Ride Me

"Real Housewives of Miami" star Alexia Echevarria says she was inundated with medical bills after her son's tragic car crash and now she's suing her insurance broker for $2 million ... claiming her massive bills are all their fault.

Echevarria filed a lawsuit in Florida court against a company called Garcia Lorenzo & Associates ... claiming they dropped the ball when it came to executing her insurance policy.

Echevarria's 13-year-old son was in a "catastrophic" car accident back in 2011 which landed him in the ICU with severe bodily injuries, including a brain injury. In the suit, Alexia says thanks to GL's shoddy coverage, she was faced with millions of dollars in medical bills.

Echevarria claims that when she signed with the company back in 2008, she asked for a special type of extra coverage -- the exact coverage that would have helped curb the costs from her son's accident. She claims the company carelessly left it out.

Rapper Bone Crusher wasn't rolling around a Minnesota mall in a motorized cart this week because he's fat -- despite reports to the contrary -- he tells TMZ, he's got a REAL reason for being temporarily handicapped.

Mr. Crusher tells us, he recently underwent serious knee surgery to repair an injury he sustained a few years ago in Germany, when he was performing for U.S. troops stationed abroad ... and stupidly jumped off stage.

Crush -- real name Wayne Hardnett, Jr. -- says he's been rehabbing the knee since the surgery and that's why he had to use the motorized cart. The rapper says he can walk just fine, just not for extended periods of time ... yet.

That said, Crusher -- who currently weighs roughly 360 pounds -- admits the photos that surfaced on the web this week weren't so flattering, telling TMZ, "I'm definitely trying to lose weight. I want to get myself back down to where I was on 'Celebrity Fit Club.'"

Crusher says his goal weight is 250, and he's already lost roughly 40 pounds since focusing on his weight again.

They say drilling's bad for the environment -- and now we know why.

Scary Spice Mel B was in desperate need of a fill-up today in L.A. -- so her husband Stephen Belafonte took care of business at a local gas station.

Which is more unlikely ... that self-proclaimed multi-millionaire comedian Katt Williams recently purchased a 10-year-old used SUV ... or that he allegedly failed to pay for it?

According to a lawsuit filed last week in L.A. County Superior Court, Katt bought a 2002 Ford Expedition on October 30, 2012 from a guy named Khosrow Gharib.

Mr. Gharib claims Williams got the wheels, but never paid and now owes him $7,500, which he says is the Kelley Blue Book value of the car. Gharib says he has tried to get Williams to pay up, but so far ... no luck.

We also reached out to Katt -- for a comment -- but no word back.

Wiz Khalifa learned two important lessons last night:

1) Always wear your seat belt
2) Being famous doesn't get you out of a ticket

TMZ spotted the rapper inside of his brand new $100k Porsche 911 Carrera S ... moments after he was pulled over by a cop for not buckling up ... a violation in the state of California.

Wiz -- who spent his day at a baby shower for his fiancee Amber Rose -- was clearly bummed out during the stop ... but turned to our camera and gave a message for his fans, "Make sure you guys wear your seat belts."

During the stop, we asked the cop if he knew he pulled over a world famous rapper -- to which he replied, "I know. I recognized him!"

Who knew ... Mini-Me has a little cowboy in him too.

While filming a segment for some Austrian TV show in L.A. this week, "Austin Powers" star Verne Troyer rode off into the sunset astride his mighty steed ... an adorable little pony.

You can't really tell from the photo, but the pony's only about 4 feet tall. Meanwhile, the 44-year-old actor stands at just 2 feet 8 inches, making him one of the shortest men in the world.

Kanye West is a lucky man -- not only a newly-minted father-to-be, but also a charmed driver, because cops let him skate with a warning after he left the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood early this morning.

Kanye didn't have much to say as he left the hotel, and judging from his exit he had places to go as he accelerated West on Sunset Blvd.

And just like that ... Rihanna's back where it all started ... Chris Brown's passenger seat.

The on-again couple relived their past earlier today in L.A., where they picked up some refreshments -- including an Icee -- at a gas station convenience store.

You'll recall, Rihanna was riding shotgun back in 2009 when CB unleashed a ferocious beatdown on her face -- but today, she was nothing but smiles.

Oh yeah, that red sweatshirt she's wearing is Chris' clothing line -- Black Pyramid.

Hope Part 2 works out better.

"American Idol" winner Kris Allen and his pregnant wife Katy were in a head-on collision car crash on New Year's Day.

Allen, Katy and their dog, Zorro, were all in the car. Kris suffered a broken arm. Katy suffered some injuries. The dog is fine.

