TMZ.com Home

A Black attorney claims he was racially profiled in court because he was wearing street clothes ... and while this video of his arrest seems to support that, he was just convicted for the whole thing.

38-year-old Jaaye Person-Lynn was sentenced last week to one-year probation after being convicted of obstructing or delaying a peace officer for this San Bernardino courtroom altercation in 2019.

Long story short ... Person-Lynn says he dropped into court on his day off without a suit on, because he needed to change a hearing date for a client and thought he could do it quickly with the clerk. The Sheriff's deputies inside the courtroom, however, stiff-armed him.

Check out the footage -- it starts without audio, but you can see Person-Lynn enter the courtroom and walk past the bar as he tries to make his way to the clerk. A couple deputies flag him down and point back to the spectator section, where they meet him face-to-face.

That's where the audio kicks in ... you hear the female deputy ask who he is and what he wants. Person-Lynn tells her he wants to talk to the clerk, and eventually identifies himself as an attorney. Two deputies then escorted Person-Lynn out, and tried getting the case number for his client. Person-Lynn says he's going after them, legally, for racially for profiling him ... and then it really hit the fan.

You can hear a Taser going off as a deputy tells the lawyer not to threaten him. Person-Lynn was arrested and booked into the county jail right then and there. He eventually went to trial over this ... and got convicted and got sentenced Friday.

He's vowing to appeal, maintaining race was a factor and that deputies used excessive force -- which he claims caused injuries to his arms.

First Lady Melania Trump's first public reaction to the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol is to call for peace and unity -- but her remarks might feel a tad ... too little, too late.

FLOTUS published a statement Monday on the White House's website titled, "Our Path Forward." She starts out by talking about COVID and eventually builds to the siege a few graphs in ... after sending condolences to people who died during the attempted coup -- including Ashli Babbit, Officer Brian Sicknick and others.

Finally, Melania says this ... "I am disappointed and disheartened with what happened last week." Rather than go straight into condemning the violence and illegal actions of the rioters, she first shames folks for "salacious gossip, unwarranted personal attacks, and false misleading accusations on me."

After prefacing her comments and then saying the country must heal in a civil manner ... MT, at last, gets to these crucial words ... "Make no mistake about it, I absolutely condemn the violence that has occurred on our Nation’s Capitol. Violence is never acceptable."

She goes on to explain she values the right of free speech, adding with that in mind ... folks should pause and look at things from all perspectives. Melania then says she implores for people to stop the violence and to come together as Americans.

Melania also uses her letter as a farewell, saying that it's been an honor to serve as First Lady -- and that she's grateful for those who supported her and Donald these past 4 years.

Michael B. Jordan and Lori Harvey are throwing their hats in the Hollywood power couple ring ... after going Instagram official with their coordinated, Hallmark-y posts.

MBJ and Steve Harvey's daughter each made calculated moves and posted pictures of each other Sunday in close embraces. Michael's post included a gallery of 3 pics ... while Lori went with a single shot of her smiling while Michael kisses her cheek.

Michael didn't caption his while Lori's simply included a heart ... about as official as it gets, but of course, we've all known.

Their hook-up first went public when they arrived together in Atlanta ahead of Thanksgiving weekend.

There have been other public hangouts since then ... so, the IG posts were hardly a revelation. It's more like a public commitment on their part.

Our nation's capital will be swarming with National Guard forces ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration ... after being absent for much of the failed coup.

The National Guard says it's increasing boots on the ground in D.C. to at least 10,000 troops by Saturday, drastically beefing up security 4 days before Biden moves into the White House.

National Guard troops made their presence known Monday, assembling in front of the Capitol ... 5 days after a mob overwhelmed the grossly under-deployed U.S. Capitol Police and stormed the building where Congress was voting to certify the election results.

Monday was a small show of force compared to what's to come by this weekend, and, additionally, protective fencing is going up all around the Capitol.

