Legal

Ian Diaz's stepfather asked a federal judge to show compassion when it came time to sentence the former law enforcement officer featured in Netflix's "A Toxic Love Story" ... arguing prison would devastate Diaz's wife and young son.

According to documents obtained by TMZ, Diaz's stepfather -- Mark -- submitted a heartfelt letter to the court in June of 2023, describing Diaz as someone he's known since childhood ... saying he never knew him to be violent or "knowingly harmed anyone."

Doughty says the family proudly supported Diaz through the police academy -- later U.S. Marshals training -- and becoming a law enforcement officer had been Diaz's lifelong dream.

He says Diaz's graduation photo still hangs on their wall.

The man accusing Brenda Dickson of assault is seeking court-ordered protection ... claiming the actress got physical with his child.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, a man named Richard Chamberlin beelined it to court Monday and filed for a civil harassment restraining order against Brenda ... alleging "The Young and the Reckless" actress hit his daughter, Isabella, in the face and chest.

He also said she bumped Isabella with trash bags, made threats, and verbally harassed her and others during an alleged July 8 incident that ended with Brenda's arrest.

Richard says he's property maintenance and a renter in the building where Brenda lives. He's seeking protection for himself, Isabella, and another renter.

Sidney Starr says the child sex allegations against her are flat-out false ... and she plans to fight them every step of the way.

In a statement to TMZ ... the "Love & Hip Hop: New York" alum says she "unequivocally denies the allegations against her and intends to vigorously defend herself through the legal process."

Her statement continues ... "Allegations should not be mistaken for fact, and public opinion should never replace due process."

Ian Diaz from "A Toxic Love Story" was slammed by his ex-wife Michelle Hadley's mom … in a letter she wrote to the judge before he was sentenced to 10 years in prison, TMZ has learned.

TMZ obtained the letter written by Michelle’s mom begging the judge to throw the book at Ian for what he did to her daughter. 

She wrote, "I was that mom who walked my daughters right to the door of their elementary school classes and who checked online for sexual predators in our neighborhood. How ironic that the very thing I couldn't protect my daughter from was corrupt law enforcement."

Sidney Starr's mom says she was blindsided by recent child sex allegations against the reality TV star ... telling TMZ this is not who her daughter is, and she fully stands behind her.

Stephanie Favors tells us the allegations are completely out of character for Sidney ... and she does not believe her daughter would engage in sexual activity with a minor.

As we reported, Sidney was arrested Sunday in Georgia and charged with sexual battery against a child under 16, aggravated child molestation and sodomy. Booking records accuse her of performing oral sex on a minor at a hotel in Hapeville and confessing to the act.

She says Sidney was in town for a booking at the time of the alleged incident. Stephanie says she has not spoken with Sidney since the arrest because her daughter remains behind bars.

Nolan Wells’ mom is pushing back on reports the teen was partying big time before he disappeared and was later found dead ... saying word is he wasn't heavily drinking at all.

Christine Wonsley told Don Lemon ... she spoke with someone who observed Nolan during a Fourth of July party on Horn Island -- and he wasn't acting like someone who was wasted.

As TMZ reported ... some witnesses told law enforcement that Nolan was heavily drinking when they saw him that fateful weekend ... but Christine says she thinks that narrative is BS and doesn't add up to her.

She says ... “If you were in our situation, how would you feel if there were millions of people who were saying, ‘Oh, hey, well, he was at an island. He was heavily drunk.'"

President Trump just threw Jeanine Pirro under the bus ... saying she folded like a cheap suit when her office dropped the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool vandalism case against former Olympian David Hearn.

Trump tore into the U.S. Attorney on Monday ... arguing Hearn and others deliberately cut the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool's waterproof liner ... despite Pirro saying on Friday that faulty installation was actually to blame.

POTUS blamed a hostile judge for the case unraveling ... but said Pirro ultimately buckled under the pressure -- "Frankly, I think she choked."

TMZ has obtained the United Cajun Navy's full investigative report into Nolan Wells' death ... and it includes a new photo of the three boats his friends anchored off Mississippi's Horn Island on the day Nolan disappeared.

Check it out ... the photo on page 12 of the report shows the three boats anchored side-by-side -- noted as "Boat #3," the Palm Beach and the Triton -- on the Fourth of July.

The Triton is the boat that took on water before leaving the island without Nolan.

