B-ball Robot at Tokyo Games Sinks Half-Court Shot, no problem ... Sign of What's to Come???

A robot basketball player has made its debut at the Tokyo Olympics -- and it turns out, the thing is pretty damn good at shooting baskets ... almost scary good. Actually, just scary.

Check out this robot that Tokyo officials rolled out Sunday for what appears to be a halftime show during a basketball game there between Team USA and France ... which the U.S. ended up losing 83-76.

Besides that news, reporter Ann Killion captured the real headline-grabber ... and that would be this hunk of metal slowly and inartfully sinking shots from a fair distance -- including one basket it made from half-court!

Watch the clip ... the robot starts by swishing a 3-pointer, this after lining it up perfectly and eventually launching the ball straight through the net. Then, it heads down to the mid-court logo, where it does the same thing -- picking the ball up by itself, and then chucking it.

Sure enough, that ball goes through as well. Obviously, the robot can get buckets, and even though it's slow to the draw ... it's clearly quite accurate. Shoot, maybe Team USA shoulda recruited this thing to be one of their wingmen! They sure needed the help.

All jokes aside ... the fact this robot can actually make its way up and down the floor and put up shots on its own is pretty incredible. It's a testament to technology, but also ... perhaps a sign of what may come in the future. Who's to say they won't make a full-blown team of robots one day???

Considering what Boston Dynamics is doing with their robots and how far they've come in making them move seamlessly, like humans, something tells us that possibility is one that could come about. We certainly have the tech to do it -- but do we actually wanna???

Dancing and basketball AI is cool and all to watch ... and yet, things can go left fast. Be careful what you wish for, humanity!!! We've seen the movies -- we're not too far from that.

Hero NY Cops Save Baby Trapped Under Car ... That Slams Into Building!!!

SPRINGING INTO ACTION
Yonkers Police Department

A couple of New York cops are being hailed heroes after this INSANE encounter where they saved a baby girl who was pinned underneath a car -- and after watching this video ... you might give 'em a round of applause yourself.

This wild episode went down Friday in Yonkers ... where a vehicle that was cruising through a not-so-busy street lost control while trying to make a simple left turn at a stop sign -- slamming into a parked car, then accelerating into a woman carrying an infant ... and then into a building.

The car actually crashed straight into a barbershop ... where this lady and her 8-month-old ended up getting dragged into after the vehicle came barreling through the wall, with them on the hood. The 2 cops who saved the day, Officers Fusco and Samoyedny, were at a nearby shop ... and responded after hearing the commotion. Luckily, they sprung into action as quickly as they did ... 'cause the kid ended up getting trapped underneath somehow!!!

You gotta watch this body cam footage to see what they did. With the help of bystanders, they lifted the car enough to be able to grab the girl and pull her out from under the rubble. You can hear her crying, and her mother screaming, as they finally lift her to safety.

The mother and child are expected to survive their injuries. As for the driver ... 43-year-old David Poncurak was arrested for DWI (among other charges) ... this after cops say they found an alcoholic beverage inside his car and suspected he was under the influence.

Wisconsin Police Dept. Deny Planting Drugs in Car ... Release Body Cam Footage

VIEW FROM THE OTHER SIDE
Village of Caledonia Police Department

The Wisconsin police department that had one of their own accused of planting drugs in a Black man's car says the claim is BS -- and they say they got the full video to prove it.

The Caledonia Police Dept. posted an update into their investigation -- which they say isn't done yet -- but based on what they've found so far ... they feel confident saying the officer who was caught on video tossing a baggie into the back seat is being wrongly blamed.

FINDING THE BAGGIE
Village of Caledonia Police Department

The Chief of Police, Christopher Botsch, says the car was pulled over for speeding in a 45 MPH zone, and after the front seat passenger refused to ID himself -- and finding the rear passengers weren't wearing seat belts -- the cops apparently decided to conduct a search.

