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Boxing star Victor Ortiz is officially off the hook in his sexual assault case stemming from an alleged rape in 2018 -- all of the criminal charges have been dropped, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

As we previously reported, 33-year-old Ortiz was hit 3 felony charges after a woman claimed she was raped by the boxer at a residence in Oxnard, CA.

Ortiz was arrested and booked for forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and forcible digital penetration -- and was facing serious prison time if convicted. Ortiz has long denied the allegations and spent the past 2 years fighting the case in court.

But, the case was formally dismissed at a court hearing on Monday -- and according to court records obtained by TMZ Sports, prosecutors say they simply could not prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Ortiz was pleased with the decision, posing for a picture in front of the courthouse with his attorney, Sam Spira, and others.

Ortiz also issued a statement, saying, "Although I was confident this would be the result, this still has been a terrible and unimaginable ordeal that I am relieved to put behind me."

"With this case no longer my focus, I look forward to picking up and advancing my boxing and entertainment careers."

"I can’t wait to get back in the gym. I also look forward to spending my time with my two young children, my family and loyal friends without the weight of these charges hanging over me and my loved ones."

Ortiz -- who competed on "Dancing With the Stars" in 2013 -- was dropped from his Sept. 2018 bout with John Molina Jr. after his arrest. The 33-year-old has not fought since.

Ortiz was also a budding actor before the allegations - starring in movies like "The Expendables 3" and "South Paw."

The moment a crazed gunman was shot to death on the steps of an NYC church was captured on camera -- and the video is absolutely intense.

NYPD officers rushed to St. John the Divine Cathedral Sunday in Harlem, responding to reports of a guy opening fire into the air at an outdoor concert. Fortunately, nobody was hurt and folks were able to either escape outright or take cover inside the cathedral -- but it quickly led to a tense standoff right out front.

A man across the street recorded the fatal moment the gunman was struck by a bullet, which took him down. Prior to that though, he repeatedly dodged several shots from cops by taking cover behind a pillar at the cathedral's front doors.

You can hear cops demanding he drop his gun and surrender ... and at one point the guy screams "kill me" multiple times. NYPD says he was hit in the head, and later pronounced dead at a hospital.

The gunman was the only reported casualty or injury.

A ton of folks who'd taken shelter inside were safely evacuated -- and you can tell they're all rattled. So far, there's no suspected motive for the attempted shooting ... the only thing cops are saying is he came armed with multiple firearms -- including semi-automatic weapons -- some knives, rope, gasoline, wire and a bible in his backpack.

Selena's brother says the actress playing her on the Netflix series does an incredible job capturing her essence ... even though critics are giving her a hard time.

A.B. Quintanilla's giving his stamp of approval to Christian Serratos for her portrayal of The Queen of Tejano music in the bio-drama "Selena: The Series," telling us she's so good ... he finds himself feeling like he's watching his younger sister again.

Some viewers of the show aren't nearly as supportive, but A.B. feels they're either nitpicking or their criticism is misguided. For example, Serratos has been getting flak for lip-syncing poorly on 'The Series' ... but A.B. says that's actually an accurate representation of his sis.

He tells us Selena struggled with that early in her career, and there was a learning process before she improved ... which A.B. says Serratos demonstrates in later episodes.

As for the haters who don't think Christian looks enough like Selena -- A.B. points out that some people felt the same way about Jennifer Lopez when she played the Mexican singer in the 1997 "Selena" film ... especially because she's not Mexican.

A.B. dismisses all that as petty, and says it's ultimately up to the actor to make the viewer believe they are who they are playing on the screen ... and Serratos nails it.

Lottie Moss' joke she and her friends are super-spreading COVID-19 -- which they illustrated on camera -- didn't score any laughs, and now she's apologizing.

The model, Kate Moss' younger sister, posted an apology Monday, saying she screwed up by partaking in what she thought was care-free goofing with some of her girlfriends in London. Lottie and co. pretended to make out and openly called themselves super-spreaders.

Naturally, that pissed of a lot of people, who called her out for taking the pandemic lightly.

In her mea culpa post, Lottie said ... "I just wanted to come on here and say I am so sorry for saying I was a super spreader." She explains someone on the live feed made the comment and that she repeated it without thinking, but emphasizes she's not a super-spreader and does not condone anyone spreading a virus as deadly as this one as haphazardly as she did on camera.

She continues, "I was out for dinner with 4 friends 3 of which are in the same household and under the government guidelines - as I live alone - I am allowed a support bubble of 4."

Lottie goes on to sincerely apologize for the insensitive joke, while mentioning that she sometimes forgets she's a public figure who's gotta watch her actions. The 22-year-old model adds, "I am still young and dumb and learning."