Diddy's got a big headache to ring in the new year ... the L.A. home he owns where his late soulmate, Kim Porter, died was hit by burglars.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... someone pried open a side door and entered his Toluca Lake home, triggering the security system.

We're told a caretaker discovered the break-in and it was clear -- someone rummaged through the house.

Cops took a burglary report and someone from Diddy's family will have to take a look around to see what, if anything, is missing.

As you know ... Kim, a model and actress, dated Diddy off and on for 13 years and they had 3 children together, including two daughters and a son.

Tanya Roberts' longtime partner is planning a celebration of her life, but before that, he plans to honor her in an L.A. location near and dear to her heart.

Lance O'Brien tells TMZ ... the late model and actress is going to be cremated, and he's going to spread her ashes in the hills behind their home in Laurel Canyon, where she used to hike regularly with her dogs.

Lance says Tanya would go on a 4-mile hike with her 2 beloved pooches 5 times a week, and he adds ... they're very much missing their mom.

Tanya's partner tells us it's been an incredibly difficult week, but he's trying to work out plans with her family and friends for a memorial service, or some other way to pay tribute to her.

We broke the story ... the actress best known for "That '70s Show" and "Charlie's Angels" died Monday night, potentially from a UTI that spread to her kidneys and liver.

News of her death was bizarrely announced prematurely a day earlier though, the result of what seemed to be a major miscommunication between Lance and Tanya's rep after Lance visited her at the hospital Sunday night.

The way he described it ... she was unresponsive on a ventilator, but he thought she woke up when he arrived in her room.

Another big loss for Donald Trump ... the PGA says it's now pulling a major golf event from one of the president's courses, explaining playing there "would be detrimental" to the brand.

The golf org. made the announcement Sunday -- formally shredding its plans to play the 2022 PGA Championship at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey in the wake of the riots at the U.S. Capitol.

"It has become clear that conducting the PGA. Championship at Trump Bedminster would be detrimental to the P.G.A. of America brand," PGA president Jim Richerson said in a video statement, "and would put at risk the PGA’s ability to deliver our many programs, and sustain the longevity of our mission."

Seth Waugh, the CEO of the PGA, further explained the decision to pull the event Sunday night ... telling the Associated Press it's all related to Trump's role in the unrest at the Capitol.

"Our feeling was given the tragic events of Wednesday that we could no longer hold it at Bedminster," Waugh said. "The damage could have been irreparable. The only real course of action was to leave.”

For Trump's part, POTUS' org. said in a statement it's "incredibly disappointed" with the PGA's decision ... adding, "This is a breach of a binding contract, and they have no right to terminate the agreement.”

FYI, the PGA Championship is one of golf's four biggest events every year. It was held at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco this year and won by Collin Morikawa.

It's unclear what course will now host the '22 event.

Listen up Pokémon fans, you've got a clear path to feel like Togekiss -- the happiest Pokémon ever -- 'cause a 1999 Pokémon first edition complete set's about to hit the auction block.

The folks over at Goldin Auctions will soon auction off this 103-Pokémon card set that's in mint condition and expected to fetch upwards of $750,000. The collection includes the highly sought-after Charizard card.

Each card is gemstone certified. Goldin says while the cards have rounded corners, the Professional Sports Authenticator has given it a Gem Mint 10 grading ... meaning they're virtually perfect cards.

The fact that the set expected to earn three-quarters of a mil is pretty impressive ... since nearly 30 billion Pokémon cards have been traded since the craze started.

Some of the other cards in the set include Alakazam, the cute Blastoise, Chansey, Mewtwo and Poliwrath. That might sound like gibberish to some of you, but trust us ... that's badass.

BTW, it also has 72 Devolution Spray cards! 😲

The auction opens Monday with a minimum bid of $125k. If that $750k mark sounds far-fetched, think about this -- just last month, Goldin Auctions sold a pristine Charizard for nearly $400k.

"Ink Master" star Daniel Silva has responded to Corey La Barrie's wrongful death lawsuit ... claiming Corey's death was partly his own doing.

