Crime

The son of the man suspected of attempting to assassinate Donald Trump says his father hates the former president ... but is shocked, because his dad isn't a violent person.

Ryan Wesley Routh's son, Oran, spoke with the Daily Mail ... saying his father hates Trump like "every reasonable person does." Like father, like son -- Oran also isn't a fan of the former prez, but was floored to find out his dad is the gunman who allegedly targeted Trump at one of Trump's Florida golf clubs Sunday.

Oran says as far as he knows, his father's run-ins with the law only include a couple of traffic tickets ... but there's more to the suspect's record.

John Legend is sticking up for his hometown, Springfield, Ohio ... urging locals to welcome Haitian immigrants after Donald Trump's wild claim that they were eating local pets -- but it seems his calls for unity have largely fallen on deaf ears.

In an IG vid, the singer -- a die-hard Democrat -- insisted no one in Springfield was eating cats or dogs. He also pointed out the city has seen an influx of jobs under President Joe Biden’s administration, after years of people leaving town to find work elsewhere.

He noted the Haitians who arrived did so legally to fill local jobs, and while he acknowledged the town's 25% population increase has brought growing pains -- like adapting to new language, culture, and dietary preferences -- he urged the community to be more understanding.

Donald Trump's week has taken a turn for the better after Tuesday's presidential debate ... the former prez is no longer facing 2 of the charges in the Georgia election subversion case.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee tossed out 2 criminal counts against 45 in the case on Thursday.

The ruling -- which hasn't been formally applied to Trump yet because his case has been paused pending appeals -- means DT will no longer face trial for one count of conspiring to file false documents and one count of filing false documents.

10:27 AM PT -- Deshaun Watson just fielded questions from media members for several minutes ... and when it came to the allegations in the lawsuit, he said the statement released by Rusty Hardin on Wednesday represents his feelings on the matter.

He added that he first learned of the suit when everyone else did earlier this week.

Deshaun Watson is claiming the new sexual assault allegations levied against him in a lawsuit this week are completely untrue.

In a statement released by the NFL star's attorney on Wednesday, Watson said he "strongly denies the allegations" -- and fully intends to fight them in court at the appropriate time.

Reggie Bush's L.A.-area mansion was nearly invaded Tuesday night ... but TMZ Sports has learned the former Heisman Trophy winner's quick actions helped stop the crime before it really began.

It all went down at around 11 PM in Encino ... when our sources say at least one person smashed out one of the windows at Bush's multi-million-dollar home.

We're told the ex-USC Trojans running back was at the pad when the attempted break-in happened ... and when he immediately yelled -- the suspect(s) fled the area.

1:31 PM PT -- Harvey Weinstein is "not doing great," his rep Juda Engelmayer tells TMZ.

We're told the fallen film legend is having "major heart surgery" today after he first began experiencing chest pains at Rikers Island prison.

However, Weinstein still plans to appear in court on Thursday ... but will only attend if he's well enough to do so.

Harvey Weinstein is undergoing emergency surgery mere days before he is due in court in NYC ... TMZ has learned.

The controversial film producer was rushed to Bellevue Hospital in New York from Rikers Island prison Monday for emergency heart surgery after experiencing pains in his chest, his lawyer confirmed to TMZ.

Weinstein was held at Rikers ahead of his court appearance, where prosecutors are hoping to secure a new indictment against Weinstein after his prior rape conviction in NYC was overturned in April.

Karen Read's breaking her silence ... admitting she was angry with Boston cop John O'Keefe the night he died -- but, says that doesn't mean she ran him over with her SUV.

Read -- who is scheduled to be retried for O'Keefe's death in January 2025 -- sat down for an interview with ABC News ... saying John really upset her after a night of drinking in 2022, and she angrily left him at a friend's house.

Asked if a combination of anger and alcohol could've led her to try to "tap" O'Keefe with her SUV, Read shows her frustration ... denying she did and emphasizing she would never do that.

Dancehall kingpin Vybz Kartel was suddenly released from prison last month after 13 years ... and just as you can imagine, he was avalanched with tons of culture shock!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the reggae music legend on Zoom live from his home in Jamaica, where he's currently nursing himself back to health ... en route to making his comeback appearance on New Year's Eve to bring in 2025!!!

