Legal

Kevin Spacey booking a new acting gig is not sitting well with one of his sexual assault accusers.

Mark Ebenhoch, who claims he was solicited on a movie set to have sex with Spacey, tells TMZ ... Kevin's new role in an Italian film, playing a cop investigating a man wrongfully accused of sexually abusing children, smacks of what he calls arrogance and irresponsibility.

Ebenhoch alleges Spacey had young male crewmembers working on 1995's "Outbreak" solicit him for sex with the actor, but he never brought his claims to police or filed a lawsuit.

As we reported ... Kevin is starring in an upcoming Italian movie called "L'uomo Che Disegno Dio," directed by famed Italian actor-turned-director Franco Nero.

Spacey's accuser tells us when he first learned the actor found work again, his first thought was, "What the hell?!?" Ebenhoch says he finds Spacey's casting "absurd," given an alleged history of sexual misconduct and the fact the movie deals with the same subject matter.

While Ebenhoch says he's still waiting for Spacey to publicly apologize and take full responsibility for his alleged misconduct, he hopes producers made sure Kevin's changed his ways and prays Spacey's alleged escapades with young men are a thing of the past.

Rapper Mo Fayne's song and dance about needing to get out of jail to fix a bum wing and send his daughter off to college didn't fly ... 'cause the judge just denied his request.

The "Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta" star had a hearing Monday in Georgia, where prosecutors argued Fayne should remain locked up behind bars until sentencing in his federal bank fraud cause ... for which he's already pled guilty.

For starters, prosecutors said Fayne should NOT be let out of jail because long before he was locked up he had already been looking for ways to finagle his way out of jail by Googling which countries he could head to without fear of extradition.

Prosecutors also said Fayne's a hardcore fraudster who talked about swindling other people. They called him a menace and a danger to the public.

The judge shared the feds' concerns about Fayne's online travel search, as well as allegations he'd bragged to a witness he wouldn't end up spending a day in jail.

Fayne's been locked up since December after violating the terms of his bond for allegedly contacting a potential witness. He's slated to be sentenced in September.

TMZ broke the story ... Fayne pled guilty to 6 counts of federal bank fraud after prosecutors say he funded a lavish lifestyle during the pandemic with a Paycheck Protection Program loan. He's accused of using the money to pay off debts, like child support.

The man who claims to have found and returned Daniel Sturridge's stolen dog in 2019 is now suing the soccer star ... alleging the athlete has STILL not paid him the reward money he promised.

Foster Washington spelled it all out in a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ Sports ... saying Sturridge owes him reward money -- which was reported to be around $37,000 -- for helping him get his Pomeranian, Lucci, back nearly 2 years ago.

Washington says after Sturridge claimed the dog had been stolen in a July 2019 burglary in Los Angeles ... Washington found Lucci on the street.

Washington says because Sturridge reportedly offered a reward, he reached out.

In the suit, Washington says he got in touch with Sturridge and ultimately returned the dog expecting the reward money in exchange.

The problem? Washington claims Sturridge -- who's reportedly made over $40 million in his soccer career -- never paid him a dime ... so now he's suing him over it, claiming Sturridge breached a contract by not living up to the reward offer.

Halsey, Khalid and Benny Blanco might be able to do anything if they put their minds to it -- and one band claims the hitmakers were set on ripping off a song 3 years ago.

Konstantine Lois and Shane Williams say they wrote a song called 'Loveless' in 2015 for Williams' musical group American XO. Now, they've just sued the above-mentioned A-listers ... claiming their 2018 smash hit, "Eastside," is basically a carbon copy of their own tune.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Lois and Williams are suing for copyright infringement and are going after not only Halsey, Khalid and Blanco -- but also Ed Sheeran, who's credited as a songwriter on "Eastside," plus the labels who distributed it. They say the similarities are fairly obvious ... to their ears, at least.

The pair break down in excruciating detail what they claim are virtually identical note dyads, note intervals, similar tempos and an all-around familiar beat -- and it doesn't sound like they think it's a coincidence either ... pointing to interviews Blanco gave that they say prove their case.

In a Vibe article, Blanco is quoted as saying he listens to 10 to 12 new artists every day in hopes of finding inspiration for ideas he could try himself. Based on their lawsuit, Lois and Williams seem to believe Benny stumbled upon their ditty somehow -- which was streaming at that point -- and then lifted parts of it for "Eastside."

