Arrests

The grandmother who claims she was arrested at Disney World's Magic Kingdom for having CBD oil in her bag is following through with her threat to sue ... for a huge payday.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump just filed suit against Disney, the Orlando Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff's Department on behalf of Hester Burkhalter. The 69-year-old North Carolina grandma claims she was busted by Mouse House security for carrying a bottle of CBD oil.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Hester says she was arrested and detained by cops at Disney World in April 2019 -- even though she claims the CBD oil was purely for medical purposes related to her arthritis, and didn't contain THC.

The grandmother says she was handcuffed in front of her 8 and 10-year-old grandchildren, and says the entire ordeal was traumatizing for the little ones.

In the docs, grandma says she panicked while being placed in the back of a police car and began vomiting, but was denied medical attention and subjected to a miserable 15-hour ordeal. Hester says she was further humiliated because cops allegedly made her strip down at the jail for a cavity search.

Prosecutors did not pursue charges and closed the case against her -- Hester claims cops even tested the CBD oil and found no trace of THC -- but she says she's filing suit because she still feels traumatized.

There is justice after all, at least in the case of the woman who viciously attacked an elderly woman inside a store ... all over -- you guessed it -- masks.

25-year-old Terri Thomas was arrested in Hackensack, NJ for aggravated assault after video surfaced, allegedly showing her attack the lady at a STAPLES who'd asked her to pull up her mask over mouth.... which sent Thomas into a rage.

The surveillance video shows the assault clear as day -- cops say it depicts Thomas circling back to the woman -- a 54-year-old who recently had a liver transplant. The older woman tries to fend her off with her cane, but it backfired.

The suspect grabbed the woman's cane and tossed her like a rag doll ... leaving the woman on the ground and writhing in pain as the suspect stormed out, mask half hanging off her mug. Cops say the woman suffered a fractured leg and required surgery.

We've been seeing these types of face-offs way too often lately -- people telling others they should follow safety guidelines and wear face coverings, only to be cussed out, accosted, threatened, and in some cases ... outright injured for doing the right thing.

The Aurora Police Department in Colorado has issued an apology after its officers pulled guns on a Black family and placed a woman and 2 minors in cuffs, because cops thought they were in a stolen vehicle ... which they weren't, and it's even worse than that.

Video of the Sunday incident shows Brittney Gilliam being led away from the car in handcuffs, while other members of her family -- her 6-year-old daughter, 12-year-old sister and 14 and 17-year-old nieces -- are lying on their stomachs in the parking lot.

Clearly, they are terrified and some can be heard screaming and crying ... and Gilliam says her sister and 17-year-old niece were also placed in cuffs while cops verified the vehicle was not stolen.

Gilliam told CNN she had taken the girls to get their nails done, and they were sitting in the parking lot with the car turned off when cops approached from behind. She says the officers had their weapons drawn and told them to put their hands out of the window and exit the vehicle.

Gilliam and the 2 others were placed in cuffs as cops accused her of being in a stolen car. She says she explained to them it WAS stolen in February but returned to her, and she had all the documentation for the vehicle. Cops then realized their mistake.

Interim Chief of Police Vanessa Wilson says she's called Gilliam's family "to apologize and to offer any help we can provide, especially for the children who may have been traumatized" by the ordeal.

She adds ... "I have reached out to our victim advocates so we can offer age-appropriate therapy that the city will cover."

According to the Aurora PD ... cops received a call of a possible stolen vehicle and Gilliam's had a matching plate and description, but turns out -- the plate info was for a motorcycle registered in another state.

The department adds ... "The confusion may have been due, in part, to the fact that the stopped car was reported stolen earlier in the year. After realizing the mistake, officers immediately unhandcuffed everyone involved, explained what happened and apologized."

This incident comes as the Aurora PD is already under scrutiny, and facing a reopened investigation, for the death of Elijah McClain. As we reported ... the unarmed 23-year-old was walking home from a convenience store in August 2019 when he was stopped by 3 white cops.

During his arrest, he was placed in a chokehold and briefly lost consciousness. When paramedics arrived, McClain was given ketamine to sedate him, but he then suffered a heart attack in the ambulance and was declared dead 3 days later.

The woman who was viciously attacked by a white supremacist in Florida is getting a boon of support with tons of cash ... something that will be needed to help with the pain of her injuries.

Kisha Biche's the one who got struck in the face by Nicholas Shock -- this after he went on a racist tirade, describing himself as a white supremacist. Her hubby, Tom Biche, tells TMZ, Kisha actually held off going to the hospital right after the attack, but eventually checked in later that night after the adrenaline wore off and the pain set in.

