Police

Ex-NBA star Stephen Jackson says his fight for social justice is just getting started ... telling TMZ Sports it's become his mission to be there for those who need help following the death of his friend, George Floyd.

Jackson made his presence known shortly after Floyd's death in May ... speaking out in hopes of bringing awareness to the cause.

We spoke with Stack about his new calling on Thursday ... and he says he's been called to make an impact on society.

"What I do know is, is that I'm leading with my heart and I'm doing what God wants me to do," Jackson tells us.

"I didn't ask to be in this position, I wish I could get my twin back. It is what it is."

Jackson says his new journey has made him realize there are more people who need his help ... and he's up for the task.

"So, it's become my passion and I've been embracing it. I know I'm doing God's work. So, wherever it takes me, I'll find out how I'm doing sometime soon."

Jackson -- who was close friends with Floyd -- was one of many to speak out and demand justice by calling for the arresting officers to be prosecuted ... but he says it's not the only incident he will speak out on.

Shoe designer Salehe Bembury got stopped by police in Beverly Hills after shopping at the store where he works ... and he thinks it reeks of racial profiling.

Bembury -- VP of Sneakers and Men's Footwear at Versace -- shared video Thursday night of his encounter with 2 Bev Hills cops ... which he called frightening and unjustified.

The cops allegedly stopped and searched Salehe after he left the Versace store with a bag of goods he purchased. He suggests he got hassled because he's Black, but one of the officers in the vid denies that and says Bembury's changing the story.

After checking his ID and determining he had a clean record, the officers let him go. Salehe later claimed he had just left the store and was walking to his car when a patrol car pulled up. He says it was startling, especially because the cops quickly jumped out and confronted him ... over jaywalking.

Bembury claims he told the cops he wasn't aware he had jaywalked, but they stopped him, patted him down and took his phone. That's when he says he asked to have his phone back to record the incident.

Bembury insists he did nothing to warrant the police harassing him -- despite the cops claiming otherwise.

We've reached out to Beverly Hills PD ... no word back yet.

The Grand Jury audio in the Breonna Taylor case reveals important information about the central issue in the case -- whether the Grand Jurors were adequately informed about whether cops identified themselves before breaching the door to Breonna's apartment.

According to the audio, a police lieutenant testified one of the neighbors did NOT hear police identify themselves. It's unclear why the neighbor didn't testify in person before the grand jury. We know there were 12 neighbors in all who said they did NOT hear the cops ID themselves.

Another cop testified one neighbor DID hear the cops announce who they were before entering the apartment. The key -- what about the 12 who didn't hear it?

This is critical because if police did not identify themselves, then Breonna's boyfriend had every right to fire a shot, and cops couldn't use self-defense as a justification for shooting in the apartment.

Cops say they announced themselves as law enforcement before entering Breonna's apartment, according to the testimony we've heard so far. It's about 20 hours of audio, and we're continuing to going through it.

Police Lt. Shawn Hoover said in an interview, recorded the same day Breonna was shot, cops knocked on the door and announced themselves as police before waiting another 10 or 15 seconds to repeat the announcement.

Hoover said cops waited another 45 to 60 seconds before approaching again and breaching the door -- and, as you've heard, cops had a "no-knock" warrant, but Cameron later said police did ID themselves.

Taylor family attorney Ben Crump says his team has spoken to the 12 witnesses who claim cops did not announce before the raid.

As we reported ... Cameron announced earlier this week he would release the recording after an anonymous grand juror filed a motion asking a judge to allow the grand jurors to go public.

The juror who filed the unusual request blasted Cameron for hanging the grand jury out to dry when he announced the indictment of ex-cop Brett Hankison.

Cameron insisted a grand jury is meant to be a secretive body, but relented it's "apparent that the public interest in this case isn't going to allow that to happen."

He added ... "Once the public listens to the recording, they will see that over the course of two-and-a-half days, our team presented a thorough and complete case to the Grand Jury."

Of course, the very next day the Kentucky AG admitted he never recommended the grand jury indict either of the 2 officers for shooting and killing Breonna Taylor. Instead, he said the case he presented to the grand jury is that the officers were justified in firing their weapons because Breonna's boyfriend had fired first at them.

