Santa Monica PD and the FBI teamed up to make the arrests.

A 23-year-old filmmaker is suing his own uncle who ordered him shot, and the uncle is an LAPD cop.

Jamal Shakir Jr. joined a George Floyd protest a year ago this month in downtown L.A. and urged some of the cops on the scene to participate in the demonstration.

According to Jamal's lawyer, Carl Douglas, Jamal came face-to-face with officer Eric Anderson, but the cop was in no mood to engage Jamal. Instead, according to Douglas, Anderson told another cop to fire some sort of non-lethal weapon -- presumably loaded with rubber bullets -- at the filmmaker. According to Douglas, Anderson ordered that 2 shots be fired, striking Jamal in the hand and the butt and damaging ligaments.

The shocking part of the story -- Anderson is Jamal's uncle.

Jamal has not recovered from his injuries and is still receiving treatment a year later.

Jamal is now suing both his uncle and the City of L.A. for civil rights violations, assault and battery, false imprisonment and negligence. The lawsuit offers a blistering account of the incident, alleging Anderson "turned his trained wrath against a member of his own family, leaving a promising young entrepreneur, his own blood, scarred and reeling in the wake of his malicious attack."

The full police body cam footage of Andrew Brown Jr.'s fatal encounter with cops in North Carolina has been shown to his immediate family ... and they claim it corroborates their belief that he was unjustly gunned down.

Attorney Chance Lynch just gave a rundown of what Brown's family saw on the police footage. According to Lynch ... the video shows Brown sitting in his vehicle outside his home when he was ambushed by officers, and he never made any movement to provoke cops to shoot.

Lynch claims at all times Brown's hands were visible and he did not pose a threat to law enforcement, but then after the first shot, he put his car in reverse to try to get away.

Lynch says Brown was backing his car away from officers -- insisting at no time was a cop behind the vehicle -- but claims police kept firing shots at Brown's car ... too many to count.

After the final shot, Lynch says Brown lost control of his car and it went down a ditch and hit a tree. Lynch claims when the cops pulled Brown out of the car, they laid him flat on his face so they could see he was shot in the back of the head. Lynch says the cops then began to search Brown's home.

Lynch adds that no weapons were found and makes it very clear -- Brown's family and legal team firmly believe the fatal shooting was "absolutely unjustified."

Attorneys Bakari Sellers and Harry Daniels also spoke at a news conference immediately following the family's viewing of the police body cam footage at the Pasquotank County Sheriff’s Office.

Sellers called for the District Attorney to recuse himself, while Daniels encouraged peaceful protests in light of what the family saw on the footage.

Two of Brown's sons also spoke, and reiterated their belief that their father posed no threat to law enforcement and did not deserve to be killed. Brown's oldest son said ... "He wasn't in the wrong at all ... he's going to get his justice."

As we reported ... Pasquotank County Judge Jeffrey Foster made the controversial ruling last month to make the video available to Brown's family only -- not the media -- and also ordered the faces of any deputies and other identifying info in the video be blurred.

The judge ruled the footage should be available to the family within 10 days, and Pasquotank Sheriff Tommy Wooten showed the vids to the family on Tuesday.

The judge's orders stated only Brown’s immediate family and one lawyer could view the footage, and they could not record it for dissemination.

As you know ... prior to this, the family had only been shown about 20 seconds of Brown's killing, but that was enough for them to deem it an "execution."

Brown's family says it was one bullet to the back of his head that killed him based on a private autopsy, and the findings of that report show he also suffered 4 gunshot wounds to his right arm.

The family and legal team are still demanding the full body cam footage be released to the public, but the judge has stated he's going to wait a few more weeks to reevaluate making it available to more eyes.

Brown's killing -- which occurred on April 21 as police say they were executing a search warrant -- set off protests and demonstrations in Elizabeth City and surrounding areas. Mayor Bettie Parker declared a state of emergency, saying law enforcement expects a "period of civil unrest" following the video's release.

Soulja Boy pummeled his ex-GF with such violent force she suffered a miscarriage ... so she claims in a new lawsuit.

The woman, who filed her suit under the pseudonym Jane Doe to protect her identity, is suing the rapper claiming she was subjected to domestic violence for years at the hands of Soulja Boy.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, the woman claims, while pregnant with his child in 2015, he became irate and violent after a simple convo and began to punch her in the face and the chest until she could no longer stand on her feet.

