Legal

Courtney Clenney says she wasn't staying silent after allegedly catching beatings from boyfriend Christian Obumseli ... she was texting him about them ... and now she wants to use the messages in her criminal trial, in which she's accused of murdering him.

New court documents, obtained by TMZ, reveal the OnlyFans model wants to introduce a string of text messages backing up her claims she endured repeated abuse before fatally stabbing Obumseli in their Miami high-rise apartment in 2022.

According to the filing, one exchange came after Clenney claimed Obumseli punched her in the face in April 2021. Her attorneys say she immediately fired off a text accusing him of hitting her "in my face as hard as you could" ... while Obumseli allegedly brushed it off, responding he was only trying to move her hand and "really didn't mean to."

Clenney argues the messages show a pattern of him minimizing what allegedly happened.

Three more people have been charged in connection with alleged damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, according to newly filed court documents.

Prosecutors charged Sophie Dennison-Gibby, Justin Carreno, and Cameron Thiers with misdemeanor destruction of property involving less than $1K in damage, according to The New York Times.

The charges stem from a June 20 incident in which Officers say the three were seen removing pieces of the pool's blue liner.

Charlie Kirk's alleged murderer turned himself in to police a day after the assassination ... and video of his surrender was just shown in a Utah courtroom.

Tyler Robinson sat for this third day of a preliminary hearing Wednesday ... when prosecutors showed previously unseen video of him turning himself in to law enforcement on September 11, 2025 ... after a massive manhunt.

In the footage, Robinson is wearing a maroon t-shirt and a dark-colored hat as he stands in an office at a Utah police station.

The court was told Robinson was arrested after authorities questioned both him and his parents.

He's since been charged with aggravated murder -- and prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty if he's convicted.

Andrew Gillum's legal troubles just escalated ... the Democrat who narrowly lost to Ron DeSantis in the 2018 Florida governor's race has now been formally charged following his Alabama arrest.

Newly filed court records show he's facing one felony and two misdemeanor counts.

According to the criminal complaint, obtained by TMZ, Gillum is charged with felony possession of a controlled substance -- specifically methamphetamine -- along with misdemeanor possession of marijuana for personal use and possession of drug paraphernalia. Prosecutors allege the offenses occurred July 2 in Baldwin County, Alabama.

Darrell Sheets' son wanted his dad's girlfriend booted from the "Storage War" star's house after the reality star took his own life ... and authorities had to get involved.

According to the Lake Havasu City Police incident report, obtained by TMZ, Brandon Sheets -- who co-starred with his dad on "Storage Wars" -- told cops he wanted Darrell's unidentified partner out of the Lake Havasu City house -- and wanted her trespassed. Police told Brandon she would need to be evicted or leave on her own since she'd been living at the residence.

The woman told police ... Darrell's son and his wife had accused her of stealing money from the reality star -- and that created a lot of tension and drama between the two men, with Darrell defending her.

Shia LaBeouf is calling out his ex-girlfriend FKA Twigs for trashing him in court filings … claiming her agreement to settle her previous lawsuit over alleged abuse means she now has to handle all that business in private arbitration, not a public courtroom.

In court docs, obtained by TMZ, Shia claims FKA is attempting to invalidate the confidentiality provisions in their 2025 deal … which barred them from trash-talking the other.

The actor said FKA has made "numerous inflammatory and irrelevant accusations" in her lawsuit … and believes she wants to continue slamming him in public through the court filings.

2:30 PM PT -- Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen faced off in court today. During the hearing, Taylor discussed her time in rehab while Dakota brought up some fishy side texts with the reality stars' sister Aspen ... however, Taylor's side disputes, calling them "boring."

Taylor and Dakota are facing off in court again today over custody of their son ... all while the drama has been dialed up between the reality stars ... and TMZ is streaming live.

"The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives" exes have a review hearing over custody terms ... this on the heels of Dakota and TFP's ex-husband, Tate Paul, leveling new accusations against the mother of their three shared children.

TMZ broke the story ... Dakota has accused TFP of violating the restraining order he has against her multiple times -- once by having a third party reach out to a third party on Dakota's side to set up a visit with their son, Ever.

Dakota Mortensen claims Taylor Frankie Paul called their son Ever's cries for him "annoying" in a private text message ... and we're told it's just one of several explosive alleged admissions his attorneys are putting before a judge in their ongoing custody battle.

In court docs, obtained by TMZ, Dakota's legal team filed a motion asking a judge to set aside a previous stipulation ahead of Wednesday's hearing, attaching dozens of exhibits they say contain text conversations between the exes.

According to the exhibit titles, Dakota alleges Taylor said Ever's cries for him were "annoying," admitted he "didn't deserve the domestic violence," planned to sabotage Dakota, and mocked his safety concerns.