As we previously reported, Nolan's best friend, Warren Hudson, claimed he and other friends begged him to board their vessel to leave the island around 4:30 PM ... but he refused.

The United Cajun Navy's report says the Triton left the island at 4:31 PM.

Nolan Wells' friends want to lawyer up after they say they've been "wrongly blamed" for his death ... and have raised close to their fundraising goal to do just that.

Benjamin Hudson -- dad of Nolan's so-called best friend Warren -- launched a fundraiser on GiveSendGo to cover legal costs of the friends he says have been "targeted" since the teen's mysterious death ... and it's already raised close to their $100K goal.

According to the fundraiser, Warren and Nolan's other friends Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour have been facing an onslaught of threats and allegedly defamatory remarks.

Michelle Hadley -- Ian Diaz's ex from Netflix's "A Toxic Love Story" -- wrote an emotional letter begging for her ex to serve hard time ahead of his sentencing, TMZ has learned. 

TMZ obtained the letter Michelle sent to the judge to consider before determining how many years Ian would be in prison. 

Ian and his then-wife Angela Diaz were accused of conspiring together to ruin Michelle’s life. The then-couple posted ads on Craigslist with Michelle’s address asking for a man to help her with her “rape fantasy” … in hopes she would be sexually assaulted. 

An Ohio woman allegedly unleashed a barrage of bomb threats against Mississippi government offices following Nolan Wells' death ... placing nearly 30 menacing calls in less than an hour, according to federal prosecutors.

Michelle Francine Edwards was charged Thursday with transmitting a threatening communication across state lines after she allegedly targeted the George County Chancery Clerk's Office and Jackson County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators say on July 23, Edwards called the clerk's office 21 times in just eight minutes using a blocked number ... allegedly warning employees, "Do not go outside," "the clock is ticking," and "die."

Phony toxicology reports in the Nolan Wells case are spreading across social media ... and people connected to the case are warning everyone not to fall for them.

Russell Latino -- who represents Nolan's friend Bart Edminson Jr. -- sounded the alarm on Facebook ... saying officials have not publicly released Nolan's toxicology results and some of the fakes circulating online look extremely real if you don't know what to watch for.

He ripped the broader disinformation surrounding Nolan's death ... saying it undermines the actual investigation and adding ... "Someone's death should not be your entertainment. Touch grass today."

Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell backed him up in a separate Facebook post ... confirming the purported reports making the rounds are fraudulent.

"The Real Housewives of Miami" star Stephanie Shojaee had a real issue in France ... because she says masked intruders broke into her villa and ransacked the place.

Stephanie hopped on Instagram over the weekend, claiming the villa she was renting in Southern France was the setting for a home burglary.

In one of several IG posts about the incident, Stephanie wrote, “Cannes and St Tropez are great.. until it’s your turn to get ROBBED 😭😫.”

A resurfaced video of D4vd wearing a fake blood stained shirt -- all to promote his album -- is getting major attention online as he gears up for his trial in the alleged murder of Celeste Rivas.

The video features the singer -- whose real name is David Anthony Burke -- wearing a fake blood-stained shirt, in which he sold as merch to fans, as he's purchasing laundry detergent in order to promote his upcoming album.

The clip has resurfaced as details from Burke's recent preliminary hearing in the alleged murder of Celeste have drawn public attention.

Jerry Jones says Tony Romo has spent his whole life getting back up after taking hits ... and he's confident the former Cowboys QB will do it again following his OWI arrest.

The Cowboys owner said in an interview with KDFW FOX 4 he's been talking with Romo and remains firmly in his corner ... praising his character, family, and ability to handle adversity.

"Do you think Tony Romo knows how to get up when he gets knocked down?" Jones said ... before adding, "Absolutely, that's one of his greatest attributes ... this is something that he will work through."

The Green Beret accused of using classified intel to cash in on the U.S. capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is now betting a federal judge will toss the entire case.

Gannon Ken Van Dyke filed a motion Friday asking the judge to dismiss five charges accusing him of illegally using and stealing secret government information, defrauding the commodities market, committing wire fraud and moving money from the alleged scheme.

According to the filing, obtained by TMZ, Van Dyke's team of attorneys, including Mark Geragos, call the prosecution a first-of-its-kind "experiment" that twists federal commodities law to create a crime that didn't exist.