Meghan Markle's so inspired by stories of compassion she's witnessing through the pandemic, she decided to make a surprise appearance to honor those very heroes.

The Duchess of Sussex made an unscheduled appearance on CNN's 'Heroes' special Sunday night to thank "individuals (who) stood up and made sure the most basic needs of our communities were met. They made sure those around them did not have to suffer in isolation."

It's the first time Meghan has made a public statement since her op-ed in the New York Times last month, revealing she'd suffered a miscarriage in the summer. She and Prince Harry -- who left their royal roles in March -- have kept a low profile since moving to California, but still found ways to help here.

TMZ broke the story ... the couple quietly delivered quality food to needy folks back in April. Then, at the start of the school year, they dished out school supplies to students in need.

JoJo Siwa made a holiday wish come true for a very special little fan ... and Santa Claus couldn't help but pop in to spread even more cheer.

The YouTube star teamed up with Make-A-Wish and Macy's for a virtual hangout with 5-year-old Ainarah from Virginia, who has a neuromuscular disorder. Ainarah’s wish was to chat with JoJo, but the singer did her one better -- they're now forever linked as friends with matching bracelets.

We're told the adorable little girl and JoJo also chatted about music, fashion and what they want for Christmas ... before the big guy from the North Pole dropped in.

"[Sean O'Malley] is a cry baby. He's a little bitch! He's a bitch once, you're gonna be a bitch forever! I don't care about the guy! He can talk whatever he want."

That's 28-year-old UFC fighter Marlon "Chito" Vera opening up a verbal can of whoop-ass on Suga Sean ... 4 months after handing O'Malley the 1st loss of his career.

Remember, Vera won by TKO in the first round after O'Malley suffered an apparent ankle injury early in the fight.

After the loss, O'Malley wasn't exactly complimentary of his opponent -- saying, "I lost to a guy I feel like is not that good."

O'Malley also recently posted a photo of him punching Vera with the caption ... "Unbeaten."

These guys hate each other's guts ... so, rematch??

Very unlikely, according to Vera, who tells TMZ Sports he's got bigger fish to fry.

"Let's be real. There's not big money in the rematch because first thing, he's not Conor McGregor. Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz, that's money," Vera says.

"Whoever fights Conor McGregor, it's money! O'Malley is just like a lower version of Conor McGregor. He's like the China version of him -- he's made in China. He's fake!"

Despite the trash talk, Vera says if UFC honcho Dana White offered him the fight, he wouldn't turn it down.

"Don't get me wrong, Dana White told me, 'You never refuse a fight.' They know I never refuse a fight, so if they call me one day to fight him or somebody else, I'd take it!"

Music to the ears of fans who want to see these dudes back in a locked cage together. But first, Vera has his hands full next weekend at UFC Fight Night 183 with MMA legend Jose Aldo.

"[Aldo's] definitely a killer. He's definitely a tough fighter, but of course, I definitely believe his time has passed."

Being in a pandemic sucks for everyone, but foster kids across the country are finding it especially tough ... and it's heartbreaking.

Julie Brown, the Executive Director of Holy Family Services -- the oldest adoption agency in Southern California -- tells TMZ there's a 50 percent decline in the number of people volunteering to foster kids from the same time last year.

She says surging COVID cases have scared potential foster parents ... for obvious reasons.

And, it gets worse ... COVID is keeping some foster kids from visiting their biological families. As you may know, some of these kids are from loving families that just don't have the resources to care for them. The fact these kids can't visit their birth families during the holidays has created anxiety and depression.

Janice Goldwater, founder and CEO of Adoptions Together in the Washington metro area, tells us they try really hard to get children into adoptive homes by the holidays, but travel restrictions and work-from-home difficulties have derailed their placement process. Sadly, this means more kids will be stuck in foster care or group homes this year ... and spend another holiday without a family of their own.

Foster kids are also being left out in the cold when it comes to Xmas festivities. Houston's Ascension Child and Family Services rely on donations to throw Christmas celebrations for the kids, but funds are way down this year. We're told the kids in their care are really struggling emotionally.

Before this shocked tot was slaying on the big screen, she was just another cute kid with lots of expression growing up in Chiswick, London.

This babe with bangs is well known for her characters in killer action-packed films ... including her leading role in a 5-part movie series that focuses on a deadly war between vampires and werewolves.

Even with multiple action roles under her belt, she's still made time for comedy as well. You can find her playing -- and pausing -- alongside Adam Sandler in a 2006 Happy Madison production.

