Crime

R. Kelly se defiende de una enorme sentencia en su contra en una demanda que involucra a mujeres que afirmaron haber sido víctimas de él... dice que no sabía de la demanda y no debe ser considerado responsable.

Así es la cosa, seis mujeres recibieron 10.5 millones de dólares en agosto después de demandarlo a él y a su ex gerente, Donnell Russell, alegando que eran responsables de un esfuerzo por cerrar una proyección de diciembre de 2018 en Nueva York de la docuserie "Surviving R. Kelly" con una amenaza de tiroteo masivo.

Según los nuevos documentos legales obtenidos por TMZ, Kelly afirma que se habría defendido de la demanda si hubiera sabido sobre el asunto.

El cantante en desgracia afirma que su cabeza ya está dando vueltas sobre sus diversos casos penales y procesamientos y que ha sido demandado tantas veces últimamente que apenas puede mantenerse al día con todo desde su celda de la prisión en Carolina del Norte.

Kelly también afirma que también ha barajado los equipos legales desde que fue encerrado y dice que esta demanda debe haber deslizado a través de las grietas, o no han sido entregados a él detrás de las rejas en absoluto.

Aun si hubiese recibido la demanda, Kelly dice que no sería capaz de entenderla o distinguirla de cualquier otro documento legal, diciendo que confía en sus abogados para que le expliquen las cosas porque "no puedo leer o entender palabras más allá de la de un niño de primaria".

Lo que es más, Kelly afirma que Donnell nunca fue su manager como la demanda afirmó y dice que no tenía ni idea de que Russell estaba tratando de detener la proyección de "Surviving".

Kelly dice que no le pidió a Donnell que lo hiciera y dice que si Russell hizo una amenaza de tiroteo para detener la proyección, "lo hizo por sus propias razones."

Blueface's manager Wack 100 is sending an apology to Martin Luther King Jr. for what he sees as him dying in vain -- nearly 56 years after the Civil Rights leader's assassination, Wack is pissed about violence bleeding into the rap game.

Wack, like many fans, grew deeply troubled by the news Yo Gotti's brother Big Jook was shot and killed over the weekend, and declared MLK's vision to be dissolved in 2024 -- while owning up to his own sins as well.

In his open letter, Wack laments ... "My apologies Dr. King, You fought for desegregation & we turned around and segregated ourselves. Your fight for the people was turned into the fighting of our own people. I myself at one time played a part in this. My apologies on your born day. You died for what we take for granted. #RIP Dolph #RIP Big Jook #RIP King Von #RIP Drakeo #RIP Marlo #RIP NIPSEY HUSSLE"

Dozens of "stop the violence" movements have followed each of the rap artists' deaths ... but to Wack's point, don't appear to be that effective.

The longtime music mogul has since taken to podcasting and has been vocal about his past gang ties and the bad decisions that played out afterward.

The trial for 2 men charged with murdering hip hop legend Jam Master Jay of the trailblazing group Run-DMC is all set to begin ... more than 20 years after the pioneering DJ was killed.

Jury selection began last week from a pool of more than 500 prospective candidates -- the process is scheduled to be completed by January 22, and the trial will begin one week later.

Karl Jordan Jr. and Ronald Washington are the defendants who were indicted back in August 2020.

Prosecutors charged a third defendant, Jay Bryant, in July 2023 and his trial will commence sometime in 2025.

Jay was shot and killed in October 2002 inside a Queens recording studio he owned and operated.

Video showing Big Jook at a funeral in Tennessee has emerged ... capturing some of the star’s final moments.

In the clip -- which is circulating online -- you can see Jook, born Anthony Mims, towers above other attendees in a black suit and appears to get emotional as he walks up to the open casket of his uncle, Eric Bovan.

It looks like BJ, who was Yo Gotti's older brother, was providing comfort to friends and family at the somber affair ... embracing fellow grievers hours before his untimely death.

As we reported, Jook was shot and killed in Memphis on Saturday afternoon outside Perignons Restaurant & Event Centre. Another man was also reportedly shot and rushed to the hospital.

The details surrounding the shooting are still unclear -- though some are speculating it's connected to the 2021 murder of Young Dolph. Pictures and videos of Jook bleeding out have gone viral on social media.

BJ was affiliated with Gotti's label Collective Music Group though he worked mainly on building the business rather than performing himself.

Big Jook was 47.

El hermano de Yo Gotti, Anthony "Big Jook" Mims, fue asesinado a tiros este fin de semana... TMZ ha confirmado.

