Legal

Taylor Swift's swanky New York City apartment building had an unwanted visitor Friday -- cops arrested a guy who'd traveled from out of town, desperately trying to find her.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Patrick Nissen, a 28-year-old from Nebraska, was busted in the vestibule of Taylor's Tribeca apartment building and he's been charged with second-degree criminal trespassing, a misdemeanor.

Law enforcement sources tell us Taylor was not home at the time, and Nissen entered the building through an unlocked door. We're told a security officer in the building saw that Nissen didn't have permission to be in the complex and called 911. Nissen allegedly told cops he was in love with Taylor.

Cops say other men have tried to see Taylor at her Tribeca apartment, and this guy has pics of her on his Instagram page.

Our sources tell us Taylor was NOT home at the time and the guy took a bus from out of state to get to the Big Apple.

Taylor's properties are magnets for these kinds of incidents ... several men have been arrested outside her homes in Manhattan, Rhode Island and Beverly Hills.

Nicki Minaj and her husband, Kenneth Petty, are being sued by the woman he was convicted of trying to rape in 1995, who claims she's being harassed ... especially after declining Nicki's offers to change her story.

The woman, Jennifer Hough, was the victim in Petty's 1995 conviction for first-degree attempted rape -- the reason he has to register as a sex offender. You'll recall, he was charged with not registering and recently took a plea deal.

Hough claims in new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Nicki and Kenneth have directly and indirectly harassed her and threatened her to not speak about the incident, and she says they've inflicted emotional distress upon her as a result.

According to the docs ... Hough says this started after Petty and Minaj began dating in late 2018, with Minaj allegedly making comments about how Petty was "wrongfully accused" and claiming Hough had recanted her story back then ... something she denies.

Then, in March 2020 after Petty was arrested for failing to register as a sex offender ... Hough claims Minaj called her and offered to fly her and her family to L.A. in exchange for recanting her rape claims against Petty and helping him out.

Hough says she declined and within days, she and her family "suffered an onslaught of harassing calls and unsolicited visits." Shortly after, she claims Nicki had people reach out to Hough's brother and offer a $500k payment in exchange for a statement recanting her rape allegations against Petty.

According to the docs ... Hough says this was followed by Nicki sending lawyers to her home to try to pressure her into recanting her story, and she began to panic and feel unsafe because she was being harassed at home.

After one more alleged cash bribe offer of $20k and another alleged threat to her safety, Hough says she moved from her home in August 2020 ... and continues to live in fear.

She's suing Nicki and Kenneth for intentional infliction of emotional distress, harassment and witness intimidation ... as well as suing Petty for sexual assault related to the 1995 conviction.

Rihanna's fashion show nearly got a musical artist decapitated, because they played the wrong version of a song at a fashion show ... this according to a new lawsuit.

Rihanna's Fenty brand is being sued by a musician who claims RiRi's company reached out to use one of her songs during a Savage X Fenty show last fall, but screwed up by playing a version of the song that included a sample of sacred Islamic proverbs being chanted.

The artist, who's filed the suit as Jane Doe to protect her identity, claims she immediately got threats on her life when the fashion show was live-streamed to millions.

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ, the artist made it clear to Fenty reps one version of the song had the religious verses and one did not, and she warned them not to use the Islamic proverbs.

Despite a public apology from Rihanna following the immediate backlash, the artist claims she was forced into hiding after receiving a barrage of death threats over the song. She claims the constant threat of being decapitated and murdered led to anxiety and depression. The artist also tweeted an apology for unknowingly including the sample in her song.

Also of note ... we've learned that once Rihanna's team found out the song played during the Fenty show contained the offensive lyrics it was edited out of future viewings.

The artist says she still fears for her life and remains in hiding ... and she's going after Rihanna's business arm for more than $10 million in damages.

Jamie Spears has agreed it's time to step down as conservator of Britney's estate -- he just said so in new legal docs -- and he wants to work with the court on an orderly transition.

We've learned Jamie's lawyer is filing legal docs in which he says, "There are, in fact, no actual grounds for suspending or removing Mr. Spears as the Conservator of the Estate ... and it is highly debatable whether a change in conservator at this time would be in Ms. Spears' best interests."

And then, he lowers the boom ... "Nevertheless, even as Mr. Spears is the unremitting target of unjustified attacks, he does not believe that a public battle with his daughter over his continuing service as her conservator would be in her best interests. So, even though he must contest this unjustified Petition for his removal, Mr. Spears intends to work with the Court and his daughter's new attorney to prepare for an orderly transition to a new conservator."

