Legal

A man secretly recorded a woman performing an intimate solo sex act on camera and then sent the video to her daughter ... at least according to a new lawsuit.

A California woman named Crystal Merrill is suing a Nevada man named Frank Harris, claiming they were having cybersex over Facebook Messenger in 2022 when he secretly recorded her without her knowledge or consent.

Crystal claims Frank ultimately sent the intimate visuals to her daughter via text message and email in 2023 ... and she says he then contacted her and threatened to upload the footage to Instagram, Pornhub, Facebook and TikTok.

Authorities carried out a search warrant Wednesday at a California property linked to Paul Flores, who was convicted in the 1996 killing of 19-year-old college student Kristin Smart.

The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement the search took place in the Central Coast city of Arroyo Grande, at Paul Flores' mother Susan's property. Smart's body has never been found.

In the statement, the sheriff’s office emphasized its continued commitment to finding Smart’s remains and returning her to her family ... adding that no further details are being released at this time.

Claire Brosseau -- a former actress who's credited on projects starring James Franco and Daniel Stern -- is begging a Canadian court to let her end her own life.

She filed an emergency motion with the court Monday to receive medically-assisted suicide, saying her sole underlying cause is "unbearable" mental illness ... Canada's CTV News reports.

Claire spoke outside the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, saying her severe bipolar and post-traumatic stress disorders have caused "unrelenting suffering."

Blake Lively settled her legal war with Justin Baldoni, but she didn't settle when it came to finding a husband ... because Ryan Reynolds is looking hunkier than ever in a new selfie the married couple snapped.

Ryan shared the photo Tuesday, and Blake's smiling and caressing his face in her hand ... and they're snuggled up on a porch with what looks like a nice view of some nature.

Blake settled her lengthy legal war with Justin on Monday and then beelined it to the Met Gala ... and now she's logging some quality time with her hot hubby.

Luigi Mangione turned 28 Wednesday inside a federal lockup as he awaits 2 murder trials ... but he has a lot to celebrate ... at least when it comes to his legal defense fund!

The alleged killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson received a $28,038 donation today from a man named Carl ... putting Luigi at a whopping $1.5 million in overall contributions to his fund.

Carl mentioned in his post about the donation that he also directed funds to "victims in comparable situations." He added it's unfortunate that private support is needed in Luigi's case due to the pile of charges against him. 

Lindsie Chrisley's ugly split from ex-boyfriend David Landsman has finally landed on middle ground ... and part of the deal includes who gets custody of the couple's beloved Dachshund, Oliver.

According to new court docs, obtained by TMZ, Lindsie and David agreed to a "mutual no contact order" requiring both sides to stay 500 yards away from each other, their homes and workplaces.

But deeper in the filing is the detail pet lovers will care about most ... Oliver the Dachshund is going back to Lindsie.

West Wilson's cousin appeared in court Wednesday after being accused of murdering their step-grandmother ... and the hearing quickly shifted focus from bond to concerns about his mental competency.

Dakota Sweeney appeared remotely from jail for a hearing tied to the shocking April killing of his 75-year-old step-grandmother, Gayle R. Wilson, inside a Missouri home. During the proceeding, Sweeney barely interacted with the court at all ... appearing sluggish and largely unresponsive while officials tried multiple times to confirm he could hear what was happening.

At one point, the judge repeatedly asked Sweeney to raise his hand or nod if he could hear the discussion after apparent technical difficulties with the jail connection. While Sweeney ultimately appeared able to hear the court, he still did not verbally respond.

"Summer House" star West Wilson's cousin Dakota Sweeney may undergo a mental exam after his legal team raised questions about his state of mind, TMZ has learned.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, Dakota's lawyers are asking the court to approve a mental health professional interviewing him. 

As TMZ first reported, Dakota is charged with murder in the first degree after allegedly murdering his and West's 75-year-old step-grandma, Gayle R. Wilson. He entered a plea of not guilty. 

"General Hospital" star Steve Burton submitted alleged texts from his ex-wife, Sheree Burton, as part of their bitter custody battle ... TMZ has learned.

