Crime

A police officer from upstate NY is on leave after he punched a woman he was arresting right in the throat -- knocking her flat on the ground ... and it's all on video.

The DeWitt Police Dept. released body cam footage -- which they spliced together -- showing what led up to the scuffle inside an East Syracuse Walmart on July 4 ... where the cops were dispatched on reports of women fighting inside, and allegedly using pepper spray.

When the cop in question showed -- who has since been ID'd as Rory Spain -- he tried separating the quarreling parties ... and ended up restraining the lady he ultimately punched, Tyreana Edmonds, with handcuffs. As he attempted to lead her away, things escalated.

In the video, you see Edmonds apparently try and bite Officer Spain's arm ... after which, he cocks his arm back, with his fist balled up, and unloads on the front of her neck. The punch lands, and Edmonds is tossed back ... falling hard to the ground after absorbing the blow.

You can hear people around who are filming react in outrage ... and when they approach, Officer Spain tells them to get back. He and his fellow officers arrested her and others involved in the prior altercation ... and they all face multiple charges over this.

The Robert E. Lee statue in Charlottesville is finally coming down ... nearly 4 years after it played a central role in sparking the violent rally where Heather Heyer was killed.

Crews started working early Saturday morning to remove the monument to the Confederate general from a city park.

The monumental event drew a crowd of spectators who cheered when the statue was finally lifted off its pedestal. The crews are expected to remove another nearby statue too -- that one of another Confederate general ... Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson.

Calls for the city to take down the tributes to the failed Confederacy were what ignited the "Unite the Right" rally back in 2017 ... where neo-Nazis with tiki torches walked through the University of Virginia campus chanting about white supremacy.

That drew counter protesters and sparked the violent clash where James Fields eventually plowed through a crowd with his car, killing Heyer. He was sentenced to life in prison in 2019 for her murder and hate crimes.

Then-President Trump infamously reacted to the deadly incident by saying there was "blame on both sides."

As the Lee statue was coming down Saturday, Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker addressed the crowd and reporters, saying ... "Taking down this statue is one small step closer to the goal of helping Charlottesville, Virginia, and America, grapple with the sin of being willing to destroy Black people for economic gain."

It's unclear where the statues will go now. By law, the city had to accept bids from people or institutions interested in taking them. Charlottesville reportedly 10 offers and the city council will make the final call.

"Marrying Millions" star Bill Hutchinson has just been charged with raping an unconscious teenager while vacationing in Southern California.

Prosecutors from the Orange County D.A's Office revealed Friday the 63-year-old real estate developer allegedly sexually assaulted two 16-year-old girls vacationing with him in the ritzy beach town of Laguna Beach.

Prosecutors say Hutchinson raped one of the teens while she was unconscious. He's accused of bringing the two 16-year-old girls on vacation on 2 different occasions in April. He's accused of raping one of the girls while she was unconscious and committing four acts of sexual battery against the girl.

What's more ... prosecutors say when the alleged victim declined to go back to Laguna Beach again, Hutchinson is accused of returning to his vacation home with the other 16-year-old girl at the end of May and committing sexual battery against her during the trip.

He's been charged with 1 felony count of rape of an unconscious person and 5 misdemeanor counts of sexual battery.

Prosecutors say, if convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 8 years in state prison and 2 1/2 years in Orange County jail. The news comes on the heels of Hutchinson's arrest in Texas, where he's accused of assaulting a 17-year-old girl at his Highland Park home.

He turned himself in to Highland Park police earlier this week but later posted $30k bond. There's now an active arrest warrant in Orange County for Hutchinson.

The fence around the U.S. Capitol is coming down in a move signaling a desire to put the January 6 attack in the nation's rearview, but Capitol Police are pissed ... especially because it's being replaced with bike racks.

Sources within the law enforcement agency tell TMZ ... the rank and file are upset about officials deciding to remove the perimeter fencing -- beginning Friday -- that was put up following the insurrection due to ongoing security concerns.

Capitol Police officers were informed via email Wednesday that bike racks will replace the fence to restrict access to the building's West Terrace -- the area where Trump-supporting rioters clashed with police -- but we're told that's the part that has them the most enraged.

If you recall ... bike racks were used by the insurrectionists as weapons against the police, and our sources say the Capitol cops feel the much larger fencing provided more safety and protection from potential future riots.

Also, the bike racks didn't do much to stop an attack last time ... so we're told, many Capitol Police officers are incredulous at this plan being repeated.

In addition, our sources say there are concerns over Capitol Police having enough manpower to secure the building without the fence ... because more than 75 members have left the force since Jan. 6, and we're told more are planning to quit.