Daniel filed legal docs responding to claims from the YouTuber's parents -- Simon La Barrie and Lissa Burton. The docs say the car crash that led to Corey's death was due to his own negligence, and he assumed the risk of death when he jumped into Daniel's car that fateful night back in May.

TMZ broke the story ... Corey's parents believe Daniel and his company, Daniel Silva Tattoos, were negligent in the moments leading up to Corey's death on his 25th birthday. Daniel wrecked a black McLaren sports car after leaving a party with Corey.

Corey's parents say excessive speed caused the crash ... and Daniel was the one with his foot on the pedal.

The parents also claim Daniel was under the influence ... something a source close to Daniel disputes.

As we first reported ... Daniel was arrested and later charged with murder ... with the L.A. County D.A.'s Office saying Daniel acted with malice the night of the crash.

Daniel pled no contest to vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. He was sentenced to 4 years in state prison, but that sentence was suspended. Instead, he got 365 days in county jail. He also got 5 years probation and 250 hours of community service.

Before this smiling face was having a cow on Disney Channel with her partner in crime, she was just another blonde beauty growing up in Torrance, California.

This little lady is only half of the sister act she rose to fame with; however, she gained more popularity when she starred solo in a futuristic Disney Channel original series.

Starting off the new year like whoa, she and her sister made a return to music when they released an explicit version of their most famous song, hitting number one on the charts for the first time.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi just laid her party's plan for removing President Trump from office ... and the ball is moving quick, with a 24-hour deadline for VP Mike Pence to act.

Pelosi sent a letter Sunday to her fellow Dems, and she says that on Monday ... the Majority Leader in the House, Rep. Steny Hoyer, will ask for unanimous consent on a resolution demanding Pence assemble the other cabinet members, and invoke the 25th Amendment on Trump ... which would remove him from his post, and have Pence in as acting Prez.

If they meet any roadblocks in getting that unanimous consent, Speaker Pelosi says they'll bring it to a floor vote on Tuesday. She also says this, "We are calling on the Vice President to respond within 24 hours."

So, yeah ... clock's ticking for the Veep -- who has reportedly not ruled out invoking the 25th Amendment if Trump continues to incite violence and act erratically in these final weeks.

There's more from Pelosi too ... in her letter, she says if Pence stonewalls on invoking the 25th Amendment, the House will begin impeachment proceedings later this week. She says, "In protecting our Constitution and our Democracy, we will act with urgency, because this President represents an imminent threat to both."

Miya Ponsetto has just landed in L.A. after being arrested in SoCal, and flown back to NYC where she had a date with a judge in connection with her failed attempt to allegedly steal the cellphone of a 14-year-old black child ... and the scene at LAX was wild.

A bunch of photogs were there to greet her, but not in a friendly way. You hear at least one photog ask, "Are you a racist?" Miya tries to take charge, telling them to back off, but they persist until she gets in a waiting vehicle and leaves the airport.

As we reported, Miya has been charged with 2 counts of attempted assault, attempted robbery, grand larceny and endangering the welfare of a child.

She was NOT charged with a hate crime, and much to the chagrin of the parents of 14-year-old, Keyon Harrold Jr., the prosecutor never even mentioned in court Saturday the child was black.

Miya has lots of legal issues. She has an outstanding DUI case in Ventura County from October -- her second DUI bust in 4 months.

TMZ obtained video of that arrest, where she was kicking and screaming as cops tried to subdue her. At one point she screamed, "There are gang members are killing people right now and you're arresting a girl?!" She's pled not guilty.

She's currently on probation for a DUI she got back in May in Malibu, and these new criminal cases could end up triggering a probation violation, that could land her in jail for as long as 6 months.

One of the most notorious insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol with zip ties in his hand has now been arrested ... he's also been ID'd, and hails from Tennessee.

The FBI arrested 30-year-old Eric Munchel Sunday in Nashville -- this after confirming his identity on social media and elsewhere as the man who infiltrated the Senate chamber with a handful of plastic zip ties, wearing tactical gear. Charges have yet to be announced.

