Drugs & Alcohol

Ex-NY Giants DL Barry Cofield -- a key member of the '07 Super Bowl team -- has pled not guilty to all charges stemming from an insane police chase where he allegedly smashed into a cop car.

... oh, while allegedly carrying heroin in his pocket.

Cops in Seminole County, Florida say they found the 34-year-old passed out behind the wheel of a Cadillac Escalade around 2:40 AM on July 3 ... and when they tried to wake him up, he punched the gas and led cops on a wild chase.

Cops say the 6'4", 250-pounder drove into a white 4-door vehicle -- but didn't stop -- and eventually led officers into a gated community ... where he continued to drive like a maniac.

Eventually, cops say they used a squad car to block Cofield in -- but he tried to ram through the vehicle. That's when cops got out of their cars and tried to smash in Cofield's window in an effort to drag him out of the driver's seat.

Cofield ultimately surrendered -- and cops say during the arrest they found two small baggies of heroin in his pocket.

Cops also say Cofield reeked of alcohol.

He was initially booked on 5 charges -- heroin possession, assaulting an officer, DUI, resisting arrest and fleeing from police.

But, the charges were later reduced to just heroin possession and DUI causing damage or injury.

Cofield's attorney appeared in court on Wednesday and entered a not guilty plea on the ex-NFL player's behalf.

If convicted, he faces up to 5 years in prison.

Verne Troyer had a sizeable collection of celebrity memorabilia and just under $80,000 in cash when he died ... TMZ has learned.

The final appraisal on Verne's estate came in at $139,283.16 ... according to docs, obtained by TMZ. His attorney submitted the estimated value this week to the probate in L.A. County.

The docs show Verne had $21,000 worth of autographed memorabilia. There's no detail about the merchandise. He also had $78,283 in the bank.

We also know Verne was riding in style before he died in April 2018. The docs say he had a 2015 Audi S4 with only 3,490 miles on it -- guess he wasn't making a lot of road trips. The whip's valued at $38k. He also had a couple thousand bucks in furniture and personal belongings.

12:16 PM PT -- We've learned the alleged victim says the incident occurred in New York City and she will personally fly from Texas to Manhattan "in the near future" to file a fresh police report.

The alleged victim's lawyer, Lydia Agu, tells us before she began representing her, the alleged victim was advised to file a police report in the state where she lived. Although Dallas PD tells us they closed the case because there was "no criminal element," Agu says this is purely a jurisdictional issue because the alleged crime took place in NYC.

Agu says her client will fly to NYC and file with the NYPD's Special Victims Unit. Agu filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of her client -- against R. Kelly -- in May.

R. Kelly will not be charged for allegedly giving a woman an STD after cops in Dallas closed their investigation ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... Dallas PD looked into allegations the singer gave an anonymous young woman an STD after allegedly holding her captive as a sex slave in 2017. We're told no charges will be brought against Kelly in connection to the case .. although, it's unclear why they reached that conclusion.

As we reported, the woman filed a police report in 2018 claiming she'd met Kelly in Dallas the year before. She claimed he restrained her, plied her with alcohol and drugs ... and gave her an unspecified STD.

Her attorney, Lee Merritt, had said the woman planned to file a civil suit against Kelly as well.

Kelly, meanwhile, is currently being investigated by the Fulton County District Attorney's Office in GA -- and the State Attorney in Chicago has made a plea for any witnesses or victims to come forward.

We've reached out to Merritt for comment ... so far, no word back.

Brandon Church -- the late brother of country star Eric Church -- died as a result of chronic alcoholism ... TMZ has learned.

According to the autopsy report obtained by TMZ ... Brandon had a clinical history of alcohol withdrawal-induced seizure disorder -- meaning he had a history of binge drinking and trying to quit ... which would trigger a seizure.

As we reported ... Brandon suffered 2 seizures when he died last June in Granite Falls, North Carolina. The second seizure -- suffered while he was on his way to the hospital -- appears to have sent him into cardiac arrest.