We're told the remaining officers want the fence to be kept up until proper training's completed to prepare for potential future attacks, but until then many are feeling apprehensive ... especially with D.C. tourism back in full swing.

Worth noting -- the extra barricades around The White House that were installed over the past year, beginning with the riots following George Floyd's murder, were taken down earlier this week ... allowing people to walk right up to the fence on the North Lawn.

Marilyn Manson's no longer a fugitive from the law in New Hampshire -- he turned himself in for an alleged concert spitting incident in 2019, was booked, and was released.

As we told you ... the shock rocker's facing 2 counts of misdemeanor simple assault for an alleged run-in with a videographer at a show at the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion in August 2019.

Authorities first issued the arrest warrant in October 2019, but back in May said he had been dodging them. His legal team disputed that, claiming Manson had been in contact with cops since the warrant was issued.

Either way, the Gilford PD in N.H. tells TMZ ... Manson turned himself in to law enforcement in L.A. last Friday for the alleged concert acts, and was released on personal recognizance bail.

He has now been released under the conditions that he won't commit any crimes while on release, won't have any contact with the alleged victim, and will appear at all of his court hearings.

As we told you ... video from the concert shows Manson sticking his face right in the camera lens, and unloading a huge wad of spit. Gilford PD told us the alleged victim suffered "no injuries," but Manson was charged because the spitting constitutes "unprivileged physical contact."

Of course, this is far from the musician's only legal issue right now. He's also been sued by 4 women for sexual assault in the past few months.

Thousands of Trevor Bauer bobbleheads will NOT be handed out at next month's Dodgers game -- the team has scrapped the promotion for now ... amid serious assault allegations made against the star pitcher.

30-year-old Bauer is currently on paid leave as MLB investigates a woman's claims he punched and choked her during 2 sexual encounters earlier this year ... and the team expects his 7-day ban to be extended past Friday.

According to the L.A. Times, the Dodgers have decided it was best to take the Cy Young winner off its promotion schedule ... with the bobbleheads originally set to be handed out on August 19 against the New York Mets.

Worth noting -- the game is still listed on the team's promo schedule ... so it's unclear if L.A. is waiting on the results of the probe or planning a last-minute replacement giveaway.

The Pasadena Police Dept. is currently investigating the alleged incidents ... and Bauer has emphatically denied the allegations, maintaining that his actions were strictly consensual.

The police officer who allegedly deleted a witness video -- while his body cam was rolling, no less -- is now facing a lawsuit over the incident.

The Philly cop -- ID'd in the suit as Officer Burnett -- just got slapped with a lawsuit by Jacob Giddings ... the guy who claims his footage was scrubbed back in March while Burnett was trying to take him into custody on an arrest warrant.

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ, Giddings says he was pumping gas when Burnett ran his tags, identifying Giddings as someone who had a warrant out for his arrest. While Giddings was in his vehicle, he says Burnett approached him from outside ... asking him to step out of the vehicle without an explanation.

Things allegedly escalated from there. Giddings claims Burnett began trying to forcibly remove him from the car. BTW, Giddings says he had begun recording with his phone at this point ... feeling uneasy about the whole thing.

After a lot of tussling -- and the arrival of a 2nd officer -- Giddings says he surrendered, and was cuffed and put into the back of a squad car.

Giddings says Burnett then proceeded to search his car and found the phone that had been recording. Giddings makes a bombshell claim -- he says Burnett ran over his phone, with Giddings' own vehicle, in an attempt to destroy the evidence!

Giddings claims that after realizing the phone was STILL recording and not destroyed at all, Burnett then took it upon himself to delete the video -- only to play dumb when asked by Giddings if it was still on there. He's suing for assault, battery, excessive force and illegal search and seizure.

Of course, Giddings says Burnett's own body-cam was rolling during what Giddings says was the moment he tried getting rid of evidence ... and Giddings insists it's the smoking gun that proves his case.

A Nashville man is lucky to be alive after a firework was thrown inside his convertible, and then blew up in his face ... quite literally.

20-year-old Colin Kirby was heading home Sunday night in downtown Nashville ride with the top down on his BMW, when suddenly an Infiniti pulled up next to him at a stop light. Someone inside rolled down a window and chucked a lit explosive into the car.

It was all recorded too, BTW ... Kirby's buddy was tailing him from behind, and his dashcam captured the insane, and explosive, encounter.

The firework went off right near Kirby's head -- causing minor burns and a temporary loss of hearing, but nothing more serious beyond that. It also torched the inside of Kirby's whip ... and the aftermath photos look pretty bad.

