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Carole Baskin is participating in jokes about Don Lewis' mysterious disappearance while she's on 'DWTS' ... at least according to Don's family, and now they're taking her to court.

Don's daughters Gale, Lynda and Donna, plus his former assistant, Anne McQueen are suing Carole for defamation, and they say Don's disappearance is no laughing matter.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Anne claims Carole was complicit with jokes about Don's death on "Dancing with the Stars," when judges brought up TikTok videos inspired by her storyline in 'Tiger King.'

You've probably seen the dance and lyrics, set to Megan Thee Stallion's "Savage" ... "Carole Baskin killed her husband, whacked him. Can't convince me that it didn't happen. Fed him to tigers, they snackin'. What's happening?"

In the docs, Don's former assistant says Carole should have spoken out against the jokes ... and she also says Carole should have put her foot down when a 'DWTS' judge said she "didn't quite kill the paso double, it was kind of sedated." Anne takes umbrage with the use of "kill" and "sedated."

Don's family is not only accusing Carole of being complicit with the Don quips on 'DWTS,' but also going along with the joke in an interview with "Good Morning America" when she promised to "really kill it next week" ... according to the suit.

Don's family attorney, John Phillips, says Carole and Anne went down this road back in 1998, when Carole settled a libel and slander from Anne for $50,000. The problem, they claim, is that Carole is now repeating some of those false statements on 'DWTS,' and while reading her journals on social media.

We reached out to Carole, who's always maintained her innocence in Don's case ... but so far, no word back.

If the "Toy Story 4" character Duke Caboom reminded you of Evel Knievel, you're not alone -- the folks in charge of his image and likeness thought so too ... and now they're suing.

A company called K&K Promotions just filed suit against Disney, Pixar and whole a bunch of their subsidiaries ... claiming the stuntman driver toy that Keanu Reeves voiced in the latest 'Toy Story' flick is a clear and obvious rip-off of the legendary American motorcycle daredevil.

More importantly, K&K claims they own all the rights to Evel Knievel's likeness, persona, and brand and says the Mouse House did NOT get any type of approval to base one of their characters after Evel.

If you've seen the movie ... this one's easy to spot as far as the similarities go -- and it would appear critics and other junket interviewers thought so too, according to the lawsuit.

Per the docs, obtained by TMZ, K&K say that Evel's style, influence and even a nod to his famous stunt cycle toy from the '70s is clearly sprinkled throughout the film -- of course, Duke himself is dubbed as the greatest Canadian stuntman, and he even comes with an energizer to wind up and release his bike ... much like the Evel toy from back in the day. They attached photos ... it's a thing.

K&K even allege Disney instructed its 'T4' cast and other people involved in the production to go out of their way to avoid using Evel's name during interviews, as well as other trademarked items. For example, they claim Tony Hale was doing mental gymnastics in an interview about why they called his character Forky, when he looks more like a Spork.

According to K&K, it's because Disney was worried about running afoul of existing trademarks for the term "spork" ... and tried getting around using it, but still kinda used it in the end -- sorta like K&K claims they did with Evel.

Of course, there's also the merchandise aspect -- K&K say Disney cranked out a ton of products from "Toy Story 4," including Duke Caboom toys, and made lots of cash from it.

Dr. Dre's estranged wife had the gall to dip into a well-funded cookie jar not just once, but TWICE ... at least according to Dre's biz partner, who's now accusing her of grand theft.

Attorneys for Larry Chatman -- who co-founded Record One studio with Dre in 2015 -- just fired off another letter to Nicole Young ... accusing her withdrawing an extra $30,000-plus from the business account, despite no longer being legally authorized.

We already told you about the $353k Larry claims Nicole embezzled from the account in late August. The company accused Nicole of criminal conduct in draining the account and fired off a letter to that effect. After receiving the letter, Chatman says Nicole siphoned another $31,457, two days AFTER she was given the boot and removed in any official capacity.

In Larry and his attorneys' eyes ... that amounts to grand theft ... on top of the alleged $353k embezzlement from earlier.

And, yes, they're threatening legal action.

Nicole's attorney called their first accusation a "low-grade PR stunt" meant to embarrass his client and take the spotlight away from a recent lawsuit she filed against Dre himself ... in which she accused him of hiding assets she feels entitled to in the divorce.

Nicole's lawyer, Bryan Freedman, tells TMZ, "This is a clear attempt to smear Nicole's name.  As people are well aware, banks do not give out money to people who are not authorized to receive it."

This has become an epically-nasty divorce. Nicole claims Dre tore up the prenup she signed right before getting married. He calls BS on that. She also wants nearly $2 mil a month in temporary spousal support while the divorce winds its way through the legal system.

Cardi B and her sister are getting sued after labeling a group of beachgoers as "racist MAGA supporters" ... this according to a lawsuit.