CPD uploaded portions of two body cameras from what appears to be 2 different officers -- the first shows the cop in question being handed a little baggie -- which the department says was an empty "corner tear" -- by another officer who was checking it out and then going back to the car and throwing it back in ... which is where the OG video picks up.

A BAGGIE APPEARS
GlockBoy Savoo/Facebook

The police say that little baggie -- which, again, they say was not illegal in and of itself since it was empty, albeit indicative of drugs -- was found when they searched one of the rear passengers, something they say you can see in a second body cam video they uploaded.

Since there was nothing in it, CPD says the cop essentially discarded it back into the car, which they say probably wasn't a great idea, but note ... nothing sketchy happened. Their video also shows the convo that happened after ... something GlockBoy Savoo's didn't.

Caledonia Police say there's over 6 hours of footage to review since there were four officers present -- so they say they're gonna need more time to get the full picture. However, they reiterate that thus far ... it doesn't appear as if anything criminal was done -- on either end.

They also point out that no arrests were made from this stop ... only a speeding ticket was issued. GlockBoy Savoo, meanwhile, doesn't appear to have responded to the cops' story.

Kanye West Living In MB Stadium To Finish 'DONDA' Album!!!

Kanye West's listening party might be over and done with -- but the man hasn't left the venue where he held it ... he's made the stadium a home until he finishes his album.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Mr. West will miss his weekend performance at Rolling Loud in Miami because he has literally moved into Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

MBS was the location of Kanye's massive album party Thursday -- where scores of people came together to jam out to his new offering, "DONDA," and watch Ye perform.

We're told Ye is STILL IN THE BUIDLING ... and Kanye and team have created a studio space, living quarters and even have a chef to prepare his meals inside MBS.

Kanye was spotted at the Atlanta United soccer game Saturday wearing the exact same outfit he wore at the Donda event ... and had fans wondering -- what are you doing here, bro??? Well, we have the answer -- to put it simply, the guy is still working.

We're told Kanye was so inspired by the "Donda" crowd, he wanted to stay in Atlanta and finish things up ... with a new August 6 release date as the goal.

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WORKIN' THE CROWD
TMZ.com

It's unclear if any totally new tracks will come from Kanye's stadium visit -- or if he's just mixing and mastering -- but it's certainly a unique way to get things done.

RETURN OF THE KINGS
TMZ.com

Soooo ... if you're a night shift worker there and you hear some eerie sounds emanating from the lower deck somewhere -- don't stress, it's not the Phantom of the Opera. It's just Ye!

Wisconsin Cop Caught On Camera ... Allegedly Planting Drugs on Black Man

a baggie appears
GlockBoy Savoo/Facebook

Now, this is weird -- a Black man caught a cop on camera apparently tossing a baggie of drugs into his car ... but the police department in question is saying there may be more than meets the eye here.

A guy who goes by GlockBoy Savoo on Facebook -- who appears to be a musician of some sort under a label called TrechKids -- posted this video that's now going viral. It shows what appears to be a traffic stop underway in a car that Savoo is in ... and captures an eyebrow-raising moment.

You see a police officer -- who has since been identified as belonging to Caledonia PD out of Wisconsin -- approaching the car and quickly tossing something into the back seat. The photog, who appears to be Savoo, questions what it was ... and the cop kinda plays dumb.

The camera man jumps to the back seat for a close-up shot of what it is ... and it looks like a little baggie, indicative of drugs. It's a quick 16-second clip, and you can't see what happened after or before this strange moment. On its face ... it looks kinda sketchy.

Savoo is flat-out accusing this officer of what sounds like planting drugs on him as a way to get probable cause to search the rest of the vehicle. He writes, "First time ever seeing a cop try to throw sum on me just to get reason to search the car💯 he ain’t even know I was recording 💯 you can tell he was nervous 💯." Caledonia PD has another POV.

This what they have to say ... the cop does appear to be one of their own, and they've located the report for this incident. They're doing a full investigation as well into the insinuation something was planted -- including pulling body cam footage, dash cam video and testimony from this officer as well as others on the scene. They say it'll take some time.

Waiting for your permission to load the Facebook Post.