She says the punches caused her to fall to the ground, where she curled her body to protect her stomach while using her hands to cover her head. She claims Soulja also kicked her all over her body, particularly in the stomach ... and claims soon after she suffered a miscarriage.

She claims there were other violent incidents. Like in 2017 ... Jane says Soulja flew into a violent rage ... punching her in the face and breasts. She says things got so bad Soulja's security had to pull him away from her. She claims Soulja was pissed because he thought she was leaving him.

She says a 2018 incident was caught on camera. Jane claims a conversation turned violent as he stood over her and began to physically attack and yell at her. She claims the night vision cameras used on the show captured the incident, which later aired on the WeTV network in early 2019.

She also points to an alleged incident in 2019 when she claims he "tightly gripped" her neck and choked her while threatening her life after she rebuffed his efforts to rekindle the relationship.

Jane claims during the course of their relationship he would coerce her to engage in sexual acts through the threat of physical violence. She claims he subjected her to physical assault if she refused.

Tory Lanez packs a serious punch ... at least according to a 'Love & Hip Hop' cast member who told cops he needed medical attention after the rapper socked him in the face, but Tory's denying it.

Prince Michael Harty, a rapper/promoter who's on "L&HH: Miami," claims Tory reignited their longstanding beef this month at club Vendome on South Beach. According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, Prince told cops he was at his table around 4 AM last Monday when he was approached and struck on the left side of his face.

Prince told cops he turned around and made eye contact with Tory, who ran out of the club and took off in a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van. Tory is named in the police report as a suspect for an alleged battery.

According to the report, Prince also told cops he went for medical treatment and the responding officer said Prince had a visibly swollen area on his left cheek.

A rep for Prince tells TMZ ... he was hanging out with NFL star Malcolm Butler, when he noticed some guys staring at them.

We're told the DJs and hosts made it well known Prince and Malcolm were in the building, and when Butler left Prince alone in their section, Tory came up with his entourage and allegedly threw the punch, leaving Prince with a massive headache and a swollen mouth.

A rep for Tory tells TMZ ... Lanez was nowhere near Prince at the time he alleges and the guy's "obsessed" with Tory. Even further, the rep says there are no witnesses or footage to back up Prince's claim -- 'cause, again, Tory says it didn't happen ...

An LAPD station got firebombed by someone who threw a Molotov cocktail at its doors ... but it was all captured on video, and cops already nabbed the suspect.

The frightening scene went down around 1 AM Sunday at LAPD's Topanga Division Station and was caught on surveillance footage.

As you can see, the guy walks up with what appears to be an already-lit explosive device in his hand and hurls it at the front of the building, then takes off running.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the Molotov cocktail cracked the station window but did not break it, and the explosion looked bigger on video than it actually was.

We're told the suspect -- later ID'd as Jonathon Rosin -- was chased down by officers and arrested. He's been booked for igniting an explosive, a felony, and is still in custody.

Trey Songz allegedly had a little road rage and took it out on a woman's car and her hand ... so she tells cops.

According to law enforcement sources ... the singer and the woman got into an argument while they were each in their cars Thursday ... shortly after midnight.

We're told the argument escalated, and the woman reported to cops at some point Trey bumped his car into hers ... so she got out to confront him.

The woman claims that's when Songz sped off and hit her hand with his vehicle. She called the police, but when they arrived she says Trey was long gone. Cops took a hit-and-run report.

According to our sources ... the woman complained of hand pain but refused medical attention. It's unclear what she and Songz were arguing about, but there's no indication the 2 have a prior relationship. We're told the incident's being investigated.

A source close to Trey's camp tells us the woman's allegations are false.

This is just the latest legal hot water Trey finds himself in. As we first told you, he got sued last week for allegedly punching a bartender working at a Cardi B concert back in 2019.

Jay-Z could be in the process of starting his own production company ... at least it seems that way based on the trademark application his company has filed.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Hova's company, S. Carter Enterprises, filed to trademark "2/J" on May 3 for "entertainment services in the nature of creation, development, and production" of television programming, TV series, movies and similar projects.

Too early to tell, but it sure seems like Jay's laying the groundwork to start a production co.

It would be rather fitting if Jay-Z, a music and business mogul, starts his own production company. He's already made a fortune on his own cognac with D'Usse, the streaming service Tidal and, of course, his massively successful entertainment firm, Roc Nation. And, just last year, he launched his own premium cannabis brand, Monogram.

Jay would be following in the footsteps of entertainment moguls who have their own production companies ... like Spike Lee's 40 Acres, Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions and LeBron James' SpringHill Company, which reportedly has already amassed an impressive portfolio of deals and partnerships in the media world.