You can listen to the 2 songs yourself, and make up your own mind.

Kim Kardashian's maintenance and cleaning crew have come together to go after her in court for allegedly failing to pay wages, provide meal breaks and cover expenses ... but Kim claims she's the wrong target, and the vendor is the one who short-changed the workers.

According to the legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- 7 staffers who say they worked for Kim at her Hidden Hills property are suing her, claiming they were told upon hire they were full-time employees ... but they say they were treated as independent contractors instead and got screwed out of full-time employee benefits.

However, a rep for Kim tells TMZ ... she hired a third-party vendor for the ongoing maintenance/cleaning services, and she's not privy to the agreement made between the vendor and the workers. The rep insists Kim “is not responsible for how the vendor manages their business and the agreements they have made directly with their staff."

The rep adds ... "Kim has never not paid a vendor for their services and hopes that the issue between these workers and the vendor who hired them can be amicably resolved soon."

In the docs, the workers allege they were not given pay stubs, not paid on a regular schedule, not given meal and rest breaks, not properly reimbursed for expenses, not provided a system to record their hours, and thus ... were not paid for all of their hours, including overtime.

According to the lawsuit, one employee also claims he was fired after he inquired about his rights and those of his son ... whom he says was only 16, but worked more than the maximum hours allowed for a minor under California labor law.

Again, we're told Kim's stance is this is an issue with the vendor ... and she's not the one workers should be going after. As one source put it, Kim's never missed a cellphone bill payment, let alone payment for workers at her home.

Casey Anthony apparently had an ugly run-in with a woman she's been beefing with for a long time over a man they both previously dated ... this according to West Palm Beach PD.

The formerly accused and acquitted child killer appears to have called the police this weekend while out at a bar in town called O'Shea's Irish Pub ... where she told cops she'd had a heated argument with an archnemesis.

Per the police report, obtained by TMZ, Casey told officers the other lady -- who's identified as Thelma Moya -- was arguing with her at the bar and spilled a drink on Casey's leg when things escalated.

The report notes that the call came in as someone throwing a drink in another person's face. Casey went on to tell cops this was a longstanding feud because she and Moya once dated the same guy ... at the same time. No word on who the lucky fella is.

Anyway, the officer says he told Casey about how to go about filing a restraining order ... but she turned down that option, and simply wanted this alleged altercation documented. It doesn't appear Moya was arrested, or that she was even on the scene when the police arrived.

As for Casey ... looks like she's holding down the fort at O'Shea's. She was spotted at the exact same place a few years ago, chatting up the regulars.

Ice Cube has some cash that's long owed to someone who made dozens of beats for him over the years ... so claims the guy, who's now taking the rapper to court over it.

Producer Sir Jinx just sued Cube for what he claims are unpaid royalties he recently discovered are due to him for production work he provided to IC. If you're not familiar, SJ helped make a bunch of Cube's beats dating as far back as his first album in 1990, "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted."

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Jinx says he's produced upward of 28 tracks for Cube ... and that it wasn't until 2019 that he realized he wasn't getting his fair share of the profits.

So, to make things right, Jinx says he reached out to Cube's team to let them know there was some back pay that needed to come his way ... but in the end, Jinx claims Cube never forked over the dough.

Jinx claims he's incurred damages north of $100k ... and he's asking a judge to get a proper accounting in place, and to award him whatever he deserves according to his contracts.

Sir Jinx has a list of what songs he believes he got stiffed on -- and they include some of Cube's best-known songs, including ... "No Vaseline," "True to the Game," "The Bomb," "It's a Man's World," "The Funeral," "Who Got the Camera?" and several more.

As time went on and Cube continued to make albums into the 2000s and beyond, Jinx was featured less and less. It looks like he was mostly influential in Cube's early sound after leaving N.W.A.

Chuck D's extending an olive branch to Flavor Flav, and he seems more than ready to get on stage or in a studio with him for the rebirth of Public Enemy.

We caught up with the legendary MC as he was touring construction of the Universal Hip Hop Museum in the Bronx. The groundbreaking group brought out rap royalty like Grandmaster Flash, Nas, Fat Joe and LL Cool J -- but it was Chuck who dropped major news about his group.

We asked if we're ever going to see Public Enemy together again, and he more than left the door open ... and pretty much said it's up to Flav at this point.