Darnella Frazier, the teenager whose video of George Floyd being killed went viral, has been left shaken by a death at the hands of police once more -- but this time, it's personal.

The teen's uncle -- 40-year-old Leneal Frazier -- was struck in his car by an oncoming Minneapolis Police squad car early Tuesday morning as the cops were pursuing an armed robbery suspect ... an impact that ended up killing him, and seriously hurting the officer.

Leneal was not involved in the chase whatsoever -- he was simply making his way to his girlfriend's house through what some are saying was a residential area. According to reports, the cop car changed lanes heading northbound, hitting Leneal at an intersection.

Darnella's mother confirmed to local media that it was her brother who was killed -- and Darnella herself took to FB to share the tragic news with a devastating post.

She writes, "I honestly can’t believe I’m making this post right now...I’m so hurt...nothing feels real. I woke up to the most horrible news. MINNEAPOLIS police Killed my uncle MY uncle... Another black man lost his life in the hands of the police! I asked my mom several times “he died??”. I couldn’t accept what I was hearing and still can’t."

Darnella went on to describe how she was still processing Leneal's death, and how she was filled with sadness, adding this as well ... "Minneapolis police has cost my whole family a big loss...today has been a day full of heartbreak and sadness ... It’s not fair how the police can just go around killing people." She's also angrily questioning why cops were engaged in a high speed chase on residential roads.

Of course, Darnella's famous for being one of the few who recorded Floyd's murder under Derek Chauvin's knee last May. Her now-viral video was central to Chauvin's conviction, and also earned her several commendations, including one from the Pulitzer folks.

As we've reported ... observing Floyd's death emotionally scarred Darnella, so losing her uncle in another police-involved incident seems like textbook PTSD.

Rihanna had another unwanted visitor swing by her pad, and this one might have her thinking about digging a moat.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... cops were called to one of Rihanna's L.A.-area homes last week after getting a call reporting a trespasser on the grounds pretty early in the morning -- around 7 AM or so.

Our sources say cops arrived with lights and sirens, but when they showed up to the crib, they were notified the alleged perp was long gone. We're told Rihanna's security informed cops the guy was seen hopping over one of her perimeter walls, but clearly didn't stay too long. The police took a report and are investigating.

RiRi is no stranger to unwanted visitors showing up to her homes -- she's had quite a few run-ins over the years ... enough that her security responds in a flash, and alerts police almost instantly.

A Georgia golf pro was killed on the 10th hole of a country club over the weekend ... and witnesses say the scene was absolutely terrifying.

Gene Siller -- the director of golf at Pinetree Country Club in Kennesaw -- was working Saturday when someone drove a white pickup truck onto the course before stalling near one of the hole's greens.

Witnesses tell WXIA when Siller showed up to the hole to investigate ... he was shot and killed by the driver.

One witness near the scene on the course said he heard five gunshots ... explaining, "everyone was trying to figure out what was going on."

Police say Siller was shot in the head ... adding that the alleged gunman fled the scene and is still currently on the loose.

What makes the story even more horrifying ... cops say they found two more people dead from gunshot wounds inside of the bed of the pickup truck.

Police have not yet released any sort of motive for the alleged attack ... and have still not made any arrests.

46-year-old Siller left behind a wife and two children. A GoFundMe set up in his honor has already amassed over $424,000.

Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello had an unwanted visitor swing by a pad of theirs that's under construction, and he had a message for Sof -- whom he considers "mom" ... so say, cops.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the police were called early Monday morning to the site of Sofia and her hubby's L.A.-area property -- one which we're told is being worked on with major renovations ... including a new paint job that had just been completed.

The once-over of their home was absolutely ruined, we're told, by a guy cops say was on-site when officers arrived ... whom our sources say fessed up to some major vandalism on the exterior ... which he told the police he'd just completed prior to their arrival.

Our sources say the dude used orange paint to write AND etch his social media handles all over and into the walls, plus what we're told were messages for SV ... whom, like we mentioned, this guy believes is his actual mother, and wants to get a hold of her via IG or something.

There doesn't appear to be any truth to the man's claim ... Sofia's only got one kid from a previous marriage, and this person does not seem to have any connection to her. Of course, the police arrested him and hauled him off to jail. It's unclear what charges he's facing.

As for what this mess will end up costing Sofia and Joe (or their insurance company) ... our sources say it was estimated to be well over $100k in damages that the man had left behind. The couple was not home at the time, and Joe showed up later to deal with cops.

This is not the first time they've had to deal with weirdos showing up at their crib, BTW -- Joe and Sofia have had run-ins with alleged stalkers on at least 2 occasions, where the police were also involved. Scary stuff, indeed.