Fuentes con conocimiento directo nos dicen que el hermano mayor del rapero fue asesinado a tiros el sábado en Memphis cerca de Winchester Road. Según los informes, este asesinato tuvo lugar después de que él habría asistido a un servicio funerario en la zona.

Circulan por Internet fotos y videos en los que supuestamente se ve a Jook sangrando en el suelo con gente atendiéndolo. Los detalles exactos del tiroteo no están claros, pero se confirma la muerte de Jook.

Big Jook era increíblemente cercano a su famoso hermano. Parece estar oficialmente afiliado a la discográfica de Gotti Collective Music Group, promocionando artistas bajo el sello y apareciendo en videos musicales para ellos también. Jook parecía estar más en el lado de los negocios.

Es triste que él estuviera en un funeral, algo que aludió en una de sus últimas historias de Intagram el sábado... donde estaba honrando a un pariente caído.

No está claro si el propio Gotti estuvo con Jook durante el asesinato, y tampoco ha abordado el asesinato de su hermano. Otra cosa a tener en cuenta es la posibilidad de que esto podría estar relacionado con el asesinato de Young Dolph en 2021, al menos eso es la especulación en línea de todos modos.

Como hemos informado, los policías se apresuraron al restaurante de Memphis de Gotti poco después de que el joven rapero fue abatido a tiros fuera de una tienda de galletas, esto por temor a posibles represalias.

No es ningún secreto que entre Dolph y Gotti había una vibra pesada, y ahora, muchos sospechan que esto podría tener relación con el incidente. También vale la pena señalar que la ubicación del asesinato de Jook no está lejos del establecimiento de Gotti, de hecho, está en la misma cuadra. Tampoco está muy lejos de donde tuvo lugar el asesinato de Dolph.

1/14 2:57 PM PT -- Memphis police have a lead in the Big Jook shooting ... posting photos of a white Ford Explorer they say may have carried the rapper's killers.

They're asking the public for help identifying the car and are offering a $4,000 reward for information.

Yo Gotti's brother, Anthony 'Big Jook' Mims, was shot and killed this weekend ... TMZ has confirmed.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us the rapper's older sibling was gunned down Saturday in Memphis on near Winchester Road. Per reports, this murder took place after he'd attended a funeral service in the area.

There are photos and videos circulating online that purportedly show Jook bleeding on the ground with people attending to him. The exact details of the shooting are unclear at this point ... but Jook is confirmed dead.

Big Jook was incredibly close to his famous brother ... he appears to officially be affiliated with Gotti's label Collective Music Group -- promoting artists under the imprint and appearing in music videos for them as well. Jook seemed to be more so on the business side.

It's sad that he happened to be killed during a time of mourning -- something he alluded to in one of his last IG Stories Saturday ... where he was honoring a fallen relative.

Unclear if Gotti himself was with Jook during the killing -- he hasn't addressed his brother's murder just yet either. Another element to this is the possibility that this might be related to the murder of Young Dolph in 2021 ... at least that's the speculation online anyway.

As we reported ... cops rushed to Gotti's Memphis restaurant shortly after the young rapper was shot down himself outside of a cookie store -- this out of fear of possible retaliation.

It's no secret Dolph and Gotti had beef ... and now, many suspect this might be connected. Also worth noting -- the location of Jook's murder is not far from Gotti's establishment ... in fact, it's on the same block. This is also not very far from where Dolph's murder took place.

We've reached out to Gotti's camp for comment ... so far, no word back.

Tory Lanez was paid a visit from a very special person while behind bars -- his son Kai.

Ceasar McDowell, a member of Tory's legal team and CEO of Unite the People tells TMZ ... the 6-year-old got to visit his dad 2 weekends in a row at California Correctional Institution Tehachapi ... where the rapper is less than 4 months into his 10-yr sentence for shooting Meg Thee Stallion in the foot.

We're told a family member brought the youngster to the prison ... and they didn't have to talk through glass. In fact, they got to sit at a table and spend 4-5 hours together on both Sat & Sun.

The father/son duo played board games, did some drawing, and ate food out of the vending machine.

Tory was happy to hug his son ... and it was especially good to see him as he'd been unable to spend time with him for the holidays -- though they communicate frequently.

You'll recall ... Tory brought Kai to court several times during his shooting trial in 2022.

Tory was sentenced in August 2023 ... found guilty of all 3 charges against him -- negligent discharge of a firearm, assault with a semiautomatic firearm, and carrying a loaded and unregistered firearm.

