Legal

A correctional officer working in the wing where Jeffrey Epstein was incarcerated the night he died searched his case on the internet less than an hour before his death ... this according to Department of Justice records.

Tova Noel -- a former guard at Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in Lower Manhattan, New York City -- did a couple Google searches about Epstein's case on August 10, 2019 around 5:43 AM. The convicted pedophile was found dead around 6:30 AM.

Noel searched "latest on Epstein in jail" and clicked on an article about documents related to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, her newly released search history reveals.

Tony! Toni! Toné! singer  D'Wayne Wiggins’ family is involved in a bitter war over his 6-figure estate nearly a year after his death ... TMZ has learned.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, D'Wayne’s daughter, Ilahn Wiggins, claimed the late singer-songwriter and guitarist left behind an estate worth around $700K after his death last year.

Ilahn said she has 2 brothers, and her dad got married to a new wife named Dori Wiggins months before D'Wayne's death.

5:36 PM PT -- Smokey's lawyer Christopher Frost tells TMZ in response ... "We are, unfortunately, not surprised that these plaintiffs and their lawyers are trying to get more media attention just after Mr. Robinson has announced new tour dates. We have explained in our lawsuit against them that their only real motivation is to recycle false allegations, vomit them all over the media at strategic times, and hope that they will affect Mr. Robinson's livelihood and career enough to extort him into an undeserved settlement. That will not happen no matter how desperate Plaintiffs’ tactics become."

Frost continues ... "The plaintiffs’ recycled lamentations are clearly intended to mislead the public and hide their own misconduct. The truth is this: their discovery motions are a routine part of litigation and not newsworthy. What is newsworthy is the level of plaintiffs’ obfuscation and obstruction, for which we have repeatedly had to seek the court's intervention."

He adds ... “It is the plaintiffs’ obfuscation and obstruction, for which we have repeatedly had to seek the court's intervention, that is at issue here, on everything from completing depositions to imaging of cell phones to the numerous appeals we have had to make to the court to get deposition transcripts sent to the Los Angeles District Attorney. For them to somehow suggest the shoe is on the other foot could not be more absurd.”

Attorneys representing several of Smokey Robinson's accusers say they've asked a judge to step in … accusing the Motown legend of dragging his feet in the ongoing sexual-assault lawsuit.

John Harris -- who represents Jane Does 1 through 4 -- tells TMZ his team filed four motions to compel further discovery on Tuesday after what he describes as months of delays and incomplete responses from Smokey and his wife, Frances Robinson.

Harris claims the Robinsons' discovery responses have been "evasive" and "designed to stall the progress of the case," arguing the couple has repeatedly failed to comply with California's discovery rules.

The Michael Jackson Company won a major legal battle this week ... because a judge has ordered a civil case -- centered around alleged sex trafficking -- be handled out of court and in a private setting

Remember ... Frank Cascio and his siblings -- former family friends of the late pop star -- are suing his estate for more than $200 million, alleging they were victims of child sex trafficking by Jackson in the 1980s.

The siblings previously came to a settlement agreement with the Jackson estate ... and, as part of that settlement, the judge found Cascio and company signed off on handling disputes like this in private arbitration, as opposed to the public court system.

Britney Spears had pills in her possession when she was arrested for DUI ... and TMZ has learned those pills are in the process of being tested, and the results could theoretically mean jail time.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the pills were Adderall -- something she got while recently in Mexico. Our sources say one of the reasons Britney goes down to Mexico so often is to obtain the drug.

Our sources tell us ... those pills will be tested to determine if they contain pure Adderall or an additional substance. It's not uncommon that certain drugs obtained in Mexico are laced with fentanyl, cocaine, meth or other substances.

Disgraced former Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore just caught a huge break in his case -- he struck a deal with prosecutors to plead no contest to two misdemeanors -- and his original charges are going away.

The development went down in an Washtenaw County court minutes ago ... with Moore now facing malicious use of an electronic communication device in the context of a domestic relationship and trespassing.

Moore was originally facing felony home invasion and misdemeanor illegal entry without owner permission and stalking ... and he could have faced five years in prison for the felony alone.

Kevin Federline is wishing his ex-wife Britney Spears the best after her DUI arrest ... and he hopes she'll makes some changes in her life.

K-Fed's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, tells TMZ ... "Kevin hopes for the best for Britney and if help is necessary, he hopes that she will neither resist it or those who are attempting to work with her."

Kevin's lawyer says they've spoken since Britney's Wednesday night arrest and says they don't know more than what's been reported in the media, but adds ... "The concern is whether this is just a one off or a one more."