12:23 PM PT -- Christine Russo joined us today on "TMZ Live" Wednesday, where she explained that Mackenzie's behavior is making a mockery out of their family's tragedy.

Mackenzie Shirilla is posting glammed-up prison selfies on Instagram ... but Dominic Russo's sister tells TMZ all she sees is a convicted killer soaking up attention online.

Mackenzie's new prison selfie and a message saying she's "trying to do better every day and holding on to hope" has Christine Russo demanding prison officials investigate whether she's improperly accessing social media behind bars.

Christine tells TMZ ... "As Dominic Russo's sister, it is heartbreaking to see someone convicted in connection with my brother's death appear to have a social media presence while our family is suffering every day. While my brother is buried, seeing her post selfies, full face of makeup, and bragging how she is famous is painful and, to me, completely inconsistent with remorse."

A federal judge has ordered E. Jean Carroll to be paid $5.8 million after a jury found President Donald Trump had sexually abused her way back in 1996 ... but POTUS is appealing to stop the payment.

Judge Lewis A. Kaplan issued an order Wednesday saying Carroll can be paid the initial $5 million award plus interest ... the civil verdict was reached back in 2023 and Trump put the money in an account, but Carroll is yet to collect ... according to the AP.

The judge's decision follows a long process where Carroll's lawyers requested the disbursement after the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of the 2023 civil verdict ... and Trump continued attacks against Carroll while his lawyers looked into asking the high court to reconsider their decision.

Here's the booking photo Big Tigger's estranged wife Alicia Brown posed for after being busted on kidnapping-related warrants ... and she looks shocked and surprised.

The mug shot, obtained by TMZ, was snapped after Brown was taken into custody Monday during a felony traffic stop on Interstate 85 in Georgia.

As TMZ first reported, the Hart County Sheriff's Office says deputies received a BOLO for Brown's vehicle after learning she was wanted on kidnapping-related warrants out of Maryland. With help from the Georgia State Patrol, authorities tracked down the car, conducted a felony traffic stop and arrested Brown without incident.

Crispin Glover's ex-girlfriend is firing back at the actor's claims that she assaulted him, insisting he attacked her when she tried to rescue her cats from his Los Angeles home.

The woman filed a declaration Tuesday as part of her ongoing lawsuit against Crispin, claiming he locked her out of the bedroom he let her live in after she and her cats moved from the United Kingdom to L.A. to be with him.

In her declaration, obtained by TMZ, the woman says Crispin told her she could collect her things after their relationship went sour in early 2024 ... but she claims the "Back to the Future" star physically attacked her when she lawfully entered her room to retrieve her cats, before falsely casting her as an intruder and reporting her to the police.

As a result, the woman said she spent a few nights in jail.

Marcellus Wiley had a different legal issue facing him before he was arrested for domestic violence ... a bank sued him for allegedly failing to pay back a half-million-dollar loan.

According to the suit -- filed back in December 2025 -- Marcellus and his company, "Dat Dude Entertainment," took out a loan from Preferred Bank in May 2023 with the promise of paying it all back after one year.

The bank says it never got the money -- or any of the accrued interest payments it says it's owed ... despite agreeing to give Marcellus several extensions until December 2025 to pay it back.

Marcellus Wiley is calling his wife's allegations against him flat out false ... speaking out after Annemarie Wiley filed for divorce and obtained a temporary restraining order against him.

The former NFL star took to X on Tuesday to address the accusations in Annemarie's divorce filing, writing ... "I love my children with everything I am. My highest priority has always been protecting them and preserving the relationship they have with both of their parents."

He added ... "Because of the public allegations made against me by Annemarie, I have been forced to respond with evidence rather than emotion. More importantly, I owe it to my children to truthfully document what they and I have endured."

Terrence Howard is ratcheting up his legal war with his former talent agents ... claiming they failed to let him know about a chance at getting his own signature fragrance and potentially becoming a Home Shopping Network star.

The actor makes the new claim in a declaration he filed as part of his legal battle with his former talent agency, CAA. Terrence previously sued CAA, claiming they messed up his salary negotiations for "Empire."

Terrence, who played Lucious Lyon on "Empire" for six seasons, claimed the agency did not adequately represent his best interests when negotiating his deal with FOX.

Nolan Wells' family wants answers after he was found dead ... and they're bringing in the big guns to try and get them.

Nolan's family hired prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump and is calling for a "thorough and transparent investigation" into the teen's death, according to a press release.

Crump said in a statement ... "Nolan Wells was a beloved son, teammate and friend who went out to celebrate the Fourth of July and never came home. His family deserves answers. They deserve the truth."