A white, self-described "redneck" who supports Donald Trump says there's a war coming in November no matter who wins, but if Joe Biden does he's threatening to start it ... and that's raised alarm bells with authorities.

In the video spreading like wildfire on social media, a bearded man ID'd as Zachary Poole makes it clear he believes Trump 2020 will prevail on Election Day ... but predicts members of Black Lives Matter or Antifa will try to start a war when that happens.

Poole insists he and his people are ready for this, but if things don't go their way and Trump loses, he warns -- "We comin' ... and we comin' strong."

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the video was almost immediately reported to the Williamsburg Village PD in Ohio, along with concerned citizens forwarding it to the FBI.

It's being taken very seriously too -- we're told Poole's online post and social media are being monitored by police, though no official investigation has been launched or charges filed.

Our sources say the Williamsburg police have also contacted the FBI about the video because they feel Poole's words could be perceived as a threat against people of different races and religions ... and the feds have more experience with hate crimes.

The timing of the video is interesting too ... as it comes on the heels of President Trump's ominous message to the far-right group, Proud Boys, during the first debate.

"I beat the ever-living f*** out of him."

Those were the words reportedly spoken by a Louisiana State trooper implicated in a Black man's death ... according to a recording that's just surfaced.

The audio -- captured by a police body cam mic -- is a 27-second clip featuring Master Trooper Chris Hollingsworth recalling the May 2019 arrest of Ronald Greene in Louisiana.

The Associated Press, which first obtained the audio, says that's Hollingsworth saying he choked Greene, and at least 3 cops were wrestling with Greene while he was handcuffed and bleeding ... until "all of a sudden he just went limp."

Greene's death, which Louisiana troopers initially said was caused by a car crash at the end of a pursuit, is now the subject of a federal civil rights investigation.

The audio was part of a phone conversation between Hollingsworth and a colleague, according to the AP. Hollingsworth died last week in a car accident.

Lee Merritt, an attorney for Greene's family, is now calling on authorities to release the full body cam footage of Greene's interaction with state troopers.

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards told reporters last week footage of Greene’s arrest would be released to the public at the conclusion of federal and state investigations.

The 4 accused ex-cops involved in George Floyd's death are asking for a change of venue for their trial ... saying the crowds of citizens outside the courthouse are terrorizing them.

Alexander Kueng filed a motion with the court seeking to change the venue out of Hennepin County ... claiming he, Derek Chauvin, Tou Thao and Thomas Lane as well as their attorneys were all subjected to a dangerous situation outside the courthouse following a hearing last month.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Kueng says there was no recognizable plan in place in advance of the hearing to ensure their safety and orderly entry. He adds Chauvin -- who pressed his knee on Floyd's neck for 8 minutes -- was subjected to "humiliation by being paraded in public dressed in jail clothes and body armor."

Kueng, who says the other cops have filed similar motions to move the trial, says they were also harassed going in and out of the courthouse. As we reported ... the ex-cops were met by angry protesters when they left court.

Kueng claims Thao, in particular, was followed for several blocks by jeering protesters when he left court. He also claims Lane was physically assaulted.

A Black woman arrested by an Aurora, CO police officer was cuffed, hogtied and thrown in a patrol car ... where she rode upside down, begging for help for 20 minutes, as she feared she would die.

The disturbing video shows 28-year-old Shataean Kelly being arrested on Aug. 27, 2019 on charges resulting from a fight. After Officer Levi Huffine cuffs her and puts her in the back of the patrol car, he claims she tried to escape by grabbing the door handles. Huffine then decides, "I'm going to hobble her" ... tying her handcuffed hands to her feet ... also known as hogtying.

While on the backseat, Kelly unloaded insult after insult on the cop, clearly feeling she should not have been arrested. But, the situation turned much scarier for her when she slipped off the backseat headfirst onto the floor with her legs up in the air.

Almost immediately she started pleading for her life, fearing she might break her neck or her arms ... or suffocate. At one point she sadly whimpered, "This is some slavery s**t," and "How many times I gotta beg you master?"

Aurora PD is releasing the footage because Huffine was fired in February over the incident, and is appealing his termination.

Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson points out that the backseat door handles are inoperable and she believes Huffine was "punishing" Kelly.

