Legal

Britney Spears went after fellow former Mousketeer Christina Aguilera Friday for refusing to open up about Britney's struggles over her conservatorship.

Christina was on a red carpet for the Latin Grammys when she was asked if she had any communications with Britney. It was a true Hollywood moment ... Christina and her publicist clearly did not want to open that door, so he hijacked the interview with this -- "No, I'm sorry, we're not doing that tonight, thank you though, bye." For her part, when the question was asked, Aguilera eyed her publicist and gave one big nothing of a statement -- "I can't, but I'm happy for her."

Fact is ... Christina actually did answer the question over her publicist's objection, saying she had not spoken to Britney.  That was what was asked, and she answered.

Nevertheless, Britney clearly feels Christina should have said more, saying, “I love and adore everyone who supported me … but refusing to speak when you know the truth, is equivalent to a lie!!!”

Britney wasn't done ... “13 years being in a corrupt abusive system yet why is such a hard topic for people to talk about???”

Now, Aguilera was actually supportive of Britney back in June, before the conservatorship ended, saying, "It is unacceptable that any woman, or human, wanting to be in control of their own destiny might not be allowed to live life as they wish."

In one of the more unsurprising turns of the week, protests erupted from coast-to-coast in the wake of the exoneration of Kyle Rittenhouse.

New Yorkers hit the streets Friday night to express their outrage over the not guilty verdict, and some of the anger got out of hand. Cars were vandalized ... the words, "f*** you" were sprayed on the handicapped placard of a vehicle.

There were 5 arrests in NYC for vandalism.

There was also a protest outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn ... hundreds of protesters held signs, one which read ... "No justice in the capitalist courts" and "capitalism breeds racist terror."

Interestingly, Kenosha -- the city where the trial was held and the fatal shootings occurred -- was fairly peaceful. The protesters were fairly small in number, and the anger seemed most directed at Judge Bruce Schroeder, who presided over the trial.

Portland was predictably more exercised, with 200 protesters throwing things at cops ... this according to the Portland PD.

And, Chicago protesters hit the streets as well, though not in large numbers.

Bill Maher's seasonal swan song did not disappoint Friday night ... although this is a wrap for this season of "Real Time," he left us with future headlines that his crack staff claims are pre-ordained.

He has an ominous prediction for Britney Spears ... sort of Britney meets "Tiger King." And, there's news about a new FNC show, along with a name change for President Biden.

Maybe the most ominous and, dare we say hilarious, is the conflagration of Karens who come together for a fatal confrontation with each other.

And, then there's another "Jeopardy!" host who gets the ax for something said in years past ... many years past!

Oh, check out the headline about Meghan Markle that clearly perplexed the writer, and then there's a Putin prognostication that guest panelist Chris Christie is not dismissing out of hand.

And, finally ... the intersection between Sarah Palin's daughter and Kyle Rittenhouse.

Rittenhouse was whisked out of the courthouse shortly following the decision. He can be seen grinning from ear-to-ear in the back of an SUV as the vehicle drives off ... in a photo taken by The Sun.

President Biden just addressed the verdict, saying, "I stand by what the jury has concluded. The jury system works and we have to abide by it."

Rittenhouse's spokesperson, David Hancock, says now that the trial is over Kyle is going to go to college and try to live as normal a life as he possibly can.

He says Rittenhouse is going to study nursing at Arizona State University. Hancock also says Rittenhouse is a pragmatic young man and says the case was about self-defense, not politics or race.

Jacob Blake's family watched as the verdict was read outside the courthouse, they showed little emotion while it was read and were interrupted by Rittenhouse supporters when they tried to give remarks.

The family of Anthony Huber tells us, "Today’s verdict means there is no accountability for the person who murdered our son. It sends the unacceptable message that armed civilians can show up in any town, incite violence, and then use the danger they have created to justify shooting people in the street."

The family continued, "Make no mistake: our fight to hold those responsible for Anthony’s death accountable continues in full force. Neither Mr. Rittenhouse nor the Kenosha police who authorized his bloody rampage will escape justice. Anthony will have his day in court."

Kyle Rittenhouse has just been found not guilty on all charges in the Kenosha shooting case.