According to the autopsy, the alcohol abuse also caused a thickening of his heart, coronary artery disease and liver damage. The family has set up a Scholarship Memorial Fund, which has already raised more than $45k. The family asks that donations to the fund be sent in lieu of flowers.

The NFL and NFLPA both say Eric Reid was NOT targeted for excess drug tests as a punishment for kneeling ... claiming they have PROOF the process was truly random.

The Carolina Panthers safety is currently suing the NFL for collusion -- claiming owners blackballed him (along with Colin Kaepernick) for taking a knee during the national anthem -- and believes the 7 drug tests he was forced to take in 11 weeks this season was payback.

"That has to be statistically impossible," Reid told reporters last month ... "I'm not a mathematician, but there's no way that's right."

But, in a joint statement released by the league and the NFL Player's Association on Wednesday ... both say, "Mr. Reid's tests were randomly generated via computer algorithm" and "his selection for testing was normal."

"There is no evidence of targeting or any other impropriety with respect to his selection for testing."

The league and the player's association added, "We take any claim questioning the integrity of our collectively bargained performance-enhancing drug policy seriously."

So far, no comment from Reid -- guessing we'll hear from him soon.

10:05 AM PT -- The page has been temporarily pulled -- we're told GoFundMe has asked the fundraising page creators for additional information -- including how exactly the money raised will be used. Once more questions are answered, we're told the page will be put back up.

Pablo Escobar's family needs your help to make another person disappear -- this time, it's President Trump they want out ... but, apparently, it'll be no cheap feat.

The brother of the deceased Colombian drug kingpin, Roberto (aka El Osito), has started a GoFundMe campaign seeking at least $50 million in donations to bolster his company's efforts to impeach the U.S. Prez. Sounds totally legit ... we're listening.

Roberto and his associates at Escobar Inc. are soliciting anyone and everyone to kick in cash toward their crowdfunding page to finance "intelligence research, lobby firms and lawyers" that could ultimately lead to Trump's downfall in Congress. Hmmmmm ... yes, go on.

Roberto claims he's already got dirt on Trump from previous alleged business dealings between DT and the Escobar company ... among other things. Roberto says his dirty secrets on Trump are something Special Counsel Robert Mueller would wanna hear.

He sounds pretty confident in himself, saying, "I am the brother of a Latino hero, I have eliminated many people from power ... Trump will be impeached." We'll give him this ... the Escobars have definitely (allegedly) gotten rid of some folks in their day.

Maybe it's just us, but it's weird that Roberto and co. are asking for a cool $50 mil to fund this project if they've already got the goods on Trump.

Daz Dillinger has been indicted on 2 felony drug charges for the marijuana bust that went down at his Georgia home ... TMZ has learned.

We're told Tha Dogg Pound rapper was indicted back in December for possessing over an ounce of weed and also liquid THC. Both charges are felonies, and Daz is now facing as much as 25 years, if he's convicted.

Daz was originally facing 13 felony drug charges after cops say they found 117 grams of ganja, including in several cigarillo packets and a green mason jar, and a bunch of THC oil during the September bust at his home in Powder Springs -- about 20 miles outside Atlanta.

Ex-NFL star Jamal Anderson -- the guy who created the Dirty Bird dance -- was so zonked out of his mind during a Dec. arrest, he handed cops a bag of chips when asked for his I.D.

Cops were called to a gas station in the Atlanta area to respond to a limo driver who complained that Anderson stiffed him on a $50 ride around 5 AM on Dec. 23.

When cops arrived, Anderson was a mess -- stuffing his face with a bag of potato chips.

One of the officers asked for his driver's license, Anderson reached into his pocket and presented the cop a pack of cigarettes.

When that didn't work, Anderson offered up his chips. She didn't accept that as a proper form of identification either.

Anderson denied being intoxicated, but cops say he was hammered and arrested him for public intoxication. The limo driver declined to press charges over the $50 fare.