The docs go on to say, "Regardless of his formal title, Mr. Spears will always be Ms. Spears' father, he will always love her unconditionally, and he will always look out for her best interests."

He goes on to attack Lynne Spears, saying she has had little, if any, involvement in the conservatorship, let alone Britney's life for the last 13 years. He says her credibility is undermined because Britney herself refused to even see Lynne when she was at a mental health facility in 2019.

He does say he essentially saved Britney when she was "in crisis, desperately in need of help" 13 years ago, adding, "Not only was she suffering mentally and emotionally, she was also being manipulated by predators and in financial distress. Mr. Spears came to his daughter's rescue to protect her."

In the docs, Spears' lawyer says Jamie had been working on a plan to leave the conservatorship with her then-attorney Sam Ingham.

He says he has never forced her to do anything, including performing.

We contacted Britney's lawyer, Mathew Rosengart, and he was unmoved by Jamie's decision to step down, telling TMZ ... "We are pleased but not necessarily surprised that Mr. Spears and his lawyer finally recognize that he must be removed. We are disappointed, however, by their ongoing shameful and reprehensible attacks on Ms. Spears and others."

Jake Paul is off the hook with the feds for roaming an Arizona mall as it was being looted by George Floyd protestors -- we're told he will NOT be prosecuted.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona tells TMZ ... prosecutors will not be pursuing federal charges against Jake for his conduct in the Scottsdale shopping center days after Floyd's murder.

As we reported, video shows Jake inside the mall while it was being looted back on May 30, 2020 ... and he was busted for trespass and charged with a criminal misdemeanor. The City Attorney didn’t pursue the case, but kicked it up to the feds, who launched an investigation.

As part of that investigation, federal agents later raided Jake's home in Calabasas and the famous Graffiti Mansion in Las Vegas. We know weapons were confiscated from both homes, but it remains unclear how, or if, they were connected to the Scottsdale incident.

In any event, the feds now say they didn't find enough evidence to charge him for anything.

Kelly Clarkson's prenup has been validated by the judge in her divorce case, she found out the good news while she was on the set of "The Voice" and let out a scream, which then gave way to a celebration ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ...Kelly was filming the singing competition Wednesday when she got an email saying the hotly-contested prenup was upheld in full by the judge. We're told the prenup segregates all assets and income derived during her marriage to Brandon Blackstock.

Kelly accumulated the lion's share of assets, including the Montana ranch where Brandon is currently living. He was contesting the prenup and wanted their properties split, along with income she earned during their marriage, but the judge shut him down.

We're told the celebration on the set of "The Voice" got personal. Our sources say Blake Shelton had recently terminated his relationship with Blackstock, who managed him for years.

The other judges who were there, including Ariana Grande, participated in the celebration.

Clarkson's lawyer, Laura Wasser, had argued during the trial on the prenup, that there had to be accountability when someone signs a contract -- in this case, a prenup. The judge clearly agreed.

The divorce has been "bifurcated" -- meaning the actual declaration that the marriage is over has been separated from the property settlement and custody issues. The actual dissolution of the marriage should be finalized within days. Kelly has been awarded primary custody on a temporary basis, because Brandon moved to Montana. It seems by validating the prenup, most issues have now been resolved.

As for the ranch, because the prenup was validated, Kelly -- who purchased it -- now has the right to sell it.

"SpongeBob SquarePants" honchos have a major problemo with a restaurant that sounds a lot like the spot where SpongeBob works ... and they're ready to fight in court about it.

Viacom's suing the company that recently opened The Rusty Krab restaurant in downtown Houston, claiming it's a blatant rip-off of the The Krusty Krab featured in the cartoon ... according to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ.

Rusty Krab's accused of infringing on Viacom's 'SpongeBob' trademarks by using names, images, characters and re-creations from the show throughout its restaurant and on its menu, and according to the suit ... even advertises the place as "Houston’s VERY FIRST Spongebob Squarepants Inspired Pop Up Restaurant and Bar!"

Viacom claims all of Rusty Krab's marketing is geared toward kids and SpongeBob fans to deceive the public into thinking it's officially affiliated with the show ... only to leave parents who paid high ticket prices disappointed with the inauthentic experience and "purportedly unsanitary conditions and unsafe food."

Among the many alleged infringements, Viacom says Rusty Krab's drink menu uses numerous well-known hallmarks of 'SBSP' -- like "Pineapple Under the Sea," "Bikini Bottom," "Secret Formula" and "I’m Ready" -- to sell alcohol, which Viacom claims would violate its licensing policy for the trademarks on its kid’s show.

Viacom's wants the restaurant to hand over any profits it’s made, so far, and is also suing to block it from doing further business.