Peter Caliendo, Pauline Caliendo and Manuel Alarcon are suing the rapper, her sister, Hennessy Carolina, and Hennessy's GF, Michelle Diaz, claiming they defamed them by labeling them as racist during a squabble at the Hamptons earlier this month.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, the plaintiffs claim they were enjoying their time at Smith Point beach with their families when Hennessy approached them with rage ... spitting, insulting and threatening them just because one of them was wearing a MAGA hat.

At the time, Cardi tweeted a video of the altercation ... saying her sister was getting harassed because she and her friend are an Afro-Hispanic gay couple.

The group also claims Cardi B, Hennessy and Michelle edited the video and posted it on social media to falsely paint them as racists. Cardi had posted a video later that day with audio apparently showing Hennessy explaining that someone in the group told her to go back to her country.

Hennessy's side of the story was they were targeted because they "saw us parking here and we were speaking Spanish and we're mixed."

R. Kelly's renewed plea to get sprung from jail is getting push back from Uncle Sam, who says his most recent concern -- getting attacked behind bars -- has been neutralized.

Federal prosecutors just filed a reply to R. Kelly's latest request to be released on bail after he was ambushed and beaten by a fellow Chicago MCC inmate ... a guy Kelly says could've cost him his life. The government's response? Relax, it was a one-and-done.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, the feds say the attack on R. Kelly was a one-time, isolated event -- and that it can't happen again, at least not with the same guy ... because he's been moved to a new facility in Michigan.

So, in their eyes, the threat has left the building.

The feds also dispute R. Kelly's claim the attacker allegedly told a doctor on site that he needed to attack the singer for attention on his own case -- claiming the doctor denied that convo ever happened. That said, they also point out that if R. Kelly's still sour about his injuries ... he can take it up in civil court.

An autistic teen was shot by police in Utah, leaving him seriously injured ... and cops are now releasing the body cam footage of the incident.

13-year-old Linden Cameron's mother called the cops earlier this month, saying he was having a breakdown -- brought on by Asperger's syndrome -- and she needed assistance managing the situation.

On the body cam, you see one cop confront Linden on a dark sidewalk as he tells him to get on the ground. The kid doesn't obey the orders at first, and officers eventually open fire.

Eleven shots are heard on video -- it's unclear how many struck Linden, but he immediately went down and writhed in pain. He also seems to say "I don't feel good" and "Tell my mom I love her." Somehow, he survived the ordeal and was hospitalized.

Linden's mother had reportedly told cops he was easily triggered by law enforcement and that he may have had a BB gun, but she didn't think it was real. Cops allegedly told her they'd have to treat it like it was real.

Kodak Black's life has been a living hell at a federal prison in Kentucky due to beatings at the hands of guards, mental abuse and religious suppression ... so claims the rapper in a new suit.

Kodak's going after the Federal Bureau of prisons along with its director and the warden of the Big Sandy maximum security prison, claiming he's been tortured and had his rights violated ever since he was transferred there in October 2019.

According to the docs ... the rapper's transfer was a result of an altercation with another inmate while he was incarcerated at a Miami prison, in which an officer was injured.

Kodak claims Big Sandy guards put a "gang beating" on him shortly after he arrived, allegedly as retaliation for the injured Miami prison guard. He claims the guards "flicked" his testicles during the beatdown.

Since then, the rapper claims he's routinely punished and mistreated for no legitimate law enforcement reason, including being placed by guards in a backless paper gown on a 4-point restraint for more than 6 hours ... with no access to a bathroom.

According to the docs ... this has forced Kodak to urinate and defecate on himself while the guards make jokes. He claims medical records show that this treatment also resulted in his mouth bleeding, lacerations and vomiting.

There's more -- the Big Sandy prison guards are accused of placing Kodak on his knees execution-style in just his underwear while soaking wet, which he claims has caused him physical harm along with emotional distress and humiliation.

Finally, Kodak's legal team of attorneys Bradford Cohen, Robert Buschel and Jonathan Schwartz are following up on their threat to sue because the rapper is also allegedly being denied access to a rabbi.

According to the lawsuit, Kodak is a practicing Hebrew Israelite, but his requests to meet with a rabbi in order to faithfully practice his religion have fallen on deaf ears ... while he claims other inmates are granted access to clergy.

Magic Johnson and his employees are getting besieged by a guy who's issuing threats and demands, and recently made it past Magic’s office security -- so, now Magic's court order protection.

A judge granted the NBA legend a temporary restraining order today against a guy named Willie Frazier who, Magic says, has been harassing him and his employees for years… and things have been getting worse and worse.

According to Magic’s legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Frazier started sending correspondence to Magic's personal and business addresses, demanding money and making wild claims that Magic stole documents from Frazier and, ultimately, stole Frazier’s identity.