Chief Wilson says she believes this was a form of torture by the officer, and adds he's lucky Kelly didn't die of asphyxiation, "Because he would be -- in my opinion -- in an orange jumpsuit right now" if she had.

Despite Kelly repeatedly screaming, "Please don't let me die back here" ... Huffine never replied or stopped the vehicle to move her into a safer position. Kelly at one point is heard saying, "I never felt so much racism in my life."

All criminal charges against Kelly were eventually dropped, and Huffine's termination appeal is under review.

It should be noted ... this incident occurred just 3 days after the Elijah McClain incident in Aurora on Aug. 24, 2019, during which he was allegedly placed in a chokehold by police and sedated by paramedics.

"Tarzan" star Ron Ely is blaming the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department for his wife and son's deaths ... claiming deputies didn't attempt to save their lives and neglected his wife after she was stabbed and he was shot.

The Ely family deaths occurred in a bizarre and violent manner on October 15, 2019 -- Ron's son, Cameron, stabbed Ron's wife, Valerie, in the family's home. Deputies responded, but in a new lawsuit, Ron claims deputies on scene did not call for medical personnel to help Valerie.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Ron claims he requested emergency services after Valerie suffered stab wounds to her chest and lung. He claims several deputies showed up to the scene around 8:15 PM, but failed to check if Valerie was still alive.

Ron also claims deputies obstructed fire department medical personnel from entering the home to provide treatment. In all, he claims Valerie went without treatment for 30 minutes ... and was pronounced dead at 8:42 PM.

As for Cameron's death ... Ron claims his son was unarmed on their property later that night when deputies found him. According to the suit, Cameron was unarmed and had his hands up when the cops opened fire, hitting Cameron 22 times. Ron claims Cameron also went without medical assistance for at least 13 minutes, and was left to die in the driveway.

As we reported ... cops had said Cameron posed a threat when they found him, and as a result, 4 deputies opened fire. Ron insists Cameron didn't pose any threat.

He's suing the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department and the city of Santa Barbara for wrongful death and unspecified damages.

The L.A. County Sheriff's Department has identified the man who allegedly opened fire on 2 of its deputies during an ambush, and he's now been charged with attempted murder.

The District Attorney's Office charged Deonte Lee Murray with 2 counts of willful, deliberate and premeditated attempted murder of a peace officer ... as well as possession of a firearm by a felon, carjacking, second-degree robbery and assault with a semiautomatic firearm. Most of those charges stem from a separate September 1 incident where Murray allegedly shot a Compton citizen and stole his vehicle.

The 36-year-old suspect was found and arrested on September 15 ... 3 days after he allegedly walked up to Sheriff's deputies while they sat in their car outside the Martin Luther King Jr. Transit Center and fired at them.

Murray's expected to be arraigned Wednesday, and prosecutors are recommending bail be set at $6.15 million. If convicted, he faces a possible maximum life sentence in state prison.

As we reported ... the deputies -- a 31-year-old woman and 24-year-old man -- were in critical condition after they were shot from point-blank range. The female deputy's credited with saving her partner's life by applying a tourniquet to his arm. They've since been discharged from the hospital and both are recovering.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron now admits he never recommended the grand jury indict either of the 2 officers for shooting and killing Breonna Taylor.

Instead, Cameron says the case he presented to the grand jury is that the officers were fully justified in firing their weapons because Breonna's boyfriend had fired first at them. Cameron revealed some of his strategy in an interview with WDRB in Louisville ... saying, "Our recommendation is that [officers] Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove were justified in their acts and their conduct."

Cameron also said he told the grand jury that the single witness who says he heard the police announce themselves before the raid ... changed his story. WDRB did not ask Cameron if he also told the grand jury that 12 other witnesses said they did NOT hear the police announce themselves -- and that's a huge point.

If the police didn't identify themselves ... Kenneth Walker, Breonna's boyfriend, would be justified in firing his legally owned firearm at people he believed to be intruders in her apartment.

One other thing ... Cameron said nothing about recommending a manslaughter charge to the grand jury. He says wanton endangerment was the only thing he felt he could prove beyond a reasonable doubt. However, police allegedly didn't provide medical assistance to Breonna for 20 minutes ... which would seem to put manslaughter -- legally defined as reckless disregard for human life -- on the table.