As it turns out, we're told she actually suffered a concussion -- and she's experiencing some serious symptoms as a result.

Among those symptoms -- headaches, nausea, whiplash and bruising as well, which we're told is popping up all over her body for some reason. He tells us plainly her head's not working quite right ... she's having a hard time remembering things.

Lucky for her, we're told her friends set up a GoFundMe to help her during this difficult time of recovery -- and tons of people are pitching in from all over, even strangers.

The initial goal was $10,000 -- but the money has well surpassed that, and its current benchmark is set at $25k. The description for the virtual fundraiser says the money's meant to help offset dough she's missing out on at her bartender job -- not to mention medical bills.

President Trump is doubling down on his well-wishes for alleged child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell behind bars -- his reason ... Jeffrey Epstein might've been killed in there himself.

DT sat for an interview with Axios, which just aired on HBO Monday night. They covered A LOT of topics -- but one in particular that raised eyebrows was Trump's feelings toward Maxwell, and by extension ... her longtime associate, Epstein, who died last year.

Check it out ... the reporter asks why Trump would send someone accused of horrible crimes his regards -- he said this last week during a press conference at the White House -- and 45 answered by suggesting she, too, could be at risk at dying while in custody.

Trump says her "boyfriend" Epstein was "either killed or committed suicide" while in jail, and that he wished her good luck ... further saying to let prosecutors prove she's guilty. The reporter follows up by asking if he thinks she could also die while in custody, and DT seems to confirm that's where his head's at. He says he's not wishing anything bad upon her.

It's interesting that Trump's peddling the conspiracy theory Epstein was knocked off at the hands of others -- because that's exactly how Epstein's own camp feels about it too.

America might run on Dunkin' -- but one of the chain's employees allegedly runs on hatred for police, 'cause he got busted for spitting into a cop's morning cup o' Joe.

This man here -- 25-year-old Vincent Sessler -- was arrested in Chicago after a state police officer claims he innocently ordered a cup earlier this week from the Dunkin' Donuts where Sessler works ... and upon removing the lid to cool it down down, discovered some fresh phlegm sitting on top.

Police have a much more descriptive way of putting it though -- they say the officer "observed a large, thick piece of mucus which was later confirmed to be saliva" floating inside.

Chi-Town authorities also say that after an investigation was conducted, they arrested Sessler for disorderly conduct, reckless conduct and battery to a peace officer. Someone even posted a photo of the alleged loogie ... it's gross.

A NYC man was so intent on painting over the Black Lives Matter street mural in front of Trump Tower ... not even cops pulling him off the ground was gonna slow him down.

This wild incident went down earlier this week in the Big Apple, right in front of Trump's signature building and residence on 5th Avenue -- where a giant 'BLM' street mural was recently etched and painted right out front. It was vandalized ... again.

The camera starts rolling right in the middle of the action, with the guy in question on his hands and knees ... frantically trying to spread white and red paint over the yellow 'BLM' lettering. He's literally spreading it with his own limbs, and doesn't care who's watching.

Eventually, some NYPD cops roll up and put a stop to it. Even when the responding officer gets right up in his face and tries yanking him up, the guys keeps at it -- smearing every last drop he can. It's insane ... eventually, more cops come and restrain him.

The officers also shoo off the people that are recording, but we get the gist of it. BTW, the guy kicks a paint can as he's being led away ... perhaps as his final act of defiance.

Cops say they arrested Mark David Hutt for criminal mischief and gave him a desk appearance ticket. This marks at least the fourth time the 'BLM' mural has been vandalized since it was painted July 9.

There was a violent confrontation between police and protesters in Chicago Friday, all centered around a statue of Christopher Columbus.

It went down at Buckingham Fountain, where Black Lives Matter protesters attempted to take down the statue of Columbus -- a rapist and racist.  Demonstrators tied ropes to the statue to dislodge it.

As cops created a human barrier, protesters threw bottles, rocks and a few threw firecrackers at them, injuring several of them. Police then pepper sprayed the crowd with hoses. At least 4 protesters were injured and taken to hospitals.

Twelve protesters were arrested for battery on a police officer.

Multiple cops descended upon Megan Thee Stallion and Tory Lanez during his gun bust, in what proved to be quite the dramatic scene in the Hollywood Hills.