Vybz tells us he actually hasn't been in the studio following his prison release on August 1 ... he's been chilling with his roots drink (🤮) and letting his solidified discography do the talking for him -- and the results have been booming. His reps, KD McNair and attorney Isat Buchanan have been steady busy balancing all the requests.

A French woman who was allegedly raped by more than 50 strangers in multiple incidents over the course of a decade ... while she was allegedly drugged by her husband, who is accused of participating in the rapes and filming them ... testified for the first time Thursday.

72-year-old Gisèle Pélicot took the stand in Avignon Thursday for the first time ... saying she was left in "heaps of ruins" after finding out her spouse of 50 years, Dominique Pélicot, allegedly filmed more than 70 men assaulting her over a 10-year span ... without her knowledge.

Gisèle said she's seen all the recordings.

Harvey Weinstein's legal issues may get a whole lot worse ... the former Hollywood producer is facing another possible criminal indictment.

According to new court docs, obtained by TMZ, Weinstein's attorney, Arthur Aidala, testified at a hearing Tuesday in a Manhattan courthouse and acknowledged that a grand jury has been empaneled to look into fresh allegations of criminal wrongdoing by HW.

During the hearing, Aidala told the court he is aware of 3 witnesses who testified before the grand jury in support of the prosecutor's request for a new indictment against his client.

NFLers wringing their hands over Friday night's game in Brazil need to relax ... 'cause Gilbert Burns -- a UFC superstar who's from Rio De Janeiro -- tells TMZ Sports the athletes are going to be just fine in his native land.

The issue has become quite the talking point ever since the NFL announced the Eagles would take on the Packers in a São Paulo season-opening showdown -- especially after Philadelphia corner Darius Slay blasted league officials this week for planning the contest in a place with a reported high crime rate.

But, when we spoke to Burns about what the guys can expect when they finally touch down in South America -- he said it straight up will NOT be "that crazy."

A driver near Toronto couldn't quite make a dramatic getaway from Canadian staple Tim Hortons Tuesday ... trying to take off after cops stopped him in the drive-thru, only to get stuck on top of a police car's hood ... and it's all caught on video.

The wild incident began at a Westwood Mall in Mississauga around 6:30 PM Tuesday night ... when police reportedly received a call about a driver in an allegedly stolen Ford Bronco pulling up to the coffee shop.

The video picks up with one of the officers pointing a gun at the vehicle and holding on to the passenger side door -- when suddenly the driver puts the pedal to the metal, and starts pushing the police car in front of him.

Zedd’s agreed to drop the restraining order he filed in July against a woman he claims was impersonating and harassing him.

According to legal docs obtained by TMZ, the DJ and the woman, Rezwan Senobarian, reached an agreement and asked for the case to be dismissed on Wednesday.

No further information was given ... but it's an interesting turn of events as it's a big shift from Zedd’s earlier claims against Rezwan.

Jasveen Sangha, who federal prosecutors allege is a drug dealer known as the "Ketamine Queen," has NO association with Matthew Perry, despite being charged in connection with his death ... at least according to her attorney.

Mark Geragos' firm is representing Sangha and he went on the "Today" show Wednesday morning and tried to distance Sangha from the late "Friends" actor, who died from a ketamine overdose.

When asked how Sangha linked up with Matthew in the first place, Geragos vehemently denied they were ever connected, saying point blank ... "She isn't connected to Matthew Perry at all."

The French man accused of inviting dozens of men to rape his wife while he filmed -- allegedly participated in the act as well ... this according to prosecutors in France.

Dominique Pelicot -- who is on trial for allegedly filming 20,000 clips of his wife being raped by 83 men in multiple occurrences over the course of several years -- is also accused of filming himself raping his drugged wife with three other men, the Daily Mail reports.

Prosecutors say Pelicot directed other men in most of the clips ... though they claim there are multiple videos of Pelicot himself actively participating in the rape of his wife, Gisele.

The Louisville porch pooper's clearly on a high-fiber diet ... 'cause he struck two more times since going viral late last week.

According to Wave News -- a local outlet -- the homeowner, speaking on condition of anonymity, says the repeat reliever hit his porch two more times for a late-night dump over the long weekend ... bringing the total #2s to six.

The first of these most recent incidents occurred on September 1 ... and, the homeowner told the outlet he's taking matters into his own hands -- putting out cat litter and loud sonic speakers to scare the man off.