The Chief of Police there, Christopher Botsch, also adds this ... "Please keep in mind that the cell phone video that is circulating depicts only a small portion of the entire encounter; whereas, all available video may provide more context." He adds, "The Caledonia Police Department believes strongly in transparency; therefore, all body worn camera video will be made available within the coming days."

'Dating Game' Serial Killer Rodney Alcala Dead at 77 ... Death Row for OC Murders

Rodney Alcala (AKA, "The Dating Game Killer") -- who killed several women in Orange County, as well as a child -- has died.

The California Dept. of Corrections made the announcement Saturday, saying Alcala passed away of natural causes Friday while hospitalized in a hospital near the city of Corcoran, where he was on death row after being tied to, tried and convicted over the murders of multiple women in and around the Orange County area during the 1970s.

His case is one of the more famous ones among CA's serial killers -- as the guy actually appeared on (and won) an episode of the famous 'Dating Game' in '78 ... after which his would-be date, Cheryl Bradshaw, reportedly canceled their plans after actually meeting him.

Supposedly, she found him to be "creepy" ... and in hindsight, good on her for following her intuition -- because a jury, years later, found that he had, in fact, been on a killing spree even before his TV debut. Who knows what would've happened if she went out with him.

Alcala was initially charged and tried in the 1979 kidnapping and murder of a 12-year-old girl, Robin Samsoe, in 1980 ... for which he was convicted and sentenced to death row. That judgment was reversed, however, in '84 by and Alcala was given a new trial.

There, too, though he was found guilty again ... only to have a federal court of appeals overturn the sentence yet again years later in 2003 -- and a new trial was granted once more. Finally, he got nailed ... and it was all due to the advent of technology.

In addition to Samsoe's murder, OC prosecutors say they found DNA evidence linking him to the murders of four other women in Orange County between '77 and '79. Later, he was indicted for two more murders in NY -- dating back to '71 -- to which he pled guilty.

He was charged with yet another murder out of Wyoming as recently as 2016 -- allegedly killing a woman named Christine Thornton in '78, who was 6 months pregnant. It doesn't appear as though that case was resolved though. BTW, several other jurisdictions across the U.S. either suspected or linked Alcala to murders in their states as well, including WA, AZ, NY and NH. His true victim count is unknown.

Alcala was 77 years old.

Hair-y 'Karen' Asks Black Woman Selling Products ... Is This a Drug Deal???

HAIRY SITUATION
@prettii_tb/Tik Tok

A white lady approached a Black woman selling hair products to see if a drug deal was going down, and then suggested she scram ... and, of course, she's being called the new "Karen."

Check out this encounter from TikTok user @prettii_tb, who posted this clip a couple days ago out of Sacramento, CA -- in the Natomas neighborhood. It appears Pretti was attempting to buy some hair products from the woman on the bike ... who was hawking her goods -- extensions and the like -- from a basket, and seemed to be making her sales on the go.

The transaction was interrupted by this so-called "Karen" ... who asked what the heck was going on, and who also went on to say this looked like a good old-fashioned dope drop.

That was not the case, as the woman on the bike calmly and politely explained. You gotta watch this interaction -- the Black woman making the sale had every right to go off if she wanted ... but she kept her wits about her and broke down in detail what was happening.

The white lady says she's just giving her a "heads up" that what she's doing looks a certain way to certain people in the neighborhood, and that the cops might be called if she's not careful. The Black woman welcomes it, though, insisting she's doing nothing wrong.

It's just another case of someone making assumptions and poking their nose into someone else's business, unsolicited. And, if this woman really did think something sketchy was going on ... she coulda called the cops and let them deal ... as the bike vendor rightly pointed out.

Blueface Attacked By Fan ... After Beating TikToker in MMA Match

UPDATE

2:54 PM PT -- The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office tells TMZ they arrested Jonathan Parra, 25, last night at the Florida State Fairgrounds. He is charged with Trespass of an Occupied Structure.

UPDATE
UPDATE

We've also obtained Parra's mugshot from his arrest.