The governor of California has signed a new "Kobe Bryant Law" -- which makes it a crime for first responders to take unauthorized pictures of a dead person at an accident scene.

The measure -- which takes effect on January 1st -- was triggered by the aftermath of the Kobe Bryant helicopter crash ... when 8 local deputies were accused of taking or sharing death pics for unofficial business.

In fact, at least one deputy was accused of using a Kobe death photo to try and pick up a woman at a bar.

But, on Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill which will make it a misdemeanor for a first responder to take or share pics from an accident or crime scene for any purpose outside official law enforcement or genuine public interest.

Kobe's widow, Vanessa Bryant, has already filed a lawsuit against the L.A. County Sheriff's Office over the alleged accident photo scandal. She's suing for negligence, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Ex-NFL star Albert Haynesworth was arrested for domestic violence and disorderly conduct Monday ... after an alleged shouting match with his ex-GF, Brittany Jackson.

Cops were called to the home of Brittany Jackson's current boyfriend in Cleveland, TN around 4:30 PM ... after Haynesworth allegedly showed up unexpectedly and began yelling at both of them.

Jackson claims Haynesworth drove 2-and-a-half hours from his home in Franklin to confront them in person after making violent threats over the phone.

Once police arrived, Brittany and her boyfriend told Haynesworth to stop yelling and cussing ... but the 39-year-old ex-NFL star allegedly continued to cause a scene.

Officials say the former All-Pro defensive lineman did NOT put his hands on either Jackson or her BF ... but broke the law by posing a serious threat of causing bodily harm.

Online records show Haynesworth bonded out of Bradley County Justice Center on Tuesday and is no longer in custody.

It's not Haynesworth's first legal incident with Jackson -- they had a domestic violence incident in 2017 when the 6'6", 350-pounder claimed she "kicked (him) in the nuts."

At the time, Haynesworth also claimed he had called police on Jackson for alleged violent incidents more than 10 times during their 17-month relationship.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron says he will release a recording of the Breonna Taylor grand jury proceedings -- responding to pressure from Breonna's family and one pissed off grand juror.

Cameron made the announcement just hours after an anonymous grand juror filed a motion demanding a judge allow the grand jurors to go public. The proceedings are normally kept secret, but the juror made the highly unusual request because they felt Cameron hung them out dry when he announced the indictment of ex-cop Brett Hankison.

The grand juror ripped into Cameron and asked to share deets so that "the truth may prevail." Cameron said he'll release the recording Wednesday, but said sharing more information would be inappropriate with a criminal case and separate federal probe ongoing. He added a grand jury is meant to be a secretive body but relented it's "apparent that the public interest in this case isn't going to allow that to happen."

Cameron said, "We have no concerns with grand jurors sharing their thoughts on our presentation because we are confident in the case we presented. Once the public listens to the recording, they will see that over the course of two-and-a-half days, our team presented a thorough and complete case to the Grand Jury."

One of the key issues ... did the grand jury hear from the 12 neighbors who said they did NOT hear police identify themselves before breaking down Breonna's door?

The recording of the proceedings should answer that question ... which is critical because if the cops didn't announce themselves, then Breonna's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, would be justified in firing at people he presumed to be intruders.

Cameron maintained officers Jonathan Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove fired in self-defense and were, therefore, justified in their use of force.

As you know ... Hankison and the 2 other cops involved were not charged with shooting and killing Breonna. Hankison was indicted for firing his weapon into Breonna's neighbor's apartment.

NFL lineman D.J. Fluker claims his ex-girlfriend kidnapped their daughter earlier this month -- and he's concerned things could get worse.

Here's the deal ... Fluker claims his ex, Kimberly Davis, was supposed to have a supervised visit with their daughter and Fluker's sister on Sept. 19, while the Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman was away in Houston to play the Texans.

But, Davis allegedly kicked Fluker's sister out of the apartment and refused to return the child back to D.J. Fluker reportedly told Davis she did NOT have permission to keep their daughter overnight but Davis still wouldn't hand over the kid.

So, 29-year-old Fluker called police -- but Davis still refused to return the child.