That brought us to our next question: Are Chuck and Flav even on talking terms? Watch his response ... he was a little evasive, but also made it clear he's ready to squash whatever beef remains between them.

In Chuck's words, "It's whatever Flavor wants to do."

TMZ broke the story ... FF got pissed when Chuck D announced back in March 2020 that Flavor was fired from the group ... following a huge argument over PE appearing at a Bernie Sanders rally.

Flavor Flav and Chuck D hadn't been cool for years -- ever since FF sued the group -- but things really reached a boiling point after Flav fired off a cease and desist letter to Bernie's campaign ... accusing them of using his image and likeness for a gig Chuck D agreed to play in support of the candidate.

We brought up that Bernie beef and Chuck dropped a joke about Flav and politics. We're thinking it was just good-natured ribbing, because he seems ready to put the whole mess behind them.

Michael Jackson's family -- or at least some of them -- are outraged by the revelations about the BBC's Martin Bashir interview with Princess Diana, and they're reportedly considering legal action.

In case you don't remember, Bashir did a documentary in 2003 titled "Living with Michael Jackson." It profiled MJ's life at the Neverland Ranch. During the interview, Bashir lasered in on Jackson's relationship with young boys and the allegations of sexual abuse.

Jackson was unapologetic about sleeping in the same bed as 13-year-old Gavin Arvizo, saying, "Why can't you share your bed? That's the most loving thing to do, to share your bed with someone."

As you know, Jackson was prosecuted for allegedly molesting Arvizo. The jury found MJ not guilty.

In the wake of the report concluding Bashir deceived Princess Diana into doing her famous interview, Jackson's nephew, Taj, and MJ's brother, Tito, now allege Bashir "manipulated footage and unethical journalism."

The pair believe Bashir tricked Jackson the way he tricked Diana. Taj blames Bashir on Michael's death, saying, "Bashir's manipulated footage and unethically journalism is one of the main reasons my uncle Michael is not here today."

Taj wasn't done, adding, "That 2005 trial broke him. Shame on those who provided cover for Bashir. Shame on those who rewarded him. My family deserves an investigation & apology too."

Two Vegas-area police officers used a deaf woman's own children to help interpret while detaining their mother ... which is now being called a blatant violation of the ADA.

The lady's name is Andrea Hollingsworth, and she recorded the encounter last month after running into a North Las Vegas PD cop ... who was responding to a call alleging Hollingsworth was stalking/harassing someone outside of their home.

Hollingsworth makes clear during the incident that she's deaf and can't hear the officer as he tried figuring out what was going on ... but lost his patience constantly. Another officer arrives on the scene not too long after and also expresses frustration with Hollingsworth.

Eventually, the officers get one of her kids -- who was riding with her when they got approached -- to try and be in the intermediary ... this as they put Hollingsworth in cuffs and sat her down on the curb. It's a distressing situation -- you can hear the children crying and Hollingsworth desperately tries to both reassure them and talk to the cops at the same time.

Once everything is calm (relatively speaking), the officers get some context from what sounds like one of Hollingsworth's daughters ... who says they're simply trying to get some money back from a friend who'd recently moved out of an apartment they were sharing.

The officer chastises the mom to the kid ... explaining police procedure and why it's important for people to cooperate, which he says Hollingsworth was not doing, making it all the more difficult to get to the bottom of what had happened. In the end, no charges were filed.

Now, more than a month later ... Nevada's ACLU chapter, as well as some deaf orgs, are crying foul over Hollingsworth's treatment, saying the cops violated the Americans with Disabilities Act -- not to mention police protocol, which says ASL interpreters must be dispatched in these types of run-ins, as they're on call and available 24/7.

George Floyd's family will travel to The White House Tuesday to meet with President Biden on the first anniversary of Floyd's murder ... this according to The Hill.

Biden has history with the family ... he spoke with them several times after Floyd's death. The visit coincides with Democrats trying to pass a bill bearing George Floyd's name ... a bill designed to reimagine policing in America.

It's unclear if the family will speak with members of Congress during their visit in support of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. Among other things, the bill would ban chokeholds by federal officers. It would also end qualified immunity ... which bars families of police abuse from filing civil suits. The bill is expected to pass the house, but prospects in the Senate are far less certain.

Although Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd, civil rights activists like Tamika Mallory say the trial can't be looked at as a solution to police abuse.

Lil Mosey is being ordered to stay the hell away from his alleged sexual assault victim after being charged with second-degree rape.