Magic’s staff tried to ignore the demands, but Frazier's contacts became increasingly frequent — until they were getting bizarre voicemails almost every week. On some of those calls, Frazier claimed he was with the FBI and that if Magic didn't do what he wanted, he would physically harm Magic and his staff. Magic characterizes the behavior as a form of “stalking," saying he feared for his and others' safety.

Finally, in 2020 ... Magic says a hard line was crossed when Frazier twice came to Magic’s office building and made it past security, and rode the elevator to Magic’s floor. When Frazier couldn’t get inside the suite, he allegedly slipped another of his bizarre demands under the door.

Here's the straight poop -- an Oklahoma woman really had to go number two when she got pulled over by a cop, an excuse that resulted in a high-speed chase and her in handcuffs ... and we've got the raw vid.

28-year-old Emily Owings led an Enid PD officer on a wild ride last week after he stopped her for not wearing a seatbelt, and immediately got a laundry list of excuses once he realized she had other legal troubles that might've required he bring her in.

By that, we mean she told him it was her birthday, but much more urgently ... she claimed she had to take a dump, and BAD. The cop wasn't buying it though, and did what he needed to do ... namely, check to see if there were outstanding warrants.

Turns out, Enid PD says there was ... not to mention her license was suspended. When the officer informed her of all this, Ms. Owing started bawling and pleading with the guy ... again telling him she had to drop one. It's sad ... but so funny too.

Anyway, when they finally tell her she is, in fact, wanted in another county and they gotta take her into custody -- the lady speeds off, before eventually being stopped and arrested. As they're hauling her off, she once again asks to defecate ... in the cop's car, no less.

Like the rest of the world, Bobby Shmurda has little to no reason to celebrate 2020 -- because he's not getting out of prison just yet ... despite high hopes he would be paroled.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Bobby was denied parole after his interview with the Board last week. No reason was given as to why, but we're told he's almost certainly going to be held in custody until the very end of his max sentence ... December 11, 2021.

We know Bobby has NOT been helping his own cause while doing his time. Remember, the rapper racked up 11 violations, including drug possession, fighting and having a shank -- and good behavior clearly weighs heavily with the parole board.

As we reported ... he copped a plea deal back in September 2016 ... to conspiracy to possess weapons and possession of a weapon. The other charges -- including conspiracy to commit murder -- were tossed. Bobby was initially sentenced to 6 to 7 years in prison, and he's been in December 2014.

TMZ broke the story ... Bobby's mother told us her son was ready to drop new music if granted parole, and he also wants to produce a documentary about his life ... in the hopes it can be used as an educational tool for troubled youth.

That documentary's gonna have to wait a little longer.

Larry King's estranged wife says she has no form of income and needs the legendary interviewer to cough up some dough.

Shawn King filed new docs asking for the former CNN host to pay her at least $33,100 per month in temporary spousal support ... this according to legal docs obtained by TMZ. Shawn also wants Larry to pay retroactive to August 20, 2019, which is when Larry filed for divorce.

Shawn says she needs spousal support because she has no form of income ... she says she gave up lucrative TV hosting and modeling jobs after becoming a homemaker to raise their kids. She says she was financially dependent on Larry during their 22-year marriage.

She makes no bones about it ... she claims Larry makes way more than the amount he disclosed in docs -- $1.9 million per year from infomercials. She brought up, for example, his recent $5 million podcast deal to host "The Millionth Question."

DaBaby's Christmas time scuffle at an L.A.-area hotel is coming back to haunt him nearly a year later -- the guy he roughed up on camera is taking him to court over it.

The guy's name is Cristofher Pocasangre, and he just filed suit against DaBaby claiming his recorded confrontation from December 2019 amounts to assault, battery, infliction of emotional distress and a litany of other actions he now wants a judge to weigh in on.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Pocasangre says he was working at a Marriott hotel near Bev Hills when he learned DB was on site and asked him for a pic. DaBaby said no, and Pocasangre admits he snapped a selfie anyway with the rapper in the background -- something DaBaby confirmed himself at the time, and offered as justification for getting physical.

Now, get this ... Pocasangre claims DaBaby told him to delete the photo, which Pocasangre says he actually did right on the spot. That apparently wasn't enough for DB, though. Pocasangre claims, in docs obtained by TMZ, DaBaby followed him in and assaulted him.

In surveillance video of the altercation, you see what appears to be DaBaby violently shoving the guy up against the wall and sitting him down as he looms over him. Again, DaBaby tried defending himself when this surfaced by saying he was protecting his daughter, whom he says was with him during this incident, and whose identity he was trying to shield.

In a since-deleted IG video of him explaining this, DaBaby also made it seem like Pocasangre did NOT comply with his demand for the pic to be deleted.