Cops also asked Anderson how he paid for the smokes and the snacks -- and someone inside the gas station said another patron ponied up the dough for the Atlanta Falcons legend.

Anderson was placed in cuffs and hauled to a nearby police station where he continued to profess his innocence.

The 46-year-old has had tons of problems ever since his NFL career ended back in 2001 -- he's been arrested multiple times for things like cocaine, DUI and exposing himself in a gas station.

Stephen Jackson just ripped Darryl Strawberry for saying weed is a gateway drug ... blasting the ex-MLB superstar as a "cokehead" who's "weak-minded."

ICYMI ... Strawberry told TMZ Sports earlier this week that marijuana is SUPER dangerous and is "just the beginning" of the path to way more serious drugs.

Enter Jackson ... a staunch marijuana advocate who heard the comments -- and just had to tear into the former outfielder for making the bold claim.

"You a whole cokehead out here, bruh," Jackson says.

"Asking you for advice about weed is like asking somebody who went broke on how to stay rich. You a whole cokehead out here, bruh!!"

Jackson later apologized for the comments ... saying he didn't mean to disrespect the ex-Yankee who's tried to turn around his life after being suspended 3 times for cocaine during his baseball career.

But, Stephen didn't back off his initial opinion at all ... doubling down and saying, "If you think weed is a gateway drug, then you weak-minded."

Darryl Strawberry believes marijuana is DANGEROUS -- telling TMZ Sports it should NOT be used as pain management because it's a gateway drug that can ruin lives.

... and Strawberry says he's living proof.

Of course, the ex-MLB superstar battled addiction himself -- he was suspended 3 times for cocaine during his baseball career.

Now, with so many pro athletes calling for the legalization of marijuana for pain management, Strawberry says it's the WRONG thing to do.

"Most people don't understand marijuana is a drug," the 56-year-old tells TMZ Sports ... "It's just the beginning. Starting people off when they're young and then it leads to everything else."

Strawberry also says America is "spiritually broken" when it comes to the use of prescription medication ... blaming pharmaceutical companies for "flooding the gates" with opiates that are killing young people.

But, the root of the problem, according to Strawberry, is weed.

"Most young people start off with marijuana ... it's a gateway. I started with marijuana when I was young -- 14, 15 years old -- and it led me to everything else."

We asked Darryl if he advocates for any Rx drug for pain management and he told us -- "There's no such thing as pain management for prescription drugs. They've gotten totally out of control."

Bam Margera apparently already has a New Year's resolution in mind ... because he says he's going to back to rehab for a third time.

The "Jackass" star announced his plans to go to alcohol rehab in an Instagram post on New Year's Eve ... he captioned the photo, "Off to alcohol rehab for the 3rd time. I am hoping the term 3rd time is a charm is true."

You'll recall ... Bam fell off the wagon back in August, when he cracked open a cold beer after saying he was robbed at gunpoint in Cartagena, Colombia during a super sketchy cab ride. At the time, Bam was 7 months sober.

This will mark the second straight January that Bam is in rehab. We broke the story ... Bam checked into rehab in January 2018, only days after his DUI arrest in Los Angeles.

Hallie Uhrig is taking you into the New Year in the sexiest way possible ... spraying Champagne all over her insanely hot bod!

The model is ringing in 2019 with some sexy black lingerie and a bottle of bubbly, giving us a shower routine for the ages during this shoot with Chris Applebaum ... trust us, you're gonna wish Hallie was your New Year's kiss!

Ya gotta see what happens when Hallie starts popping bottles ... safe to say sparkling wine flows just fine where the sun don't shine!

The fun doesn't stop when the bottle is empty ... because after Hallie dries off, she slips into a bra and panties and dances around as confetti rains down.

Yeah, this beats the hell outta Times Square.

Cardi B did NOT like a swarm of paps in Australia making nasty comments about her relationship with Offset while demanding she show face ... and she let 'em know it.