A gym owner in New Jersey seems to be daring the governor and local authorities to come at him (bro) -- saying he's gotten over a million bucks in fines for staying open ... something he says he'll continue to do no matter what.

The guy's name is Ian Smith, co-owner of Atilis Gym in Bellmawr -- where he and his partners have been fully opening their doors to the public ... despite state mandates that limit the number of people in gyms and mandatory mask-wearing. He's enforced none of it.

His defiance has been an ongoing saga over the past several months of the pandemic -- but a new video Smith released might as well be a clear line in the sand he's drawing.

Check it out ... it's him in the middle of his packed gym -- where no face coverings can be seen -- and he's going through typed-out cue cards that lay out what's been going on there. He says the gym has over a million dollars in fines ($1.2 mil to be specific) and the township continues to fine him around $15k a day every day he breaks the rules.

Smith also writes that he and his partners have even been arrested for flouting the regulations -- but adds ... he simply doesn't care, and will keep on keepin' on.

He then takes aim at Gov. Phil Murphy ... saying he'll probably see this video and fine him again, but watch -- Smith is calling him out, because he makes it seem like the fines are meaningless and anything short of forcibly locking the place up with chains won't stop him.

It poses a very real and serious question -- how much authority do local governments and state governments have in getting their citizens to comply, and what do you do when even a MILLION DOLLARS isn't enough to sway someone to act right??? It's a tricky predicament.

An Amazon driver making deliveries parked his van in the middle of the road, and then got confronted by people who were held up behind him ... but a key piece of information is missing to direct the outrage here.

Check out this intense clip of an Amazon driver in Virginia getting into an argument with another fella who got out of his own vehicle to tell him to move his car and park it in space along the sidewalk ... and recording part of the encounter at the same time.

The video starts right in the heat of the moment -- the guy filming tells the driver to move his van, or he'll move it for him ... because him parking in the middle of a narrow street has caused a massive traffic jam of several vehicles, who were all trying to get a move on.

The Amazon driver holds his ground, saying he's going to carry out his job duty and deliver the packages at the house right next to them -- and then only after that would he move. He basically says they're gonna have to wait, which pisses off the camera man like no other.

For starters, there's no context or insight to the video as to how long the Amazon driver had been parked out there in the road like that. If it was just a few seconds, then the people who got out to make a fuss about it are clearly in the wrong and overreacting.

If, however, the driver had been perched for a while ... it's reasonable for folks to start getting impatient and demand he move. There's really no way of telling for sure from this.

The bigger question, perhaps, is whether this is in line with the Amazon driver policy -- namely, are they instructed to park in the middle of the road like this, or are they told to try and find a parking space if available to avoid these types of situations?

We've all seen delivery trucks from different shipping companies double park or sometimes just sit in the middle of the road -- but it's unclear if that's the official directive from said companies, or something drivers started doing on their own over the years.

Kim Kardashian is exhausted -- having to collect four different Elf on a Shelf dolls every day until Christmas -- so she waved her wand and gave 'em "COVID," and then put the toys on a healthy timeout.

The reality star posted a hilarious video on Instagram Sunday, showing her four children's own elves in glass jars -- where she says they'll remain until at least the 23rd so they can quarantine ... this because she just needs a break from all the EOAS household fun.

It's freaking funny ... Kim wrote up a note for her little ones -- North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm -- which makes it seem like it's from the elves themselves. It says, "We are on a 10 Day Quarantine! We still have our magic and will be back to flying around in 10 days."

Sounds like this will do the trick and give Kim and co. some peace of mind -- she says she's tired of having to remember to collect all 4 of these things from all over the house, so she took things into her own hands and deemed them to be riddled with COVID. Don't worry, kiddies ... something tells us they'll make a full recovery -- even if it's less than 14 days.

If you're unfamiliar, Elf on a Shelf is a popular holiday tradition. It's based on a book of the same name and entails you putting your own elf in secretive places throughout your home to "spy" on people for Santa, to make sure they're nice throughout December.

There's been a new twist to the meme/game, and celebs have gone to town on it this Christmas season. Instead of an elf, they're putting other celebs and/or movies and characters that rhyme with their own name, and photoshopping them onto their shoulders.

For example ... Elizabeth Banks plopped Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump onto her shoulder, and dubbed it Hanks-on-Banks. Reese Witherspoon got in on the fun too, and did "Grease"-on-Reese. Ryan Seacrest did Luke Bryan-on-a-Ryan, and Mariah Carey did Jim Carrey-on-Carey ... and J Lo's actually had a few ideas that she loved. She compiled her favorites in a post.

Breonna Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, is about to get a huge assist from one Tyler Perry as he ramps up to fight a lawsuit from one of the cops who raided his home ... and by that, we mean major financial help.