The judge overseeing Britney Spears' conservatorship case isn't just unpopular with Britney's fans -- the woman is having her life threatened ... a scary development that's now on law enforcement's radar.

The #freebritney crowd's outrage started bubbling over after Judge Brenda Penny's ruling last week ... you'll recall she decided against immediately suspending Jamie Spears from the conservatorship, and denied Brit's request for an emergency hearing on the matter. We're told scores of death threats against Judge Penny were posted online ... with many people calling for her to lose her life and "die."

As a result, our law enforcement sources tell us the L.A. County Sheriff's Dept. is keeping an eye on the online activity -- as we're told they've seen some of the posts and indeed found them to be concerning.

It looks like some of the comments were vague, while others were more direct -- like one user who wrote, "I have a feeling this judge Brenda Penny is going to have a horrible mysterious death #freebritney." There've also been some racial slurs hurled at the judge, who is Black.

The hashtag #BrendaPennyIsCorrupt was also trending after her rulings.

We're told none of the posted threats appear to rise to the level of criminality -- not yet anyway, but LASD will continue monitoring.

As for the ruling that apparently angered many people, Judge Penny didn't give any specific reasoning, but, logically, it seems -- based on what's been filed in court -- she didn't see an urgent need to call the hearing on Jamie's future as conservator of Britney's estate.

Peloton, the fitness co., is trying to bigfoot another company with the same name -- but in a much different biz -- at least according to a new lawsuit.

Peloton Cold Brew, LLC filed suit against Peloton, Interactive -- the indoor exercise bike maker -- and says it got its trademark to use the P word for coffee drinks back in 2017, but Peloton didn’t get around to officially opposing it until 3 years later.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Peloton Cold Brew claims the bike maker didn't make a peep, failing to file any objection when PCB filed for its trademark.

PCB claims the bike company finally filed a complaint in October 2020 -- but the coffee crew says their founders are avid cyclists, and they have every right to use "Peloton" for beverages made of coffee ... which has nothing to do with the exercise bike biz.

According to the docs, PCB says Peloton the bike maker's trademarks -- which cover things like "computers and downloadable software" -- don't come close to coffee.

Peloton Cold Brew's asking the court to declare it has the right to the trademark in the coffee space, even if Peloton the bike company has rights in the bike space.

Ben Crump is now taking on another civil rights case ... this time seeking justice for a Black realtor who was wrongfully detained in Michigan during a house showing.

Crump tells us he is considering a lawsuit against the City of Wyoming PD for what he says was the false imprisonment and unlawful detention of realtor Eric Brown and his client Roy Thorne.

As we reported, cops detained and handcuffed Brown, Thorne and his 15-year-old son during a house showing. They detained the 2 men after a neighbor made a call to cops that they fit the description of someone who allegedly broke into a nearby house. The description was incredibly vague.

The Wyoming PD has since apologized for the incident, but says race had nothing to do with how officers responded to the situation. The department explained the call came in as a possible home invasion, and their officers responded as trained.

But, Brown and Thorne claim the ordeal caused them to suffer mental trauma, and they're saying the whole incident was rooted in racial profiling. What's more ... Thorne's son, Sammie, now suffers from anxiety and has trouble sleeping from the incident.

Mama June's boyfriend won't enjoy his usual freedoms over the next year and change ... because he was sentenced in his crack cocaine case in Alabama.

According to new legal docs obtained by TMZ ... Mama's BF Geno Doak was sentenced to 16 months in Macon Community Corrections after copping a plea deal. We're told that while Geno is registered as an inmate, he will not be physically behind bars, but has a set of rules to follow. If he messes up, he'll be locked up.

TMZ broke the story ... Mama and Geno were both busted outside an Alabama gas station back in March 2019 and charged with felony drug possession and misdemeanor unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. The drug paraphernalia charge was dismissed as part of the deal.

According to the docs, Geno will be placed on probation for 2 years after he serves his 16 months. He also has to complete a substance abuse evaluation/treatment as part of the deal.

Yella Beezy is in police custody in Texas, where he's been arrested on weapon and drug charges ... TMZ has learned.

The rapper was busted Wednesday for possession of a controlled substance and unlawful carrying of a weapon ... according to records. The drug charge is a felony and the weapons charge is a misdemeanor.

Yella Beezy posted video on social media Tuesday night appearing to show law enforcement searching a car. The video shows flashing red and blue lights and cops digging into the trunk and passenger door of an SUV pulled off on the side of the road. YB captioned the video, "They stay fwm."

It's the second arrest for Yella Beezy in 6 months ... as we first reported, he was busted on weapons charges in Dallas back in February, but he claimed it was a setup.