Social media sleuths tracked him down fast and pointed out he worked at a bar in Nashville. He's also apparently a big supporter of the Back the Blue cause ... there are several photos of him with a black and blue American flag on his now-deactivated Facebook page.

Oh, and he's also a big gun nut too ... there are photos of him with shotguns, handguns and semi-automatics. It also appears he's participated in local demonstrations in Nashville, decrying the COVID shutdowns at different points in 2020, and wearing bulletproof vests.

Speaking of weapons, the FBI reportedly recovered several weapons from Munchel during his arrest -- no word yet on whether any of the zip ties in question were recovered. Munchel was booked at Metro Nashville jail Sunday afternoon and is now being processed.

He was one of the rioters that the feds really wanted -- as there are operating theories he and others had plans to take U.S. lawmakers hostage (or worse) if given the opportunity.  AOC made it clear Sunday ... the goal of these rioters may have been to kill members of Congress.

The moment the Trump mob was strong-arming its way into the Capitol can now be seen from a new, frightening view -- where a fallen police officer getting pummeled on the ground.

Check out this gruesome clip of insurrectionists breaking into an opening on a side entrance to the building, which was being guarded by a line of cops in tactical gear ... one of whom ended up laid out on the ground, face first ... right at the feet of rioters.

The crowd showed him no mercy ... immediately trampling him, bludgeoning him with objects and projectiles, dragging him down the steps they were storming -- pretty much having their way with his limp body as his colleagues tried pulling him away.

There's even an overhead shot of the scene, and it's absolutely surreal. You hear someone off-camera yell, "Get that motherf***** out of there! Take him out!"

Now, there've been rumors this officer might've been the one who was killed -- Officer Brian Sicknick, who died from injuries he sustained during the siege -- but that has NOT been confirmed. Some social media users say this officer is actually with Metro D.C., not Capitol Police, but again ... we haven't been able to confirm.

A plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills has died from COVID-19 ... and it appears to be entirely because he was able to keep working on patients during a pandemic.

Dr. Payman Simoni -- who's been featured on "The Doctors" show -- passed away while hospitalized in L.A. -- this after he contracted the virus while performing a cosmetic procedure on a patient who turned out to be COVID positive ... so say family sources.

We're told Dr. Simoni was doing a lip injection on a woman last month ... obviously an elective procedure. She was temperature checked and filled out a COVID questionnaire. She was not tested.

While the doc was hovering over the maskless woman, our sources say she coughed in his face. He had his mask on, but still ... she sprayed on him. She contacted the office a few days later to inform them she had tested positive for COVID.

Dr. Simoni then went into quarantine and began experiencing symptoms -- shortness of breath, etc -- and in short order, he was on a ventilator at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. We're told Dr. Simoni was eventually placed in a medically induced coma as his lungs started failing. He died Friday from a brain hemorrhage.

It's a cautionary tale ... one that might've been avoided if the City of Beverly Hills hadn't passed a resolution allowing cosmetic surgery offices to remain open while cases continue to surge. Some docs have opted to hold off -- others obviously haven't.

Simoni was 50.

A Proud Boys leader is now in federal custody after taking part in the Capitol siege and then claiming he was there as a reporter ... something law enforcement clearly ain't buying.

Nicholas Ochs -- who heads up the Hawaii faction of the far-right extremist group -- was arrested by FBI agents after touching down at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu ... this following his trip to D.C. to storm the Capitol.

According to an unsealed indictment, the feds are charging Ochs with unlawful entry into restricted buildings or grounds -- and they cite evidence they say Ochs himself laid out on social media and CNN ... the later to whom he made the ridiculous "journalist" comment.

The day after the insurrection, he claimed he was there working as a professional journalist, seemingly saying he had a right to be there and was not part of the riot. He also said he didn't break in ... he simply entered without incident.

Adding insult to injury ... the guy also posted a photo of him smoking a cigarette with a buddy, with a caption attached that reads, "Hello from the Capital lol."