Sources tell TMZ that the Hollywood producer and filmmaker just donated a whopping $100,000 to Ken's legal defense fund that was recently started on GoFundMe. The goal was $100k, but was somewhat lagging in the early going ... idling at less than $10k.

On Sunday, however, we're told Tyler threw down some big cash in four separate installments within minutes of each other. He donated 2 shipments of $10k, then donated $50k and topped it all off with a final donation of $30k. Now, Ken's over the finish line and then some.

As for why ... you can take a guess. Tyler wants to support Kenneth as he prepares to go to court against Louisville PD officer Jonathan Mattingly -- who was shot in the crossfire during the raid on Ken and Breonna's home.

As we reported ... Mattingly sued Kenneth for emotional distress and trauma -- this after criminal charges against Ken were dropped. The issue in Mattingly's lawsuit is the same as the investigation into Breonna's death. Did the police announce themselves before entering? Many neighbors, along with Ken, say no. The cops say they did announce themselves.

Offset says he is not planning to get vaccinated for coronavirus -- and his reasoning all boils down to trust and fairness.

We spoke to the Migos rapper Saturday in Bev Hills, and straight up asked if he'd take the COVID vaccine ... which is on the verge of being distributed to the first group in the coming days.  He's blunt and to the point -- he's planning on passing.

Offset mentions a viral photo that's been making the rounds ... showing a few people with their faces frozen in a distorted position, with their mouths slightly open.

The photos were supposedly taken of a few volunteers who were inoculated with the Pfizer vaccine.  The online chatter -- these were some of the side effects. The word from Scientists -- the side effects are generally mild, flu-like symptoms.

The FDA DID acknowledge 4 Pfizer volunteers were struck with a bout of Bell's Palsy -- but the government agency notes there was no way to conclusively link the vaccine to the development of their temporary facial paralysis. Still, people got freaked out.

Same goes for Offset -- who tells us that he simply doesn't trust the government (for the most part) and that even Barack Obama being willing to get vaccinated on video isn't enough to sway him. Offset then pivoted to a different train of thought.

Check it out ... he starts talking about how celebs and politicians get special treatment when it comes COVID therapeutics and medical treatment -- and he wouldn't feel right getting vaccinated ASAP knowing there are others just as deserving who get lesser treatment.

He also talks about the fact that the government at large hasn't done enough for the Black community to convince him they have his and his people's best interest at heart. What he touches on here is a huge problem too, BTW -- only 40% or so of the African-American community say they'll take the vaccine, and even less (14%) say they trust it.

That probably stems from several things, not the least of which includes the Tuskegee experiments, in which 600 Black men were shockingly deceived and mistreated.

It's a complex and pervasive issue in the community -- a view people in power are trying to reverse. It's also why Dr. Tony Fauci recently made a point to say the vaccine was developed, in part, by a Black woman.

This is insane ... a family was kicked off a United Airlines jet and banned for life ... all because their daughter refused to wear her mask ... AND SHE'S 2!

Eliz Orban and her husband boarded the jet from Denver to Newark with their little girl. The parents were masked up and tried hard to get their daughter to wear the mask, but she wasn't having it. Watch the video ... Eliz's husband pretty much did everything he could ... to no avail.

That's when a flight attendant came up to them and announced they were being booted from the jet. Eliz's husband tried explaining he did his best, and he was more than willing to cover his daughter's face, but the flight attendant wouldn't budge. They had to go.

Now get this ... United wouldn't remove their luggage from the cargo hold, and that included their daughter's car seat. And, on top of that, Eliz says United has permanently banned them from flying.

These are the mixed messages that are driving folks crazy. Governors are keeping pre-schools open because they say small kids don't pose much of a risk, yet this happens. The CDC has recommended children at the age of 2 or older should wear face masks, but this kid is right on the cusp at 2.

A Pro-Trump rally in Washington D.C. turned violent Saturday night as members of Proud Boys and Black Lives Matter protesters clashed ... and it was ugly.

Proud Boys protesters viciously attacked a couple ... beating on them as they tried to escape. Members of the far-right group burned a Black Lives Matter banner, and the vandalism and violence escalated as the night wore on.

In all, 23 people were arrested. Four people were taken to the hospital with stab wounds. Two cops were also injured and taken to the hospital.

10 people were arrested for assault, 6 for assault on a police officer, 4 for riotous acts, 2 for crossing a police line and one for possession of an illegal weapon.

Check out the videos ... you hear one of the Proud Boys say, "The fight has just begun."

At one point cops formed a human barricade in an effort to separate the 2 groups, and almost immediately explosive projectiles were hurled at the crowd.