Rapper Blueface won his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship exhibition match Friday night against TikToker Kane Trujillo, but it was anything but a total crowd-pleaser, because one disgruntled fan jumped in the ring swinging ... and all hell broke loose.

In what was billed as a battle of the influencers, Blueface crushed Trujillo ... winning a lopsided victory by decision. As he celebrated -- hand up in the air -- the fan jumped the ropes and, it looks like one swing made contact with the rapper.

Blueface went ballistic as security swarmed the ring, tackling the jerk, but that didn't end the craziness. The rapper continued swinging and was held back as cops appeared in an attempt to control the situation.

The attacker was dragged out of the ring and eventually things calmed down and the fights continued as fans watched on FITE TV.

As for who got the worst of it ... it's still Trujillo. Blueface barraged him with punches ... his right hand was definitely on point.

As for the other influencers on the exhibition card ... YouTuber and TikTok star DK Money vs. Nick Ireland, and a TikTok battle between Evil Hero and Dakota Olave.

Originally published -- 5:54 AM PT

Morgan Wallen I Meant to Use N-Word Playfully ... It's Ignorant and Wrong

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IT'S PLAYFUL
ABC

Morgan Wallen says when he used the n-word after partying with his friends, he thought it was "playful" ... but he admits that's ignorant, and he now knows it's wrong.

The country music star gave his first interview about the scandal, the result of a video shot by a neighbor on January 31 in Nashville and obtained by TMZ ... showing Wallen casually dropping the slur while making fun of one of his friends.

Morgan tells Michael Strahan on "Good Morning America" ... he wasn't using the racial epithet in a derogatory manner, because he insists up until that point in his life he had never thought about it being wrong.

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PROFANE GOODBYE
TMZ.com

He repeats he was simply ignorant about what it meant, but says he knows now ... after conversations with Black leaders.

Wallen admits he can't fully understand why it makes Black people so upset because he's not in their shoes ... but says he's done a lot of thinking and soul-searching about it, along with a 30-day stint in rehab.

Morgan may have stirred up one more controversy before he was done answering questions, too. He told Strahan "it would seem" that country music has a race problem ... but he hasn't thought about it too much.

As we've reported ... the country singer has mostly remained out of the public eye since the video came out, but has gotten back to performing a little in recent weeks.

The scandal has also not hurt his popularity much, and he's even won some awards despite it.

Kanye West HOV & Ye Reunite!!! ... For Song on 'DONDA'

The seemingly impossible just happened at the end of Kanye's album release event in Atlanta ... Jay-Z hopped on a track, when many believed the two were still enemies.

Kanye played "DONDA" for tens of thousands of fans at Mercedes-Benz Stadium Thursday. West wore all red -- a look he made famous back in 2010 -- and danced, paced and at times stood totally still while the tracks blasted through stadium speakers.

The album had audio snippets from Kanye's late mother, Donda West, throughout and featured a ton of features -- including Travis Scott, Lil Baby, Don Toliver, Vory and Playboi Carti.

RETURN OF THE KINGS
TMZ.com

However, it wasn't until the final track where the biggest stunner of the night came ... a song with Jay-Z. What's more, Jay's producer and engineer, Young Guru, tweeted, "HOV did the verse today!!!! At 4pm" ... a possible reason the event's start was delayed almost 2 hours.

If you haven't followed along over the years, the feud between Kanye and HOV came to light in 2014 when Jay and Beyonce didn't attend Kim and Kanye's wedding. Things seemed to spiral after that, including public comments Kanye made during a show in 2016 when he lashed out at Jay-Z for not checking in on his family after Kim was robbed at gunpoint in Paris.

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WORKIN' THE CROWD
TMZ.com

From there ... Jay-Z dissed Kanye on his "4:44" album and Kanye eventually split from Jay's streaming service, Tidal. The two hadn't collabed or been publicly cordial up until Thursday.

Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.

Kanye and Jay-Z's collab album "Watch the Throne" will celebrate its 10-year anniversary next month ... and the new track Kanye released already has fans begging for a sequel.