TMZ got video of Tory's arrest from early Sunday morning, and it's pretty clear ... law enforcement was treating the situation very seriously, as if there might've been an active threat. Remember, they were responding to a call about 5 shots fired with the description of the SUV that was Tory's ride.

What's interesting here from the footage is that they detained everyone in the vehicle. You see a woman being told to exit the vehicle from an officer using a bullhorn off-camera -- while a helicopter is hovering above the whole time -- and you even hear her say, "My hands are up" as they direct her to walk back and get on the ground.

As that's happening, you can see another woman on the sidewalk who appears to be injured. It's unclear which one is MTS. Later, you see the same woman seated on a ledge, and at one point you can hear her turn her head and ask, "Megan are you OK?" ... making it seem like the injured woman is MTS. Tory was also nearby when the woman asked if Megan's OK. Remember, they'd all been hopping between pool parties on Saturday evening.

Houston Texans star Kenny Stills was one of nearly 100 people arrested during a protest in Louisville on Tuesday ... and the WR took his mug shot in a Breonna Taylor shirt.

The 28-year-old NFL player joined 86 others in a massive protest outside the home of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron to seek justice for Taylor.

As part of the demonstration, the group of people -- which included "Real Housewives Of Atlanta" star Porsha Williams -- sat on Cameron's lawn and chanted ... urging him to levy charges against the cops involved in Taylor's tragic death.

A Lousiville Metro Police Dept. spokesperson says officers eventually told the group to leave ... but when they refused, all 87 were put in cuffs and hauled off to jail.

We're told Stills and the others were booked on 3 charges, including felony "intimidating a participant in a legal process."

As you can see in his mug shot, Stills was clearly NOT happy to be at the station ... and his shirt read, "Breonna Taylors Killers Are Still Police."

The LMPD spokesperson added of the incident, "The protestors chose to occupy the front yard of a home owned by the Kentucky Attorney General and continuously chant towards he and his neighbors."

"At his request, they were trespassed from the property. All were given the opportunity to leave, were told that remaining on the property would be unlawful, and chose not to leave."

Stills has consistently been one of the most vocal NFL players over the years when it comes to the search for social justice ... he's taken knees during the national anthem and has even tatted "Black Lives Matter" on his leg.

According to jail records, Stills was still in custody as of Wednesday morning.

Porsha Williams was on the front lines Tuesday of a Breonna Taylor protest in Louisville ... and left handcuffed in the back of a police van.

The 'Real Housewives of Atlanta' star was arrested during a massive demonstration outside the home of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who has yet to file criminal charges against the Louisville cops involved in Breonna's death.

As you can see ... Porsha was hauled away from Cameron's home, with her wrists in zip ties, as protesters chanted Breonna's name. Louisville PD tells us Porsha was cited for criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and intimidating a participant in legal process.

Porsha was one of hundreds of people arrested at the protest, along with 'Love & Hip Hop' star Yandy Smith and reality TV star and activist Tamika Mallory.

As you know ... Kentucky's AG has been under fire for posting pictures of his engagement party instead of drilling down on the case. With no arrests or charges in the case ... protests have continued in and around Louisville.

It's been more than 4 months since 3 Louisville cops served a no-knock warrant -- at the wrong address, mind you -- shooting and killing Breonna in her own home.

A group of teens at a Pennsylvania water park resort claim they were harassed all day by an off-duty NYPD officer, and when local cops showed up ... things got violent.

The incident went down at the Camelback Resort in Tannersville, PA. According to the father of a young man who got punched in the head by a cop ... a man who identified himself as NYPD was confrontational with the kids earlier in the day, and got them kicked out.

The dad says management told the kids they could go back to their rooms and return to the park in the morning. However, when police showed up, that off-duty cop went after them again ... which is where the video begins.

It's pretty crazy ... it appears the older man was the aggressor, yet Pocono Township PD dealt with him very calmly. Meanwhile, the teens and their group felt they were getting treated unfairly, and eventually, the cops told them to leave. That's when things got out of hand.

As one shirtless young guy was being arrested, another was taken down by 2 cops -- and one of them clearly delivered 3 brutal blows to the back of the teen's head as he's on the ground ... while the other cop forced his neck down.

The young male yelled that he's not resisting, but got punched 5 times, before he was brought to his feet and led away by cops. Those cops are now in hot water.

A rep for the Monroe County D.A. Criminal Division tells us the officers involved have been suspended, and the PA State Police have been asked to investigate further.

The 2 men and 2 teens who allegedly killed Pop Smoke have been slapped with murder charges, and while the death penalty is in play ... prosecutors haven't decided yet to seek it.