The family of the 6-year-old who was paddled by an elementary school principal is holding out hope for justice ... in the form of yanking the principal's teaching license.

The 6-year-old's mother is devastated the Central Elementary School Principal, Melissa Carter, will NOT face criminal charges for meting out corporal punishment ... this according to the family's attorney, Brent Probinsky. The mother now wants the Dept. of Education to take a hard look at the situation and do what's right ... she says to deny the principal her license.

Probinsky says the family has an ally in the Dept. of Children and Family Services because CFS has recommended Carter be banned from teaching or even being around the children.

CFS interviewed the 6-year-old and her 2 siblings, without the mother's knowledge, about alleged neglect at home.

It's now a waiting game to see what the Dept. of Education concludes in its investigation. We're told once that's complete ... Probinksy and the family will decide whether they want to file a civil lawsuit against Carter, the clerk and the school.

No criminal charges will be filed in the case of the 6-year-old elementary student who got paddled by her principal ... investigators concluded the principal didn't commit a crime, because the child's mother consented to corporal punishment.

According to new legal docs obtained by TMZ ... state prosecutors found Central Elementary School Principal Melissa Carter and her clerk, Cecilia Self, carried out the discipline of the student at the request of the girl's mother.

Deputy Chief Assistant State Attorney Abraham R. Thornburg explains "the evidence in this case appears clear that the child's mother sanctioned and consented to the spanking of her daughter as discipline for misbehavior."

Thornburg also says there were "significant concerns" about the mother's credibility regarding her statements that she was confused or didn't understand the process ... adding even if she was confused, there was "no reason to believe" the principal was aware of any such confusion at the time of the paddling.

He continues ... "A parent has the right to use corporal punishment to discipline their children, and similarly has the right to consent that others do so on their behalf."

Tristan Thompson has his legal guns putting the heat back on the Instagram model claiming she has salacious texts from him ... telling Sydney Chase to put up or shut up.

The Celtics star -- who's with Khloe Kardashian -- had his attorney, Marty Singer, fire off a legal threat to Chase ... who claims she had sex with Tristan after he got back with Khloe.

In the letter, obtained by TMZ, Singer says Chase is refusing to prove the existence of the alleged texts and it can only lead to one "inescapable conclusion ... that they do not exist."

As we reported ... Tristan's legal team previously fired off a cease and desist to Chase, claiming they never had a relationship and he never sent her any texts ... and she initially denied receiving the threat.

Chase has since changed her tune, acknowledging she received the cease and desist after it was sent to another email address ... and now Tristan's legal team says she keeps "changing the purported 'facts' to fit [her] story."

Ben Crump and his legal team also praised the federal indictment, saying it "reinforces the strength and wisdom of the United States Constitution."

The civil rights attorneys claim the constitutional violations Floyd suffered are clear, adding ... "We are encouraged by these charges and eager to see continued justice in this historic case that will impact Black citizens and all Americans for generations to come."

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison commends the feds on the indictment of the former officers, calling it "entirely appropriate, particularly now that Derek Chauvin has been convicted of murder."

Ellison adds that the State is working hard to present its case against the other 3 defendants later this summer.

A federal grand jury has charged Derek Chauvin and the 3 other former Minneapolis PD officers involved in George Floyd's arrest with violating his civil rights.

J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao appeared Friday via video conference in the U.S. District Court in Minneapolis following the grand jury indictment. Chauvin was not present.

According to the legal docs, obtained by TMZ, all 4 ex-officers have been hit with one count of deprivation of rights under color of law ... meaning they allegedly deprived Floyd of his constitutional right "not to be deprived of liberty without due process of law."

The indictment says the defendants "saw George Floyd lying on the ground in clear need of medical care, and willfully failed to aid Floyd, thereby acting with deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of harm to Floyd. This offense resulted in bodily injury to, and the death of, George Floyd."

Thao and Kueng face an additional count claiming they "willfully failed to intervene" to stop Chauvin. Chauvin is facing an additional count for "the use of unreasonable force" resulting in Floyd's death. If convicted, all 4 face the stiffest of penalties -- a federal judge could sentence them to life in prison or death.

As you know, Chauvin was convicted of murdering Floyd last month, and is in Minnesota’s only maximum-security prison as he awaits sentencing.

The other 3 ex-cops will go on trial in state court in August, but they're currently free on bond, and will be allowed to remain free after Friday’s federal court appearance.