Rittenhouse was charged with first-degree intentional homicide (aka murder), 2 counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, first-degree reckless homicide and first-degree attempted intentional homicide ... pertaining to the deaths of Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum ... as well as the maiming of Gaige Grosskreutz, who survived his shooting, respectively.

Rittenhouse choked back tears as the verdict was read.

It's been a long 2 weeks and change of proceedings, with prosecutors for the State of Wisconsin trying to make their case ... namely, that Rittenhouse was perceived as an active shooter that night, and that he did NOT have the right to use deadly force against protesters.

The prosecution also painted Rittenhouse as an underage John Wayne -- he was just 17 at the time of the incident -- who apparently thought he was entitled to patrol the streets of Kenosha in the aftermath of the Jacob Blake shooting ... and who provoked and drew the ire of demonstrators by bringing along an AR-15 rifle.

That said ... it would appear their characterization of things weren't always holding up very well in front of the jury -- as Rittenhouse's defense team claimed their client only shot when he felt his life was in mortal danger, and only enough to neutralize threats he considered deadly in the moment. Based on the evidence, it seems the jury mostly agreed with that.

Another element that surely helped Rittenhouse ... the fact that he and others testified to hearing Rosenbaum -- the first person shot that night -- threatening to kill KR and others in his patrol group ... among other unruly behavior many claim he was engaged in that night.

Rittenhouse says he was eventually ambushed by Rosenbaum after losing track of his crew in the streets, and was then chased by him ... until Kyle turned around and shot him. He claimed Rosenbaum lunged at his gun, and that he felt his safety was compromised.

While running away from that scene, he began to get chased anew by a crowd ... with a few members getting their licks in by hitting him with a skateboard, kicking him while he was down ... and approaching him with a handgun. Here, too, he claimed he feared for his life -- and felt he needed to fire his rifle in what Rittenhouse's team says was self-defense.

There were several key moments from the trial ... including the Assistant D.A. Thomas Binger constantly getting scolded and rebuffed by Judge Bruce Schroeder -- especially when Binger tried classifying Rittenhouse's silence after his arrest as a sign of guilt ... a big legal no-no.

Of course, there was also the moment Kyle himself took the stand in his own defense -- during which he broke down and cried while recounting the shootings.

Binger pointing Rittenhouse's actual gun at the jury during closing arguments was a highlight ... which he seemed to do for dramatic effect in making his final point, but which also caught a lot of backlash for what many considered a reckless and unsafe demonstration.

Now that Rittenhouse's fate is sealed ... there is a new round of protests expected in the city, and officials are preparing for the worst (again).

Phil Bertelsen helped clear the names of 2 men wrongfully convicted of killing Malcolm X -- with an eye-opening documentary -- and he says the tears started flowing as soon as the exonerations were announced.

The director and producer behind the "Who Killed Malcolm X?" Netflix documentary joined us Friday on "TMZ Live," and told us how Muhammad Aziz reacted to having his conviction vacated.

Phil says he shared a deep embrace with Muhammad, a stoic man not prone to showing emotion, and then came a tearful "thank you" followed by feelings of joy and relief.

It's pretty incredible ... Phil's filmmaking helped get the ball rolling on clearing the names of Muhammed and Khalil Islam, who were convicted in Malcolm X's 1965 assassination despite confessed assassin Thomas Hagan saying both men were innocent.

Khalil and Muhammed did hard-time for the assassination, getting out in the 1980s.

Phil's documentary helped spur a re-investigation, which went on for nearly 2 years, culminating Thursday with Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance vacating the convictions.

Zac Stacy's ex-girlfriend claims the savage beating she endured at the hands of the father of her child was NOT an isolated incident ... 'cause the woman says the ex-NFL RB beat her on numerous occasions.

The woman, Kristin Evans, provided TMZ Sports photos of injuries she says were inflicted by the former NY Jets back on August 15, 2021 ... when she claims he flew into a violent rage over rent money.

"He physically assaulted me several times because he wanted the money back he gave me for our rent," the woman wrote in a restraining order application, filed Monday in Florida.

She continued ... "He punched my legs, slapped me, picked me up by my arms, and threw me into my window, which broke. I had glass in my feet that I removed myself."