TMZ obtained the texts Steve says he exchanged with Sheree as they fought over custody and visitation issues for their 11-year-old daughter Brooklyn.

In one alleged text, dated March 14, 2026, Steve wrote, “This is manipulation” when talking about Sheree allegedly enrolling Brooklyn in a summer program in California, which Steve insists is a problem since he planned to travel with the kid.

The former FedEx delivery driver who copped to kidnapping and killing a 7-year-old girl in Texas has been sentenced to death by lethal injection.

Tanner Lynn Horner learned his fate Tuesday when a Texas jury sentenced him to death.

He pleaded guilty to capital murder and aggravated kidnapping last month in the November 2022 death of Athena Strand.

Blake Lively’s team was spiraling privately as backlash grew amid the promo for "It Ends With Us" -- according to newly-uncovered documents from the now-settled case against Justin Baldoni.

TMZ obtained emails and text messages that Blake's team at her alcohol company, Betty Booze, said they were receiving from companies amid the drama surrounding "It Ends With Us."

On September 10, 2024, a member of Blake's team wrote to other team members about a convo with Kroger, the mega-supermarket, saying "I just got off the phone with the SGWS Kroger VP, and the first thing he mentioned to me was that Betty Booze was just discussed" and adding "there is a negative taste in Kroger's mouth based on the [Blake Lively] interview (press) from the movie, and they said they will be closely monitoring sales on the brand."

A Washington woman is accused of turning a neighborhood sidewalk into her own personal racetrack ... and a child on a bike nearly paid the price.

The Spokane County Sheriff's Office alleges 56-year-old Wendy Clemente drove her silver Ford Focus up onto a Spokane sidewalk on April 28 and chased a juvenile riding a dirt bike -- coming dangerously close to hitting the child.

Watch the clip above ... the whole thing was caught on cellphone video, and it’s as wild as it sounds.

Angelina Jolie won a legal victory in court Monday ... and now it turns out Brad Pitt won't get to see 22 emails he was hoping to get his hands on in the legal fight over their French chateau.

The Los Angeles County Superior Court just ruled in Jolie's favor ... this after the appellate court found the previous judge erred when she ordered Jolie to hand over 22 emails to Pitt in connection with their ongoing winery lawsuit in December 2025. The matter was sent back to the lower court for another look. Page Six was first to report the story.

Now the lower court has decided that, though not all of these emails were sent between attorney and client, they still discussed legal strategy ... and that makes them privileged. Translation: Brad's side doesn't get to see them in discovery.

Stefon Diggs has done a lot of winning, but no victory was more important than the one the NFL star just got in a Massachusetts courtroom ... he was found not guilty of attacking his chef during a dispute late last year.

The 32-year-old was on hand at the Dedham District Court for the reading of the verdict ... and it was nothing short of a resounding success for Diggs, who faced one count of felony strangulation and one count of misdemeanor assault and battery. Diggs was emotional as the verdict was being read ... with tears flowing from his eye and down his face.

"Not guilty." "Not guilty." Case closed. Deliberation lasted around an hour and a half.

Diggs was facing up to five years in prison for the felony ... obviously a moot point, as a jury found the accuser's claims to be bogus.

The prosecutor in the Stefon Diggs trial acknowledged Jamila Adams was "argumentative, avoidant and difficult" throughout her testimony the past two days ... but he's hoping the jury looks past that in reaching a verdict.

The blunt approach came from Norfolk Assistant District Attorney Drew Virtue's closing argument in a Dedham courtroom on Tuesday ... when he admitted his key witness was all over the place on the stand.

"Was Ms. Adams a perfect witness? No," Virtue said.

Justin Baldoni's high-powered lead attorney, Bryan Freedman, says his client is the clear winner in his drawn-out legal war with Blake Lively.

Bryan joined us on "TMZ Live" Tuesday after Justin and Blake's camp announced Monday they had settled her legal claims against his production company.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but when we asked Bryan if this was a win for Justin, he told us why he felt it was a "huge victory" for his client.