Tory Lanez recibió la visita de una persona muy especial mientras cumple su tiempo tras las rejas, ¡¡¡su hijo Kai!!!

Ceasar McDowell, un miembro del equipo legal de Tory y CEO de Unite the People le dice a TMZ que el niño de 6 años pudo visitar a su papá 2 fines de semana seguidos en la Institución Correccional de California Tehachapi, donde el rapero lleva menos de 4 meses de su sentencia de 10 años por dispararle a Meg Thee Stallion en el pie.

Nos dicen que un miembro de la familia trajo al pequeño a la prisión y no tuvieron que hablar a través de un vidrio, de hecho, llegaron a sentarse en una mesa y a pasar unas 4 y 5 horas juntos, tanto el sábado como el domingo.

Tory y su hijo jugaron juegos de mesa, dibujaron y comieron de la máquina expendedora.

Tory estaba feliz de abrazar a su hijo, especialmente porque no lo había podido ver para las fiestas de fin año, aunque se comunican con frecuencia.

Ustedes recordarán que Tory llevó varias veces a Kai al tribunal durante su juicio por disparos en 2022.

Tory fue condenado en agosto de 2023. Lo declararon culpable de los 3 cargos en su contra: negligencia en la descarga de un arma de fuego, asalto con un arma de fuego semiautomática y llevar un arma de fuego cargada y no registrada.

Donald Trump just got a cosign on his upstanding character -- but he received it from none other than a notorious mobster in Sammy the Bull ... and yet, he's still pretty thankful.

The ex-Prez sent a shoutout to the former Gambino crime family underboss on Truth Social -- reacting to a clip of an interview Sammy recently did on VladTV where he discussed once trying to "get to" DT back in the day ... when he was just a big-time developer in NYC.

As Sammy explains, he was able to press a lot of real estate dudes in the game during that time and have his way with them ... but, apparently, Donny himself wasn't having it.

STB goes so far as to say that despite repeated attempts to get into business with Trump -- and getting rebuffed at each stop -- he decided Don was "legitimate" and moved on. It's certainly an interesting anecdote, but Trump loved the "praise" ... and made it known online.

Trump wrote in response, "Thank you to Sammy the Bull. I hope Judges Engoron & Kaplan see this. We need fairness, strength and honesty in our New York Courts. We don’t have it now!" The robes he's referring to here are the ones overseeing a couple of his cases at the moment, BTW ... he seems to think they need to take a cue from Sam on morality.

1. Of course, the backdrop to this is Trump being in court on a number of different fronts as we head toward the '24 election. He's being prosecuted criminally, and being sued civilly too.

NY's Attorney General, Letitia James, for example claims DT is totally corrupt and a very shady business guy ... something she and her team have been trying to prove in court.

Donald Trump acaba de recibir un espaldarazo de su íntegro carácter, lo recibió de nada menos que un notorio mafioso, Sammy the Bull, y aun así está muy agradecido.

El ex presidente le envió un saludo al ex jefe de la familia criminal Gambino en Truth Social, como reacción a una reciente entrevista de Sammy en VladTV donde habló de cómo intentó contactarse con Donald Trump en su momento, cuando era solo un gran promotor en Nueva York.

Como Sammy explica, él fue capaz de presionar a un montón de tipos en el juego de los bienes raíces en ese entonces y pudo negociar con ellos, pero, al parecer, con el propio Donny no pudo conseguirlo.

STB  fue tan lejos como para decir que a pesar de sus repetidos intentos por hacer negocios con Trump -y ser rechazado en cada intento- decidió que Don era "legítimo" y siguió adelante. Es sin duda una anécdota interesante y a Trump le encantó el "elogio", tanto que lo hizo saber en línea.

En respuesta, Trump escribió: "Gracias a Sammy The Bull. Espero que los jueces Engoron y Kaplan vean esto. Necesitamos justicia, fuerza y honestidad en nuestros tribunales de Nueva York. Ahora no la tenemos". Los jueces a los que se refiere son los que están supervisando algunos de sus casos en este momento. Por cierto, parece pensar que deben seguir el ejemplo de Sam en cuanto a moralidad.

Por supuesto, el telón de fondo de todo esto es que Trump está en la corte por distintos frentes a medida que nos dirigimos hacia las elecciones 2024. Está siendo procesado penalmente y también demandado civilmente.

El fiscal general de Nueva York, Letitia James, por ejemplo, afirma que Donald Trump es totalmente corrupto y un hombre de negocios muy sombrío, algo que ella y su equipo han estado tratando de demostrar en los tribunales.