Aldon Smith is team-less once again ... the Seattle Seahawks have just cut the star pass rusher, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, as his battery case is still forging on in the Louisiana court system.

The 31-year-old signed a 1-year, $1.1 million deal with the 'Hawks this off-season ... and was expected to be a force on Seattle's D-line this year.

But, just days after he inked his contract in April, he was accused of beating up somebody at a coffee shop in Chalmette, LA. and was later arrested.

The incident affected Smith's role with his new team ... as he stayed away from Seattle's off-season practices following the arrest.

Smith, though, reportedly looked solid during his first workouts with the Seahawks at training camp over the last few days ... so it's unclear if the Louisiana case was the driving force behind Wednesday's release.

As we previously reported, Smith is facing up to 8 years in prison if convicted on his battery charge. He's due in court later this month for a hearing on the matter.

Smith -- who was out of football dealing with suspensions and off-field issues from 2015 through 2019 -- made a triumphant return to the NFL last season, recording 48 tackles and 5 sacks for the Dallas Cowboys.

Joel Kinnaman is being investigated by Swedish authorities for allegedly raping a woman -- a probe that's in its early stages -- but Kinnaman insists there's no truth to it.

The actor is now the subject of a criminal investigation ... prosecutors in Sweden announced Wednesday they were looking into a claim of rape that we're told is related to the recent restraining order Joel got against the woman ... who he claims is extorting him.

A rep for Kinnaman tells us the woman only went to police after he got the restraining order.

The Public Prosecutor's Office notes an actor had been reported to local authorities for an alleged rape, and their investigation is now in its infancy.

Joel, for his part, has made it quite clear what he thinks this is really all about. He says the accuser is Gabriella Magnusson ... a Swedish model he hooked up with a couple times back in 2018 ... who then allegedly started blowing him up when he cut off contact.

He claims she began threatening to go public with false claims -- specifically, that he had sex with her against her will -- unless he met her demands.

Joel's detailed the alleged demands ... saying she asked for money, biz connections, a work visa and more. He says he refused to get shaken down ... adding that his agent went to meet Gabriella, and her brother allegedly pointed a gun at him.

His spokesperson tells TMZ Kinnaman has also filed a police complaint in Sweden against her. We're told Kinnaman and co. think she only went to cops after he got the restraining order against her.

Christina Ricci is getting ready to welcome a little bundle of joy, and the timing of her pregnancy announcement is interesting ... as it comes immediately on the heels of her finishing up a nasty divorce.

The "Casper" and 'Addams Family' star shared a photo of her ultrasound Tuesday ... and the image makes it seem like she's pretty far along. Disclaimer: we're not doctors.

Christina's clearly thrilled to be expecting her second child ... saying, "Life keeps getting better."

What she didn't say -- not that she has to, either -- is who the expectant daddy is.

We're not at all connecting any dots here, but Christina's hairstylist Mark Hampton also posted images of her ultrasound with the same caption she did. Could just be a very supportive friend.

Anyway, the pregnancy comes after Christina filed to divorce film producer James Heerdegen after nearly 7 years of marriage, and their split was contentious.

TMZ broke the story ... Christina got a domestic violence restraining order against Heerdegen after filing divorce docs ... claiming he beat her and terrorized her during the COVID lockdown.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is about to address the elephant in the room -- the growing pressure for him to step down in the wake of the NY Attorney General's finding he sexually harassed several women.

The 10-year N.Y. guv is holding a news conference Tuesday morning. It will be his first public comment since last week when NY AG Letitia James announced the results of her office's investigation -- saying Cuomo had sexually harassed former and current female staffers, dating back to 2013 all the way up to 2020.

It's unclear if he's announcing his resignation, but last week he remained defiant ... saying he would not. Just about every prominent Democrat you can imagine, including President Joe Biden, was calling on Cuomo to step down, and the NY State Legislature has been meeting to discuss impeachment if he doesn't.

Some of the alleged behavior, per A.G. James, included groping, kissing, hugging and inappropriate comments -- some of which could possibly amount to criminal charges, she added. Charges may actually arise from this -- as one of Cuomo's accusers has already filed a police report out of Albany County ... and they say they're investigating it now.

Cuomo, for his part, had denied wrongdoing ... claiming he'd never touched anyone in the ways described by the A.G.. He'd previously said he might've been too familiar with some of his staffers in the past -- but chalked it up to him mistakenly not recognizing boundaries.

He had also adamantly refused to resign, saying he wasn't going to let the allegations get in the way of his duties as Governor.

Cuomo's been acting as NY's chief executive since 2011 ... and was mostly beloved during that time.