The "Money" rapper took to Instagram Sunday to lay into a few pushy cameramen and women who bum-rushed her in Sydney Saturday when she landed at the airport. Cardi was covering her head and didn't want to stop to answer questions, take pics ... nothin'.

One of the male paps shouted at her as she walked by ... "You're in Sydney now, mate, you're in Australia. It's our rules, not yours, buddy ... be clear on that."

Cardi asked them to leave her alone, but a female photog shouted something even nastier at her, saying ... "No wonder your husband left you." Cardi B's publicist, Patientce, became irate and got in the pap's face ... threatening to hit her if she didn't ease up.

CB is now speaking on the confrontation herself, and it's pretty clear ... she's not going to play by anyone's "rules" of celebrity engagement. She says she stays true to herself, unlike other celebs whom she didn't name, and insists she'll continue to do so despite being dogged by the media.

Cardi also touches on drug use in Hollywood, and says she now understands why so many stars turn to substances, while some go on to kill themselves.

2:45 PM PT -- Dana White says the decision to move UFC 232 from Las Vegas to Los Angeles cost roughly $6 million.

White says he did NOT want to cancel the fight and worked to find a venue where it could happen when problems arose in Nevada.

White says once they found out The Forum in L.A. was available, they booked it and the rest is history.

Alexander Gustafsson just went off on Jon Jones to his face -- saying the guy is a "terrible" cheater who's spewing "bullsh*t" about his positive PED test.

The two exchanged shots at the UFC 232 press conference -- Gustafsson says he's convinced Jones is a cheater, but didn't want to back out of the Dec. 29 fight because he wants to beat the guy's ass.

"I'm here to fight," Gustafsson said ... "He will eat it Saturday night."

UFC 232 was supposed to go down in Las Vegas -- but was moved to L.A. after Jones tested positive for Turinabol, an anabolic steroid.

Jones has insisted he only had trace amounts of the PED in his system -- remnants of the last time he tested positive. He's adamant the Turinabol in his system is not new.

The UFC -- along with the California State Athletic Commission and other officials -- believe Jones, which is why the fight was greenlit in CA.

During the event, Jones doubled down on his claim that he's not a cheater and will eventually be vindicated by tested organizations.

Jones says it's "hilarious" that people think PEDs are the reason for his success.

Rapper Juelz Santana hasn't started his prison sentence yet but he already knows what's waiting for him after he gets out ... several drug tests.

We got our hands on the terms of Santana's supervised release and he'll have to submit to a drug test within 15 days of tasting freedom ... according to the docs. He'll also have at least 2 more drug tests to complete ... the timing of those will be determined by his probation officer.

We broke the story ... the Dipset MC was sentenced to 27 months behind bars in his airport drug case. In addition to the testing, Juelz will have to enter a drug treatment program once he gets out.

Once again, UFC superstar Jon Jones is apologizing for a failed drug test -- claiming the steroid found in his system this week was not consumed with the intention to cheat.

"I just wanted to take the time out to apologize to the fans for what is going on," Jones said in a video posted Sunday night ... "It's a situation that's completely out of my control."

In case you didn't know ... officials found traces of the steroid Turinabol while testing Jones for his upcoming fight against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 on Dec. 29.

But, officials from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) have essentially said the traces found in JJ's system were TINY -- and likely leftovers from when he tested positive in 2017.

Still, the Nevada State Athletic Commission would not let Jones fight in Vegas -- but he got the green light in California ... so, Dana White and the UFC relocated the event to L.A.

Some people (including UFC fighters) are furious -- claiming they already made plans, bought tickets, hotel rooms, airplane tickets, etc.

In his video, Jones acknowledges the situation is messed up but claims he didn't take any PEDs and never intended for this to happen.

"This is a situation that is completely out of my control ... but I still will man up and apologize for this happening."

"I realize there's a lot of people who lost out in the situation ... people came from Sweden, people came from Brazil ... I feel your frustration."

Jones says he's trying to make things right -- and has paid for hotel rooms and airplane tickets for some people -- but insists, "This is not a mistake I made."