Claudia Jordan turned Just Peachy wine into a booming brand, then got left high and dry because she supports the Black Lives Matter movement ... or so she claims in a new suit.

The former 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' star is going after Biagio Cru and Estate Wines, because she claims she was wrongfully fired in late 2018 over her public support of justice for Black people and speaking out against unlawful police treatment.

According to the docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Jordan claims she entered into an agreement with Biagio in 2016 to work together, in which she would promote Just Peachy in return for 3 percent ownership of the brand and 3 percent of all the money it hauls in.

Claudia says the campaign kicked off in 2017 and was a huge success over the following year. She claims sales were dramatically boosted due to her involvement in the strategy and marketing ... and the brand became synonymous with her name.

Despite all that, Claudia claims Biagio tried to terminate its contract with her in late 2018 and stopped paying her. She alleges this was due to her support of BLM, and even says Biagio commented that her social media posts against police brutality of African-Americans were "too slanted."

According to the suit -- filed by attorney Christopher Brown -- Biagio stopped sending her financial statements in 2018 and cut her off. Claudia also claims Biagio continues to use her association with Just Peachy to its advantage while denying it struck a deal giving her ownership.

The company claims it elected to part ways with Claudia for "legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons; namely, dissatisfaction with Ms. Jordan’s ability to boost sales in relevant markets" ... but she believes it was over her political views on racial issues.

She's suing for breach of contract and is seeking hundreds of thousands or more in damages.

A company Dr. Dre and his estranged wife founded together is accusing her of draining the primary business account dry and even criminal embezzlement ... just the latest sign of how nasty this divorce is getting.

TMZ has obtained a letter that was fired off to Nicole Young by attorneys for Record One recording studio, which Dre and Larry Chatman founded in 2015. Record One is operated by an LLC. Nicole was a trustee and signatory on the LLC's checking account.

The letter launches right into allegations of wrongdoing by Nicole -- claiming she "decimated" the company's bank account last month to the tune of $353,571.85.  Attorney Ed McPherson, who reps the LLC that operates Record One, attached the check Nicole wrote to herself.

The letter accuses Nicole of "blatant and unjustifiable criminal embezzlement of corporate funds," as well as a breach of her fiduciary duties.

Dre and his other partner demand Nicole return the cash they claim she jacked no later than a week from Tuesday ... otherwise, the attorneys say they'll be filing suit against her.

Remember, Nicole just accused Dre of pilfering assets ... which our Dre sources called BS. Nicole also claims the prenup she signed was under duress and Dre had a change of heart a few years into the marriage and ripped it up. Again, we're told Dre calls BS.

New York's Attorney General is indignant local authorities in the Daniel Prude and other cases have kept body cam video under wraps for months, and she's changing that in a big way.

Letitia James just announced her office will release body cam video in excessive force cases early ... way earlier than the months delay in the Prude case. She made it clear ... she's not going to wait for local authorities to act ... James wants the video released quickly so the public can evaluate what happened by the footage, and not hearsay or speculation.

She would not discuss the Prude case, saying it's before a Grand Jury and she will not get in the way of the hearing. She did say this should have been a case where health care professionals, not police, should have been the ones to intervene to help Prude.

The Grand Jury is deciding whether to indict the officers. She did express what she called "righteous indignation" over the deaths of Prude, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

As we reported ... seven officers were initially suspended after an investigation was launched. A couple weeks ago, James announced she was kicking the case over to a grand jury to review ... placing the decision on whether to bring charges on NY citizens.

The city of Rochester has been dealing with lots of changes lately -- namely, the top leadership at the police department was given walking papers ... this after the mayor slammed their handling of the case from the get-go. Mayor Lovely Warren even cut the Police Chief's time short and fired him before he could retire ... while admonishing some of her own staff.

Protests have been ongoing in the weeks since body cam footage of Prude's arrest and subsequent death surfaced ... showing him being handcuffed naked in the freezing streets and eventually restrained with a spit sack over his head, which led to him losing his life.

Fetty Wap's gonna have to figure out life in the single lane during a pandemic ... 'cause the rapper's officially divorced.

Fetty and Leandra Gonzalez agreed to a divorce settlement and the judge signed off on it on September 4 to make it official ... this according to legal docs obtained by TMZ.

The rapper and Leandra got married August 3, 2019 ... so their marriage survived a little over a year. They had no kids and the terms of their settlement are under wraps.

Leandra, who filed for divorce in March, alleged in legal docs Fetty was a booze-hound and abusive cheater. She claimed Fetty was physically abusive less than a month after getting married in Toronto. She also alleges Fetty cheated on her multiple times with several women ... including going on a trip to the Bahamas on New Year's Eve with another woman. Fetty denied all of the allegations.

Either way ... they can finally put their divorce drama behind them.