Sam Haskell Jr. is officially denying culpability in his triple murder case this week -- and the guy continues to go shirtless before a judge ... this as officials have fears of self-harm.

The murder suspect had an appearance in court Friday in Los Angeles, where he and his lawyers officially entered not guilty pleas to the 3 counts of murder Haskell is facing. Also of note ... the fact he was trotted out in front of everybody with his bare chest exposed again.

Remember, he was rocking the same sorta look when he first appeared in court last month ... something correctional officers relegated him to because of what they said were suicidal thoughts he was expressing.

Now, more than a month later of his being in custody ... he's still shirtless, something his lawyers griped about Friday -- claiming their client has not indicated he intends self-harm upon himself. Despite this, hizzoner denied Sam a shirt ... offering a self-harm vest instead.

Doesn't sound like Sam took the judge up on that ... and now, he's due back in court next month. It's unclear what exactly he's wearing behind bars, but when he's appeared in court ... he's been shirtless both times.

Remember, prosecutors allege Sam killed his wife, Mei, as well as her parents Yanxiang and Gaoshan. TMZ obtained surveillance video that appeared to show Haskell dumping something off at a dumpster shortly before he was arrested.

He remains in custody without bail.

Gary Busey has that dog in him ... as in, he's pissing in public without a care in the world.

The veteran eccentric actor was spotted pulling down his sweatpants and relieving himself Thursday out in Malibu ... urinating on a bush along a wall near a newsstand, and certainly not trying to keep it low-key. Unclear where exactly he's at -- looks like a lot of some sort.

Gary apparently felt a tingle below the belt and had no other choice but to rock a whizz at that instant ... 'cause that's exactly what he did. He even looked around a bit, but there was no shame in his game -- seriously, just look at that impish smile he's got on here.

The pee-pee seen around the world will only add to Gary's many memorable Malibu moments ... the 79-year-old is developing a bit of a reputation of late as a bit of a wild man around those parts.

Remember ... back in September, Gary was accused of a hit-and-run. A woman claimed he hit her car in a Malibu parking lot and she chased him down only for Gary to blow her off and drive away.

Gary didn't face any charges for the car incident ... and it will be interesting to see if there are any consequences for this very public bathroom break. Feels like if no one caught him in the act right then and there, he might be fine in this instance. Still ... yeesh 😬.

Mariska Hargitay revealed this week that she's a survivor of sexual assault -- something a number of orgs advocating on behalf of victims are singing her praises over, for good reason.

The actress penned a gut-wrenching piece for People this week detailing her experience -- which detailed what she says was an outright rape committed by someone she considered a friend in her 30s. She doesn't specify when it happened, but she does remember it vividly.

She says, "I tried all the ways I knew to get out of it. I tried to make jokes, to be charming, to set a boundary, to reason, to say no. He grabbed me by the arms and held me down. I was terrified. I didn’t want it to escalate to violence. I now know it was already sexual violence, but I was afraid he would become physically violent. I went into freeze mode, a common trauma response when there is no option to escape. I checked out of my body."

Afterward, Mariska says she erased this incident from her narrative and tried forgetting it -- although, this issue is still very clearly near and dear to her heart ... evidenced in the fact that she founded the Joyful Heart Foundation, a nonprofit aimed at helping SA survivors.

Of course, there's also the fact she's been playing Det. Olivia Benson on 'Law & Order: SVU' for years now ... and her character is constantly out to catch predators of this nature as well.

Mariska has been getting praised for sharing her experience, but there are some advocacy groups in this space that wanna show her more love and appreciation ... including the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, the New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network and the New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

Reps for all 4 orgs tell TMZ that Mariska coming forward continues to strip away the stigma of victims feeling afraid or ashamed to come forward and speak their truth ... noting what she's doing here is helpful to countless other people out there in the world.

Scott Berkowitz of RAINN says, "Mariska Hargitay has already done so much for survivors of sexual violence through her career and her foundation. To now share her personal story is another brave and important act, and we stand by her and all survivors who take this step."

All the groups here tell us just about the same thing -- that Mariska's recounting echoes so much of what victims go through collectively ... and that talking about it encourages others to do the same. With someone as high-profile as her speaking out, it helps pave the way.

Mariska Hargitay ha revelado esta semana que ha sobrevivido a una agresión sexual, algo por lo que varias organizaciones de defensa de las víctimas la alaban, y con razón.