Don't expect a Trevor Bauer return to this mound this week ... L.A. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he anticipates his pitcher's paid leave to be extended while the assault investigation into the MLB star continues.

The Dodgers head man made the announcement Monday ... saying he does not envision Bauer re-joining the team when the 30-year-old's initial 7-day paid leave period ends Friday.

"I don't see it happening," Roberts told reporters.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred placed Bauer on paid administrative leave last Friday ... in the wake of allegations that Bauer violently punched and choked a woman during two sexual encounters earlier this year.

Per MLB rules, Manfred can extend the administrative leave if the MLB players' union signs off ... and, according to Roberts, that seems likely at this point.

As we previously reported, a woman says Bauer choked her to the point of losing consciousness while having sex with her during two separate incidents in April and May.

The woman -- who in civil court docs says she met Bauer through Instagram -- also claims the baseball player punched her and scratched her repeatedly, leaving her with visible lacerations and bruises.

The woman also claims Bauer had anal sex with her while she was unconscious, something she did not consent to.

Bauer and his reps have strongly denied the allegations ... claiming the incidents were entirely consensual and that the pitcher's accuser had actually enthusiastically encouraged the rough sex.

The violent robbery of NBA's Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, as well as the attempted robbery of Fashion Nova CEO Richard Saghian that turned into a deadly shoot-out, could be connected ... according to our law enforcement sources.

TMZ's learned police are investigating the 2 June incidents -- along with multiple others that have been reported in L.A. lately -- to determine if they're part of a larger crime ring.

We're told in both cases and other similar cases, it's believed the victims were followed home after a night out and once they arrived ... they were approached by the suspects and robbed of their valuables at gunpoint.

As we reported ... one such incident went down in the Hollywood Hills in the early morning hours of June 25, where cops say 3 suspects tailed a Rolls-Royce taking the Fashion Nova boss home.

After Saghian went inside, we're told the suspects ordered 2 men who were traveling with Richard to the ground and took jewelry ... but then Richard's security responded and a shootout ensued.

Security and the suspects exchanged fire, and one of the suspects was shot and killed. Another suspect was critically injured. The security guard was shot as well. The third suspect was unharmed.

A week earlier -- as TMZ Sports first reported -- the Lakers guard was robbed at gunpoint by 3 suspects while he was in his driveway around 4 AM talking with friends. We're told the thieves made off with about $150,000 worth of loot, including a Rolex, jewelry and an iPhone.

A man unleashed a racist diatribe against a Black neighbor -- and even invited protesters to his front door ... but he might not have expected them to show up in droves, especially when he was being hauled off to jail.

Check out this wild encounter that was captured in Mount Laurel, NJ Friday, which led to an even crazier follow-up Monday ... when scores of people landed on this guy's driveway to decry a rant he'd gone on days earlier, who let him know what they thought of his venomous words.

The perp has reportedly been identified as Edward Cagney Mathews ... and he now faces criminal charges for a heated confrontation he had with one of his Black community members -- including alleged harassment and bias intimidation, over which the cops arrested him.

As for the initial face-off itself ... it's truly something to behold (in a bad way, we mean). Mathews hurls just about every epithet he can at the Black neighbor, including multiple uses of the n-word, "monkey" ... and even questions whether the man knows America's laws, saying "this isn't Africa" ... seemingly mocking what he perceived as a foreign accent.

It's unclear what exactly this was all over -- but in any case, you can tell Mathews took things way too far in what might amount to one of the most bigoted moments we've seen in a while. Even when what appears to be a security guard (or possibly even a cop) shows up to calm things down, he ratchets up the tension again ... demanding the guard put the "n******" in their place.

He told the person filming exactly where he lived, and encouraged people to show to find out "what (he's) about" ... and sure enough, they came rolling deep -- apparently protesting him for the past couple days ... to the point cops had to come escort Mathews away in custody.

That didn't stop people from unloading, though ... and we mean that literally. They chucked water bottles, garbage and debris at both Mathews and the police as they got into the squad car and drove away.

Todrick Hall told cops he's the victim of a home burglary where crooks made off with at least five figures in valuables ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... officers received a report thieves broke into the "American Idol" and "RuPaul's Drag Race" star's home recently, smashing a back window to gain entry.

We're told one of Todrick's friends came home to discover the break-in, and cops were told around $50,000 worth of handbags and personal property were taken.

We're told the total loss could end up being even more ... Todrick still needs to go through the rest of his stuff to see what else might be missing.

Todrick's a fixture on 'Drag Race' and he's also known for working on music videos with his close friend, Taylor Swift.