Evans says she called the cops ... but downplayed the event, telling them they were involved in a verbal argument.

In reality, she says the beating she received in August was actually worse than Saturday -- which was caught on video.

The photographs from the alleged incident are incredibly disturbing ... and show large bruises and cuts on the woman's body.

And, sadly, there's more. Evans says she was also victimized on September 27 ... when Stacy slapped her in the face. The woman tells us she wanted to press battery charges over the alleged incident.

The reason for going public? Evans says she fears for her safety ... and doesn't want anyone else to endure what she's had to go through.

In the docs, she says "[Zac] has escalated violence since May while I was pregnant. He also assaulted me just weeks before our son was born. He will not stop. He will kill me and he feels justified in his actions."

FYI, cops tell us they've moved Evans to an undisclosed location for her safety.

Following Saturday's attack, officials have charged Stacy with two felonies ... aggravated assault and criminal mischief. He's facing more than 15 years in prison if convicted.

Stacy was arrested Thursday night in Florida by Orlando PD ... and is currently in county jail.

The Travis Scott legal saga surrounding Astroworld has just reached a new orbit ... an attorney representing more than 200 alleged victims just filed a $2 billion lawsuit against the rapper and others.

In what has become an apparent rat race among Houston attorneys to scoop up clients in the festival fallout, attorney Thomas Henry just upped the ante. We should note, this is Henry's 5th amended complaint he's filed, but now, he's asking for $2 billion in damages.

The lawsuit, filed against Travis, Drake, Live Nation, NRG Stadium and others alleges fans were "incited into a frenzy" when Travis started to perform and started a surge toward the main stage, trampling and crushing some in attendance.

Henry's latest filing represents 280 plaintiffs and blames organizers for not taking Astroworld safety concerns from 2019 into account when planning 2021's version.

Clearly, Henry's been paying attention to the media coverage from the festival, pointing out the fact fans even climbed platforms during the chaos, begging concert organizers to stop.

The lawsuit is asking for $2 billion, saying, "The Defendants stood to make an exorbitant amount of money off this event, yet they chose to cut corners, cut costs, and put the festival attendees at risk."

Julius Jones -- the man who Kim Kardashian has fought for -- will have his life spared, but remain behind bars.

Julius, whose case has gained national attention, will NOT be executed as was scheduled today ... instead, Oklahoma's Gov. Kevin Stitt is commuting Jones' death sentence to life without parole.

Stitt says he made the decision "after prayerful consideration and reviewing materials presented by all sides of this case."

The governor's decision falls in line with the recommendation from the Parole Board, who said Julius should not be executed but rather serve out a life sentence behind bars.

As you know ... JJ was charged and convicted for first-degree murder back in 2002, with prosecutors pinning him to the shooting death of 45-year-old Paul Howell.

Julius always maintained his innocence ... and there's been a lot made of the weak evidence in the case linking him to the murder, as well as racially charged undertones.

Kim's lobbied and advocated on Julius' behalf for a while, most recently reaching out to the Jones fam and shedding light on where things stood on his case.

Now, Julius is having his life spared.

New video shows Young Dolph in his final moments ... just down the street from the cookie store where he would be gunned down and killed.

As you know, Dolph was rolling around his hometown of Memphis Wednesday in his Corvette Stingray. It's a pretty distinct ride as it's camo-wrapped, and before he hit up Makeda's cookie store ... he stopped to fill up at a nearby gas station.

The video, shot by someone at a neighboring pump, momentarily shows Dolph in a yellow t-shirt, jeans and a ball cap.

Witnesses say the rapper went straight from the gas station to Makeda's where the gunmen opened fire with a pistol and an AK-47 ... killing Dolph.

As we first reported ... his next stop was supposed to be at his annual Thanksgiving turkey giveaway in his old neighborhood.

Former NFL running back Zac Stacy brutally attacked the mother of his child, punching her in the head before slamming her into a television as their 5-month-old son sat feet away ... and the terrifying incident was captured on video.

TMZ Sports has learned ... the disturbing altercation happened at 30-year-old Stacy's ex-girlfriend's home in Florida on Saturday.