Philly Cop Alleged Video Deletion ... Leads to arrest on several charges

ALLEGED TAMPERING

The Philadelphia police officer who allegedly deleted witness video during an arrest just got hauled in by his own boys in blue over the incident ... now he's facing criminal charges and is soon to be out of a job.

Officer Burnett -- the Philly PD cop identified as the one who allegedly scrubbed Jacob Giddings' footage during a gas station stop in March -- was arrested and arraigned Wednesday on several charges ... according to the Philadelphia D.A.'s Office.

THE RECOVERED FOOTAGE

The D.A. tells us Burnett's been charged with evidence tampering, attempted official oppression and obstruction of justice. It's unclear at this point how exactly the arrest went down -- be it Burnett turning himself in, or cops coming to nab him.

Burnett was first placed on administrative leave, launching an internal investigation, not to mention a civil suit filed against him -- and now ... criminal charges against the officer.

Of course, the smoking gun seems to be the body cam video. You'll recall ... his body camera was rolling while he was attempting to get Giddings out of the car -- capturing what Giddings claims is brutality and assault -- and it was also rolling when he appeared to delete video Giddings was taking of him in the run-up to the actual detainment and arrest.

Giddings provided even more videos that he says help his case ... offering extra photos from other body cameras which show Burnett fiddling with the phone.

No word on whether Burnett has entered a plea or not. As for Philly PD ... they say their Commissioner, Danielle Outlaw, has suspended Burnett for 30 days -- and plans to dismiss him entirely as soon as that's up. They also say he's been on the force for all of 4 years.

Gidding's attorney, Donte Mills of Mills & Edwards LLP, tells us, "This is what happens when we fight for each other. This is bigger than talking about change, it's demanding action. Police officers being arrested and held accountable never happens- Let me correct that, never use to happen. Now it does." Mills says Giddings was ecstatic when he heard the news.

Courtney Stodden Refutes Chrissy Teigen's Claim She Reached Out ... But You Can Tell Her This!!!

SETTING IT STRAIGHT
TMZ.com

Courtney Stodden insists Chrissy Teigen never reached out to them, but they're sending Chrissy a message ... some free advice on how to feel better about being in "cancel club."

Courtney's at a PETA event on Capitol Hill Wednesday, and talked to us about why they've been involved with the animal rights organization for several years -- the meat of the mission is to get folks to stop eating it.

Courtney -- who identifies as non-binary -- says major strides are being made, but there's still a long way to go, which brings us to their relationship with Teigen.

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SECRET SOCIETY
TMZ.com

As we reported ... Chrissy was out in WeHo Tuesday when she suggested she might be in "cancel club" forever following her cyberbullying scandal, but she also told us she DID reach out to Courtney, via text.

Stodden tells us that's not true and they have no idea what Teigen's talking about, but they apparently want to move on from that issue ... and raise another one.

As we've told you ... Courtney still thinks Chrissy is a bully playing the victim in order to garner some sympathy, so they suggest Teigen do something to prove that's not the case.

Watch for yourself ... but it sounds like the ball's been kicked over to Chrissy's court.

Team USA's Erik Shoji Shows Off Olympic Village Food ... No Fyre Fest Here!!!

TEAM USA TASTE TEST
TikTok / @thelibero

Olympic athletes are gonna eat GOOOOOD during the Tokyo Games ... 'cause USA volleyball player Erik Shoji gave an official taste test at one of the dining halls this week -- and it looks delicious!!

Of course, Shoji is staying in the Olympic Village ... and says he has two dining options -- main and casual.

For Tuesday's dinner, Shoji picked casual -- which is all Japanese food -- and shared his experience on TikTok ... warning viewers, "watching me eat is CRINGE."

Shoji stuffs his face with teriyaki beef, grilled pork, seasoned corn, okonomiyaki, somen salad and fruit for dessert ... giving a big thumbs up to each course of his meal.

"It's pretty good!!!" Shoji says as he scarfs down the grub.