The "Blueberry Faygo" rapper has been hit with a sexual assault pre-trial protection order ... according to new legal docs obtained by TMZ.

The order, issued in Lewis County, Washington, bars Lil Mosey from contacting the alleged victim in any way and requires him to stay at least 500 feet away from her at all times while he awaits trial for rape.

TMZ broke the story ... Lil Mosey was charged with rape last month for the alleged incident back in January. Mosey's pled not guilty.

According to the docs, Lil Mosey is also prohibited from obtaining or possessing a firearm, other dangerous weapons or a concealed pistol license and must surrender any firearms to the Sheriff's Office.

YG's giving away a new sneaker he says caters to the streets ... hooking up a group of former inmates who just got back to the streets.

The rapper hit up Amity Foundation House Friday in downtown L.A. to give away pairs of his Block Runner sneakers to men who have just been released on parole after serving their sentences. They're staying at the foundation while getting back on their feet.

YG tells TMZ ... it's important for these men to have the things they need to become contributing members of society again, and it starts with something folks use every day ... shoes.

It's a pretty grand gesture from YG ... his 4Hunnids footwear brand, The Flame, is selling the kicks for a cool $200 and he gave away hundreds of pairs ... worth more than $20,000 total.

One of the most infamous faces of the Capitol insurrection -- the bare-chested "shaman" with horns and face paint -- is going to get his head checked to see if he’s competent to stand trial.

Jake Angeli, who many know as the "QAnon Shaman," was just ordered to be hauled off to a federal facility for a psychological evaluation ... according to new court docs. The court says the psych exam will be conducted by a licensed or certified psychiatrist or psychologist, who will be looking into Angeli's mental health.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Angeli's legal proceedings will hit pause while the feds figure out if he's competent to stand trial.

As we reported, Angeli was arrested a few days after the Capitol riot, on charges of knowingly entering/remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, violent entry, and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

Prosecutors say he called the FBI and confessed to being the man wearing Viking garb roaming the Capital with a spear and flag.

Angeli's also the same dude who reportedly whined about not being able to eat in federal custody due to a lack of organic food options meeting his strict diet.

The body cam footage of Ronald Greene's fatal arrest in Louisiana is finally out, and the brutal video -- showing him screaming for mercy while getting hit, kicked and tased -- clears up much of the mystery surrounding his death.

LA State Troopers arrested Greene way back in 2019 after he'd led them on a high-speed chase near Monroe, LA ... and the body cam shows more than a handful of officers were involved when he finally pulled over.

One officer almost immediately tased Greene while he was still inside his SUV, and you can hear Greene yelling, "I'm scared! I'm scared! I'm your brother, I'm scared!!"

Despite his cries, cops ended up dragging Greene out through the passenger side door -- and while he was handcuffed and on his stomach ... another officer repeatedly kicked him.

Louisiana authorities fought the release of this video for nearly 2 years, but the AP finally obtained the footage. Greene died on his way to the hospital, but police initially told his family he died by crashing his car into a tree during the chase.

That lie had been exposed months ago when audio from body cam mics was released, and one of the cops involved was recorded saying, "I beat the ever-living f**k out of him" ... referring to Greene's arrest.

That officer, Chris Hollingsworth, was also recorded admitting at least 3 other cops were restraining Greene while they mercilessly beat him. Hours after finding out he was going to be suspended, Hollingsworth died in a fatal car crash.

"Storage Wars" star Jarrod Schulz's days might be numbered on the popular reality TV series ... it all depends on what the network determines after conducting its own investigation following his domestic violence charge.

TMZ broke the story ... Schulz is accused of pushing his ex, Brandi Passante, during a heated argument in late April while she was hanging with friends in a bar. The Orange County D.A.'s Office hit him with 1 count of misdemeanor domestic violence battery for the alleged incident.

Sources close to "Storage Wars" production tell us ... A&E found out about Jarrod getting charged when our story broke, and immediately launched a probe to gather information and speak to those involved.

We're told the network is currently investigating, and though Schulz happened to be off this week's filming schedule ... it's not expected he'll return to shoot segments until A&E concludes its review.

Our sources say once that happens, a decision will be made about his future with the show. We've spoken to multiple other main cast members who say if the allegations of domestic violence are true ... they don't believe he should return.

We're also told the cast has been uneasy with the situation between Jarrod and Brandi, long before the recent allegations.