We're told Stacy became furious and aggressive with his ex during an argument ... and that's when video shows the former 5th-round pick swinging at her head before yanking her off a couch, tossing her across the room and into the TV.

The TV then falls on top of the woman as she tries to calm Stacy down ... but he throws an object at her and storms into a corner.

Throughout the video, you can hear the woman begging Stacy to stop.

We're told the woman called cops immediately after the altercation, but Stacy fled the scene before law enforcement was able to arrive.

We're also told the woman filed for a restraining order Monday -- for her and her son. In those docs, Stacy's ex claims the football player came over to her house around 2 PM on Saturday ... to see his son.

While there, she claims he flew into a jealous, violent rage.

"He punched me several times in the head! I begged him to stop because the baby was on the couch just a few feet from where he punched me," the woman wrote in the restraining order application.

She continued ... "He then picked me up and threw me into my TV. The TV began to fall and he turned to make sure I wasn't getting up. As I laid on the floor he began to yell at me, telling me I'm destructive. He then picked me up off the floor and off my feet and body slammed me into our son's bouncy seat."

That's when she says Stacy said "I love you" to their baby boy, and bolted. In the restraining order docs, the woman adds, "I fear for my life and my children's lives."

She says she went to the hospital, where she was treated for a possible head wound, as well as bumps and bruises.

Stacy was drafted out of Vanderbilt by St. Louis in 2013 ... and played 2 seasons for the Rams. He joined the New York Jets in 2015 ... and has been out of the league ever since.

The TransPerfect Music City Bowl has cut ties with Zac Stacy ... dropping the former NFL player from his role as a youth football ambassador after he was seen on video brutally attacking his ex-girlfriend.

The bowl -- which is set to go down on Dec. 30 in Nashville, Tenn. -- had partnered with the former Vanderbilt running back to promote the game as well as giving back to the local youth football community in the leadup to the matchup.

But, following his attack on his ex over the weekend, officials announced they're terminating all links to Stacy moving forward.

"Based on the video and domestic violence report regarding Zac Stacy," officials said in a statement, "the TransPerfect Music City Bowl has terminated the relationship with Zac Stacy effective immediately."

Stacy -- who won the 2012 Music City Bowl MVP when he played at Vandy -- had been hired by the bowl earlier this year.

As we previously reported, the former St. Louis Rams player violently attacked the mother of his 5-month-old son in her Florida home on Saturday -- right in front of their child.

Britney Spears is a free woman now that the conservatorship has been terminated, but TMZ has learned there was concern voiced by medical professionals and the judge to make sure Britney is protected ... and a document was created outlining the areas of concern.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, Jodi Montgomery, who served as Britney's personal conservator and is still working with the singer, consulted with medical professionals to come up with recommendations on how Britney should transition from being in a conservatorship for nearly 14 years to being a free woman. We're also told the judge wanted to make sure such recommendations were in place to protect Britney.

Among the concerns ... driving. We're told the document that circulated cautions that Britney has had issues behind the wheel, and in particular Montgomery's camp was aware of an incident on Sept. 26th, where Britney was speeding in Westlake Village and stopped by a CHP officer. She was traveling 62 MPH in a 40 MPH zone. The officer let her off with a verbal warning. TMZ has confirmed the incident with the CHP.

The document also recommends that Britney's home is drug and alcohol-free and that she abstains from both.

Our sources say there's a mental health component to the recommendations -- urging that Britney take her medication and attend regular therapy sessions, as well as attend appointments with various other medical professionals.

These are just recommendations ... Britney is free to accept or reject them.

The gunmen who allegedly opened fire on Young Dolph, striking and killing the rapper at a Memphis cookie shop were brazen in their attack ... as shown in new images from the murder.

TMZ has obtained surveillance stills from Wednesday's shooting showing two men, with almost their entire bodies covered -- grey sweatpants, jackets, hat/hood and masks -- gunning Dolph down. One man appears to have a pistol and the other a Draco AK-47 pistol.

Cops were quick to the scene, blocking it off, but an employee at the cookie shop tells us the men immediately sped away in what is believed to be a lighter colored Mercedes after opening fire.

About an hour after Dolph's murder, more patrol cars and officers with weapons out stood guard outside Prive, a nearby restaurant owned by Yo Gotti. While Gotti has yet to be tied to the murder in any way, he and Dolph have beef that stems back several years.