Finally, cops arrested Davis on Sept. 22 and now she's facing a charge of kidnapping a child younger than 16 years old.

If convicted, Davis faces up to 30 days in jail and a $250 fine. She's since been released from custody.

Fluker told cops he's in "fear for the safety of our daughter" and added, "I don’t feel safe during this time," according to The Baltimore Sun.

Davis was arrested back in July after allegedly punching Fluker in the nose during a dispute. She was charged with 2nd-degree assault for that incident.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron has at least one pissed off grand juror on his hands in the Breonna Taylor case ... and that person is demanding the right to talk about the proceedings.

The anonymous grand juror filed a motion Monday with the Jefferson County Circuit Court asking a judge to lift the gag order for any grand jurors who want to go public -- because this juror feels like Cameron hung them out to dry when he announced the indictment of ex-cop Brett Hankison.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, the grand juror says Cameron repeatedly told the media "the grand jury alone made the decision on who and what to charge based solely on the evidence presented to them." As you know Hankison and the 2 other cops involved were not charged with shooting and killing Breonna. Instead, Hankison was the only indicted for firing his weapon into an apartment neighboring Breonna's.

That decision has sparked days of protest across the country, and it's clear this grand juror feels Cameron is ducking his responsibility. As he or she says in the docs, "It is patently unjust for the jurors to be subjected to the level of accountability the Attorney General campaigned for simply because they received a summons to serve their community."

Translation: You ran for this Office, Daniel Cameron, so you should feel the heat.

Although the grand juror was not specific, it sure appears they have some gripes over the way the proceedings went down. It would be really interesting to know if the grand jury heard from all 12 apartment residents who said the police did NOT identify themselves before breaking down Breonna's door. If the grand jury didn't hear from them, it would be interesting to know if that information would have prompted this grand juror to vote to indict the cops who shot Breonna.

Grand jury proceedings are always kept under wraps, so this juror's request is highly unusual.

But, as they say in the docs ... "Using the grand jurors as a shield to deflect accountability and responsibility for these decisions only sows more seeds of doubt in the process while leaving a cold chill down the spines of future grand jurors."

A Texas Sheriff featured on "Live PD" is now facing charges of evidence tampering -- he's accused of deleting video of cops chasing a Black man who died in custody.

Williamson County Sheriff Robert Chody was indicted Monday by a grand jury ... and turned himself in to the county jail, which he also oversees.

Williamson County D.A. Shawn Dick and Travis County D.A. Margaret Moore launched a joint investigation back in June after body cam footage, obtained by KVUE-TV, showed Javier Ambler's fatal interaction with police. "Live PD" reportedly destroyed footage of the deadly chase.

Jason Nassour, the former Williamson County general counsel who was also at the scene of Ambler's March 2019 death, was also indicted on a felony charge of evidence tampering.

The indictments came down after weeks of grand jury investigation, including testimony from sheriff's deputies who were at the scene when Ambler died.

Prosecutors say they can't share what they've learned about Sheriff Chody's role in destroying footage -- it's an ongoing case.

Ambler died after Sheriff's deputies Zach Camden and J.J. Johnson pursued him for 22 minutes in a chase that started when Ambler didn't dim his headlights.

During the pursuit, Ambler's car crashed multiple times before coming to a stop in a North Austin neighborhood. Cops used tasers 4 times on him as he struggled for air, screaming about a heart condition and saying he couldn't breathe. Minutes later he died.

"Live PD" crews followed the deputies and cameras were rolling during the encounter, and there's police body camera footage. Prosecutors say the "Live PD" video likely showed the clearest perspective of the deadly incident.

The A&E reality show was scrapped just days after the Austin Statesman reported the Ambler footage was destroyed. That decision came during the height of nationwide protests against police brutality in the wake of George Floyd's death.

The contract between "Live PD" and Williamson County reportedly allowed the show to destroy unaired footage within 30 days, unless it was required to be retained by a court order or other state or federal law.

Former "Live PD" host Dan Abrams claimed on his website, sheriff's officials asked producers to save the video initially. Abrams says 2 months after Ambler's death, Sheriff Chody told producers the investigation was over and producers destroyed the footage.