James G. Robinson -- the longtime film producer movie buffs might remember for his public feud with Lindsay Lohan -- has died, TMZ has learned.

We're told Robinson passed away "peacefully" on February 15.

Robinson broke into the movie business in the mid-1980s after proudly serving in the United States Army and having great success in the automobile industry. He produced numerous films -- many of them comedies -- over the next four decades through his company Morgan Creek Entertainment, which he cofounded with Joe Roth.

Andrew and Tristan Tate want Elon Musk's social media platform to give up the names of accounts they claim have been harassing and defaming them online ... so they're going to court to try to unmask some John and Jane Does.

Here's the deal ... the Tate Brothers sued a bunch of anonymous X users for defamation over X posts they didn't like ... the lawsuit was dismissed, but now the Tates want a court to force X to reveal the identities of the accounts they sued.

Andrew and Tristan say the X users engaged in a conspiracy to not only defame them, but also to ruin them financially, reputationally and emotionally through constant and routine allegedly defamatory posts on X -- the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

Former Michigan football head coach Sherrone Moore was back in court on Friday for an evidentiary hearing tied to his December 2025 arrest ... and his wife, Kelli, was right by his side, hand-in-hand.

Moore and Kelli -- who haven't been seen together in court since his initial court appearance -- were caught on camera entering the Michigan courthouse to review evidence in the case against him.

His attorney, Ellen Michaels, is trying to quash certain charges from his December 2025 arrest, arguing that the arrest warrant relied on inaccurate and deceptive statements.

2:15 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Sports Dillon Brooks' DUI arrest was not related to alcohol.

Phoenix Suns player Dillon Brooks was busted for DUI Friday morning, TMZ Sports has learned.

Authorities tell us ... the small forward was pulled over in Scottsdale around 1 AM for traffic violations. After an investigation, Brooks was placed under arrest for suspicion of driving under the influence.

He was taken to Scottsdale City jail and processed ... and was released from custody around 3:30 AM.

Britney Spears showed her sober coaches the door weeks before getting arrested on suspicion of DUI.

Sources with knowledge tell TMZ ... Britney fired the sobriety coaches after she signed a deal selling her rights to her music and after she returned home to California following a trip to Los Cabos, Mexico.

We're told Britney's team also fired other people who were looking out for her ... including security guards who kept an eye on the pop superstar.

WNBA star Arike Ogunbowale went from celebrating her Unrivaled championship to posing for a mugshot -- the hooper was arrested after allegedly punching a security guard at a Miami nightclub on Thursday.

TMZ Sports obtained the complaint ... officers were notified of a physical altercation that broke out inside E11EVEN. When approaching the rear exit of the club, the officer stated a large crowd was being escorted out by security.

The officer made contact with the alleged victim ... who claimed he was attempting to escort 29-year-old Ogunbowale out of the club due to an unrelated altercation -- when she punched him in the face with a closed fist, causing him to fall to the ground.

Britney Spears’ first husband Jason Alexander is rushing to her defense after her DUI arrest ... calling people out for jumping to conclusions when the full story isn’t even out yet.

In an IG Reel, Jason -- who was famously married to the singer for just 55 hours before their annulment in 2004 -- pointed out her reported 0.06 blood-alcohol level is actually below the legal BAC limit in most states. He also said it’s possible any substances in her system could’ve been legally prescribed medication, which would change the narrative entirely.

Jason doubled down, saying it’s unfair for the internet to run with "drunk driving" speculation before the facts are confirmed ... adding rumors spread fast and people end up judged before the truth is even clear.

Sam Asghari is breaking his silence on his ex-wife Britney Spears’ DUI arrest ... though he made it pretty clear he wasn’t exactly eager to go there, saying his focus right now is on the escalating situation in Iran.

During an interview on NewsNation's "Jesse Weber Live" Thursday, the host slipped in a Britney question right at the end ... and Sam pointed out the conversation was meant to focus on the U.S. and Israel missile strikes on Iran. Still, when asked about the past, he acknowledged everyone makes mistakes.

He added people deserve privacy after slipping up, noting the press can sometimes make things harder for someone trying to recover from a tough moment ... watch the full clip for his insight.

Misty Roberts -- the disgraced former Louisiana mayor -- is extending her 15 minutes of infamy by posing for a new mug shot Thursday after she registered as a sex offender.

As you can see, Roberts was in no mood to smile as her picture was snapped during the process of registering as a sex offender in Beauregard Parish, LA, which includes DeRidder -- a small city of about 10,000 people -- where Misty was mayor until the scandal broke.

On Tuesday, Roberts she was convicted at trial of two felonies -- carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behavior of a juvenile. She was also required to register as a sex offender with the state.