Law enforcement sources told us employees at Prive called, concerned there may be some sort of retaliation against Gotti for Dolph's killing.

As of this post, police have still not named the suspects or made any arrests in connection to Dolph's murder.

Dolph's attorney and friend, Scott Hall, tells us the rapper was supposed to attend a charity turkey giveaway later in the day on Wednesday.

He was just 36.

Jacob Blake says race is absolutely at play in Kyle Rittenhouse's trial, arguing ... if the guy was not white, he'd very likely be thrown in prison without a second thought.

The man whose police-involved shooting sparked the Kenosha protests where Rittenhouse opened fire spoke to TMZ about the case -- and like many observing the trial, he believes the 18-year-old is about to skate due to white privilege.

We'll let JB speak for himself here, but the bottom line is ... if Rittenhouse were a POC, he'd swiftly be found guilty and wouldn't be hailed a hero.

As for why Blake thinks race is a factor -- he points to the now-infamous photo of Rittenhouse posing with guys in a bar after he'd posted bond, and flashing what many perceived as a white supremacy sign.

You gotta watch how he characterizes this because he's not labeling Rittenhouse as good or bad, but more as someone who had no business inserting himself in the Kenosha protests.

According to Jacob, all the aftermath following his shooting -- Kyle's saga, as well as the destruction in Kenosha -- is an unfortunate byproduct of what he considers the larger, unresolved, issues between police and POC.

Regardless of the jury's verdict for Rittenhouse ... Jacob says he hopes people will refrain from more rioting.

One final thing ... Jacob gave us an update on how he's doing personally, with his health, and otherwise. Sounds like he's getting unsolicited attention and celebrity, but in reality, he says he doesn't wanna be the poster child for any of this.

Britney Spears' team says it has its work cut out post-conservatorship -- and that includes getting all her wealth into one big bucket for proper management ... something they're trying to do right now.

TMZ has obtained new legal docs filed by the man who served as temporary conservator of BS's estate -- aka, the business guy in charge of her money -- and he's asking permission from the court to consolidate a couple of Britney's trusts -- one of which actually predates her being in a conservatorship -- into a single trust with all of her assets.

The paperwork states there are two trusts that have different assets -- one was created in 2004 (well before her public spiral) and another that was whipped up in 2018 (while she was in the thick of the conservatorship).

Unclear exactly how much dough is in each, but in any case, the docs say they want to revoke both trusts ... and create a brand new one, lumping in all the assets to be managed under one umbrella.

The idea here seems to be that Britney's fortune is pretty fat ... and it'd be easier to keep track of it all if it was under one watchful eye. The docs say the new trust will be managed by someone with "experience representing high net worth individuals" -- which could be read as a potshot that her dad didn't have the skills to manage his daughter's money.

There's more ... the business guy is also asking for permission to execute a power of attorney and an advanced healthcare directive for Britney -- which could be important safeguards for her wellbeing in case things go south.

Henry Ruggs was just ordered to show up in court next Monday ... after a judge said the former Las Vegas Raiders star missed a required breath test.

The NFL player's attorneys were in court Wednesday over a separate matter in the DUI crash case ... when the judge presiding over the hearing said Ruggs did not properly submit a breath test earlier this month.

As part of the conditions of Ruggs' release ... the 22-year-old must submit to alcohol testing several times a day -- but the judge said he missed one of his required check-ins.

Ruggs' attorney, David Chesnoff, acknowledged the missed test ... but added that Ruggs had "self-tested" just minutes later.

"He's been dutiful," Chesnoff said. "Completely dutiful."

The judge didn't seem to care much though ... responding, "It doesn't matter. He still missed it so I would like to see your client."

The proceedings next Monday will be the first time Ruggs has been seen in public since he was in court on Nov. 3 -- the day after he crashed his Corvette into another car in Las Vegas, killing a woman and her dog.

At that hearing, in which Ruggs posted bond and was released from custody, the football player showed up in a wheelchair while wearing a neck brace.

As we previously reported, Ruggs has been hit with 5 charges -- including four felonies -- after authorities say he was drunk and speeding just before the fatal crash.