La actriz escribió esta semana un desgarrador artículo para People en el que detalla su experiencia: lo que ella dice que fue una violación cometida por alguien a quien consideraba un amigo a los 30 años. No especifica cuándo ocurrió, pero lo recuerda vívidamente.

Ella dice: "Traté de todas las maneras posibles de salir de ahí. Intenté hacer bromas, ser encantadora, poner un límite, razonar, decir que no. Me agarró por los brazos y me sujetó. Estaba aterrorizada. No quería que llegara a la violencia. Ahora sé que ya era violencia sexual, pero temía que se volviera violento físicamente. Entré en modo de congelación, una respuesta traumática habitual cuando no hay opción de escapar. Salí de mi cuerpo".

Después, Mariska dice que borró este incidente de su narrativa y trató de olvidarlo, aunque este tema sigue siendo algo muy importante para ella... evidenciado que ella fundó la Fundación Joyful Heart, una organización sin fines de lucro destinada a ayudar a los sobrevivientes de asalto sexual.

Por supuesto, también está el hecho de que ella ha estado interpretando a Olivia Benson en 'Law & Order: SVU' desde hace años y su personaje también está constantemente tratando de atrapar a los depredadores de esta naturaleza.

Mariska ha sido elogiada por compartir su experiencia, pero hay algunos grupos de defensa en este espacio que quieren sumarse, incluyendo el Centro Nacional de Recursos contra la Violencia Sexual, la Alianza de la Ciudad de Nueva York contra el Asalto Sexual, la Red Nacional de Violación, Abuso e Incesto y la Coalición del Estado de Nueva York contra el Asalto Sexual.

Representantes de las 4 organizaciones le dicen a TMZ que Mariska sigue despojando el estigma de las víctimas que sienten miedo o vergüenza de presentarse y decir su verdad.

Scott Berkowitz de RAINN dice: "Mariska Hargitay ha hecho mucho por los supervivientes de la violencia sexual a través de su carrera y su fundación. Compartir ahora su historia personal es otro acto valiente e importante y la apoyamos a ella y a todas las supervivientes que dan este paso".

Todos los grupos nos dicen lo mismo, que el relato de Mariska se hace eco de lo que las víctimas sufren colectivamente y que hablar de ello anima a otros a hacer lo mismo. Que alguien de tan alto nivel como ella hable, ayuda a allanar el camino.

Gary Busey fue encontrado orinando en público sin una preocupación en el mundo.

El veterano actor fue visto bajándose los pantalones y haciendo sus necesidades el jueves en Malibu, orinando en un arbusto a lo largo de una pared cerca de un quiosco de prensa.

Gary aparentemente sintió un cosquilleo por debajo del cinturón y solo tenía que hacer pis en ese instante... aunque parece que le causó gracia, basta con ver esa sonrisa pícara.

Todo el mundo pudo ver el pis y esto se sumará a los momentos memorables de Gary, el hombre de 79 años de edad está desarrollando una reputación de hombre salvaje últimamente.

Recordemos que en septiembre Gary fue acusado de un atropello con fuga. Una mujer afirmó que él golpeó su carro en un estacionamiento de Malibu y ella lo persiguió solo para Gary se fuera conduciendo.

Gary no se enfrentó a ningún cargo penal por el incidente del carro y será interesante ver si hay alguna consecuencia por esta ida al baño tan pública. Da la sensación de que si nadie lo atrapó en el acto, podría salir de esta.😬

Young Thug's YSL RICO trial continues to provide unintentional entertainment ... today's edition introduced an unlikely name into the mix -- LeBron James!!!

On Thursday, YSL co-founder Trontavious "Tick" Stephens took the stand yet again when he was quizzed about LBJ's potential ties to the YSL -- due to the fact the NBA's scoring leader occasionally doing the "wipe your nose" hand sign with teammates and calling them "slime" as a term of endearment.

Prosecutors argue the WYN gesture is code for offing a rival in the streets and "slime" is also a gang-related term and pressured Tick to cough up what he knew about LBJ and YSL ... which wasn't much.

Tick admitted he's seen LBJ pull off different handshakes with his team -- but his mind seemed to slip into the Twilight Zone on the other questions .. namely, he couldn't remember.

The case has been bridged on potentially having YT potentially having crimes in his rap lyrics and the court played his and Rich Homie Quan's 2014 hit "Lifestyle" for everyone to analyze.

We're not sure what streaming the party track accomplished ... Thug, Yak Gotti and others remained emotionless as the platinum smash blared in the courtroom but it looked like the attorneys were trying hard not to catch a vibe.