It's unclear how far along Katy is in her pregnancy, and there's no word if the accident had any impact on it.

Kris sounds optimistic about the baby though -- he tweeted, "Thank you @Ford for equipping me with a car that kept my whole family safe ... and the little one we have on the way safe."

Kris's mom, Kimberly, says Kris is in a lot of pain and may not play guitar for awhile.

Emmylou Harris is now in the crosshairs of the L.A. County District Attorney for allegedly hitting a car on an L.A. Freeway and then hightailing it out of there ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the alleged incident occurred on October 1 at around 10:00 PM. They say Emmylou was driving a rental car on the 405 Freeway when she struck a car and took off without stopping or exchanging info.

We're told the CHP opened a hit and run investigation after the other driver filed a report. The investigation is now complete and we're told the file was sent to the D.A., who will decide if the country legend should be prosecuted.

Emmylou's rep acknowledges to TMZ she was involved in a "minor traffic accident," adding "she unintentionally rubbed bumpers with another vehicle." The rep says Emmylou didn't realize the cars made contact so she took off.

The rep calls it a "garden-variety accident that happens everyday on the 405," and Emmylou has turned the matter over to her insurance company.

Richard Simmons got flat-footed by a driver who, well, let's just say propagated an age-old stereotype.

Richard was outside his Hollywood Hills home Thursday -- chatting with passengers from a tour bus -- when a passing motorist squarely ran over his foot.

The driver -- ok, we'll say it -- an Asian man -- stops his car, walks over to the pained weight loss guru, and apologizes.

Check out what Richard does when the driver leaves. Hilarious.

Blake Griffin escorted a hot blonde to his awesome ride -- totally fit for the superstar of the NBA's best team -- only issue is the car they got into ... is NOT made by the company paying Blake a fat endorsement deal.

The Los Angeles Clippers' human dunk machine slipped into a Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG -- a pimp sled for sure, which retails for about $140,000.

However, anyone who's watched an NBA game this season has seen Blake's hysterical Kia Optima commercials where he travels back in time to tell his young self how awesome the Optima is.

Still, Kia is paying him to pump up their product. Think about it ... ever seen Michael Jordan in an Adidas track suit?

Heidi Klum performed a supermodel magic trick Wednesday ... riding bitch with an extremely large helmet and then removing it ... only to reveal a perfectly coiffed head of hair.

Heidi was riding with her bodyguard-BF Martin Kristen in Venice, CA when she showed off her hat trick.

They've taken a serious step in their relationship, wearing similar get-ups, including hipster sunglasses.

"Big Time Rush" star Logan Henderson was in a nasty motorcycle wreck last week ... and might've James Dean-ed himself into the history books ... if not for a lucky jacket he was wearing ... TMZ has learned.

According to sources, the Nickelodeon boy bander was cruising through the Hollywood and Vine intersection on his way to the studio ... when a car turned right in front of him.

Henderson swerved at the last second to avoid an accident ... and was violently chucked off his bike in the process.

Remarkably, he was able to stand afterwards ... scraped and bruised from frisbeeing across the blacktop ... but still alive, we're told, thanks in part to his Marc Jacobs jacket ... which he claims saved his back from becoming a mangled mess.

The accident understandably put the kibosh on his trip to the studio ... but Henderson's gonna be just fine.

His bike, on the other hand? Not so much -- it's in the shop for the foreseeable future.

TMZ has obtained the last driver's license photo Michael Jackson ever took -- a big change from the singer's cheery license photo from the 1980s.

The latest photo was taken in 2005 -- four years before the King of Pop's untimely death -- and you can tell from the harrowing image ... MJ had become a tortured soul.

An image of MJ's 1980s driver's license was released by the FBI shortly after Michael died -- as part of the agency's massive file on the singer. The Bureau compiled the dossier during its investigation into child sex allegations involving the singer back in the 90s.

As you can see, Michael was a much different person back then -- smiling brightly for his photo at the DMV.

One L.A. parking enforcer just bought himself a one-way ticket to the naughty list ... 'cause he GAVE SANTA CLAUS A PARKING TICKET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mr. Claus -- who must have been letting all the reindeer rest before their upcoming gig -- parked his sedan at a meter in downtown L.A. Thursday ... while he ran some last minute Xmas errands in his classic red suit.

Enter the Grinch -- a.k.a. parking-ticket-man -- who noticed Santa's meter was expired, and slapped him with a ticket soooo fast ... even the elves were stunned (and everyone knows elves are fast).

According to an eye-witness on scene ... Santa tried desperately to get out of the fine ... but no cigar.