No word on how good the "main" option is -- but we're sure it's full of American favorites to help the athletes feel at home.

It's a huge sigh of relief to know the athletes don't have a Fyre Fest situation on their hands -- remember the "sandwiches" staff were left eating during that crap show??

The 31-year-old also gave Olympics fans a tour of where he's staying during the Games -- "This is our little living room. Kinda small," Shoji says. "But, the best part is our balcony view!"

There's also a fridge, microwave and snacks -- but no stove.

But, with OV dining like that ... who needs to cook?!

DESIGNATED DIGS
TikTok / @thelibero

Olympics Bear Invades Softball Stadium ... Still On The Loose!!!

Beary scary situation in Tokyo ... 'cause a wild bear has broken into the Olympic softball stadium -- and it's STILL ON THE LOOSE!!!

Officials in Fukushima are furiously searching for the wild animal with games underway ... after the Asian black bear was spotted twice inside the Azuma Sports Park earlier this week.

Security at the venue is reportedly trying like hell to find and capture the bear -- blaring music on the speakers and even letting off firecrackers in hopes of scaring it out of hiding ... but so far, no bear.

Of course, there are no fans in the stands at the games ... but ya gotta give props to the teams for being brave and still playing!

Fortunately, the bear didn't make an appearance as the opening round kicked off on Tuesday ... but here's hoping all the rest of the games don't get an unexpected visitor!

BTW -- Team USA won its opener against Italy, 2-0 ... so good start for the Red, White and Blue!!!

Alabama City Councilman Under Fire After Hurling N-Word During Council Meeting

THE RACIST OUTBURST

There are growing calls for a city councilman in Alabama to resign after he stood up in the middle of a meeting, and loudly asked, "Do we have a house n***er in here?"

John "Tommy" Bryant blurted out the racial slur in a Tarrant City Council meeting Monday night that was open to the public -- and he showed zero remorse afterward even as residents and city council members alike reacted with shock and disdain.

It all started when Mayor Wayman Newton, who is Black, brought up some of Bryant's wife's controversial social media posts. At one point you can hear a resident also chime in before Bryant finally stands up and, in a shockingly comfortable manner, drops the epithet.

You can hear gasps in the room after Bryant drops the n-word. Now, he claims he only repeated it because Newton allegedly used the word during a previous meeting.

Bryant doubled down and defended his actions ... telling CBS42 it's "ok for me to repeat it because as I said before, I wanted everybody to know what the mayor had said. He said it in a derogatory manner. I said it so that people would know what the mayor said."

Several of Bryant's colleagues have called for his resignation, but he's defiant ... saying maybe next time he'll run for mayor.

Milwaukee Bucks Fans Flee In Terror After Gunshots Ring Out ... At Title Celebration

Dozens of gunshots sent celebrating Milwaukee Bucks fans running for their lives after Tuesday night's NBA championship game ... and video from the scene is chilling.

It all happened near Fiserv Forum, where just minutes prior to the chaos, Giannis Antetokounmpo had helped earn Milwaukee an NBA title with a victory over the Suns.

Multiple cameras captured the terrifying images from the streets surrounding the arena ... and in footage from WISN12 News' broadcast -- you can see just how horrifying the situation was.

Gunfire erupted loudly and repeatedly near hundreds of fans who were celebrating the victory ... and it all grew so intense, people could be seen sprinting from the area in fear.

Milwaukee Police have not given specific details surrounding the shots yet -- but officials did say in a statement Wednesday that 3 people were injured in shootings shortly after the Bucks won it all.

According to cops, a 19-year-old woman, a 32-year-old man, and a 22-year-old man all suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Police added they've launched an investigation into it all.

Just before the gunfire broke out ... the scene was epic in Milwaukee -- with more than 60,000 fans cramming into areas near the stadium to watch the game and then celebrate the win afterward.

Some were seen climbing on street poles after the victory ... while others were caught on camera leaping into the Milwaukee River.

The NBA championship is Milwaukee's first since 1971.

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