The L.A. County District Attorney's Office announced criminal charges against 19-year-old Corey Walker and 18-year-old Keandre Rodgers, who were each charged with murder with special circumstance allegations that the killing went down during the commission of a robbery and burglary.

With the special circumstances, the death penalty is on the table. The D.A.'s Office adds that gang and gun allegations were made in their complaint as well.

On top of those two, a separate pair of teenagers -- the youngest being 15 and the oldest 17 -- were also charged with one count of murder and robbery in juvenile court. Their names weren't released, as they're still minors.

We broke the story ... Pop Smoke was shot and killed back in February by 4 masked gunmen after what appeared to be a home invasion robbery at his home Hollywood Hills home.

Even though the D.A.'s Office says they haven't decided on whether to pursue capital punishment yet, both adult men face still face life in prison if convicted.

The "Karen" who spewed multiple racist tirades in Southern California has just been charged with battery ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the notorious SoCal "Karen" is 56-year-old Lena Hernandez from Long Beach, and on Friday the Torrance City Attorney's Office charged her with misdemeanor battery.

Our sources also tell us a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has issued an arrest warrant for Hernandez, who has not been apprehended yet.

The battery charges are related to an incident that occurred Oct. 11 at a mall in Torrance, and was reported to police later that day.

There's no video of that incident, but as we reported ...  Hernandez was recorded during a racist rant in a Torrance park last month. She was yelling at a young woman who was trying to work out in the park.

Video of another incident involving Hernandez, this time in a parking lot, also surfaced and is believed to be from the same day as the park incident.

Our law enforcement sources say there is not enough evidence for prosecutors to file criminal charges against Hernandez for the incident at the park.

Texas Tech wide receiver Caden Leggett was arrested over the weekend ... after cops rsay he was involved in an intricate street race on Texas highways.

The scene's description is straight out of a 'Fast & Furious' movie ... according to the police report, obtained by TMZ Sports, Leggett and two others were speeding past each other at around 2 a.m. Saturday in Lubbock.

Cops say in the report Leggett was in a Mustang racing against a Dodge Challenger and another white vehicle ... when an officer caught them and tried to intervene.

According to the report, the cop was able to pull over Leggett ... but the other two got away.

In the report, cops say Leggett admitted to racing during questioning ... and say the 20-year-old's passenger revealed they were racing against another Texas Tech player, who was NOT identified in the report.

After searching Leggett's phone, cops say they found a map that appeared to be of a course throughout the city that the cars were trying to race on.

Leggett was eventually arrested and booked on a charge of misdemeanor racing on a highway. He was released on bond shortly after.

It's unclear if police are working to track down the other two alleged speeding drivers.

Protesting inside a restaurant with a megaphone and a baseball bat got a black man arrested in a scene that looked eerily similar to George Floyd ... but this time police were way more patient and mindful.

The bust went down Tuesday in Madison, Wisconsin where a swarm of officers descended upon the guy who'd been using his megaphone to, as they put it, disrupt the peace. He also had a baseball bat on his shoulders as he yelled at customers and restaurant staffers from point-blank range.

It took as many as 5 officers to detain 28-year-old Devonere Johnson ... who was resisting arrest. It took several cops tugging at Johnson during the struggle before they ended up with 4 officers on his back and legs. Important to note, none of them were on Johnson's neck ... though he did complain he couldn't breathe before they hoisted him off the ground.

Vigilant bystanders -- including the outspoken man recording the scene -- demanded officers release him, as they claimed he'd done nothing wrong besides using his voice to exercise his First Amendment rights.

The cops weren't having it though, and eventually carried Johnson by his legs and torso and tossed him like a sack of potatoes into a patrol unit. Somehow, Johnson, who was now handcuffed, managed to escape out of the cop car ... before they pounced on him again.

Again, the bystander with the camera didn't give up, and continued pleading with several officers to let Johnson go free. They didn't and he was officially busted for disorderly conduct while armed, resisting arrest and attempted escape.

The cops add that 2 officers suffered minor injuries during the arrest, and Johnson had bruises on his arms and legs.

The question ... was there a more peaceful way to handle the situation? He had not physically harmed anyone and, according to police, was walking away from the restaurant when they arrived. Yes, customers did seem to feel threatened, so if ya gotta arrest him was this a prime case for de-escalating before manhandling? In fairness to cops, it's possible they did attempt to do that before the video started.

BTW, the scene was still bizarre even AFTER the arrest ... watch what happened when someone tried to get all Biblical.