Legal news
Judge Denies Britney Spears’ Request to Remove Father As Conservator
Days after Britney Spears’ harrowing public testimony, a judge has turned down the pop singer’s request to remove her father, Jamie, as her sole conservator. Spears’ attorney, Samuel Ingham III, had petitioned the court to remove Jamie in November 2020. At that time, Judge Brenda Penny declined the request, but did appoint the financial company Bessemer Trust as a co-conservator of the estate. Today’s filing approved Bessemer Trust as a co-conservator while also reiterating the judge’s decision to not remove Jamie from remove Britney’s conservatorship. While the paperwork is technically in response to the November 2020 petition, it’s still significant as Judge Penny signed the document days after Britney’s testimony. Related Video Last week, Britney appeared virtually in a Califo...
James Franco to Pay $2.2 Million to Settle Sexual Misconduct Lawsuit
Back in 2019, two of James Franco’s former film students filed a lawsuit accusing him of engaging in sexual misconduct. Now, the actor-director has agreed to pay over $2.2 million to finally settle that suit. Sarah Tither-Kaplan and Toni Gaal, the two students behind the accusations, filed their lawsuit in October 2019. They claimed that Franco and his partners “engaged in widespread inappropriate and sexually charged behavior towards female students by sexualizing their power as a teacher and an employer by dangling the opportunity for roles in their projects.” The lawsuit named Franco, his business partner, and their production company Rabbit Bandini. Franco ran a film and acting school called Studio 4 from 2014 to 2017. It was there, said Tither-Kaplan and Gall, that the actor and direc...
Former Disney Star Kyle Massey Charged with Felony for Sending Porn to 13-Year-Old Girl
Former Disney star Kyle Massey, best known for his work as Cory Baxter in That’s So Raven and Corey in the House, has been charged with a felony for communication with a minor for immoral purposes. The news was first reported by TMZ and has since been confirmed by Variety. Massey, 29, first became embroiled in controversy in 2019, when the alleged victim sued him for $1.5 million. The lawsuit claimed that starting in December 2018, Massey sent “numerous sexually explicit text messages, images, and videos,” through Snapchat. Massey said he was being extorted. Reportedly, the girl’s mother has provided police with a thumb drive containing the explicit material. This includes pornographic videos as well as footage of a man who seems to be Massey exposing his peni...
Marilyn Manson to Surrender to Police on Warrant for Alleged Assault
Marilyn Manson is set to turn himself in to the Los Angeles Police Department on a New Hampshire warrant for his arrest, stemming from an alleged assault in which the singer is accused of repeatedly spitting on a videographer during a concert in 2019. The incident is not related to the allegations of sexual assault brought against Manson by numerous women in recent months. According to the Boston Globe and Los Angeles Times, Manson has reached an agreement with the police department in Guilford, New Hampshire, to surrender to the LAPD at a prearranged date, at which time he will be booked and go through the bail process. He’ll then be ordered to appear at a New Hampshire court for arraignment, likely in August. The incident in question occurred at Manson’s August 18, 2019 concert at the Ba...
Britney Spears Makes First Public Statement in Wake of Conservatorship Hearing
Yesterday, June 23rd, Britney Spears asked for an end to what she described as a brutal and cruel conservatorship. Now, the troubled pop star has made a statement addressing her fans, apologizing for “pretending like I’ve been ok the past two years,” and reflecting on what it means to have a “fairy tale life.” Spears has quietly been pushing for an end to the conservatorship since 2014, and her new Instagram post on June 24th is one of the rare times she’s addressed her case publicly. Alongside a quote attributed to Albert Einstein, she reflected on her desire to put on a happy face. “That was one of my mother’s best traits,” she wrote, “no matter how shitty a day was when I was younger … for the sake of me and my siblings she always pretended like everything was ok. I’m bringing this to p...
Drake Bell Pleads Guilty to Child Endangerment
Former child actor Drake Bell has pleaded guilty to felony attempted child endangerment and a misdemeanor charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles. Bell, former star of Nickelodeon’s Drake and Josh, entered the guilty plea via Zoom in a Cleveland, Ohio court on Wednesday. According to Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, Bell, 34, engaged in an inappropriate online relationship with an underage girl that, “at times, was sexual in nature.” Prosecutors say the girl, then 15, also attended Bell’s 2017 concert in Cleveland. Related Video The attempted endangering children charge relates to the concert, where Bell “violated his duty of care and, in doing so, created a risk of harm to the victim,” according to prosecutors. The dissemination charge ties back to Bell’s online correspond...
Britney Spears Asks for End of Conservatorship at Court Hearing
Britney Spears appeared in Los Angeles court on Wednesday and formally asked a judge to end her decade-long conservatorship. The pop star appeared in court virtually via Zoom, during which she made a strong case for removing her father, Jamie Spears, as conservator. She gave examples of how the conservatorship is abusive, including being put on Lithium and not being able to get married and have a baby. Update: You can read a full transcription of Spears’ remarks in court below. From the very onset of her remarks, she was on the offensive, objecting to a petition for a closed hearing: “They’ve done a good job at exploiting my life. So I feel like it should be an open court hearing and they should listen to what I have to say.” Comparing her situation to “sex trafficking,” Spears said she wa...
Chris Brown Accused of Hitting Woman
Chris Brown has been accused of hitting a woman in Los Angeles, TMZ reports and NBC News confirms. According to a spokesperson for the LAPD, officers responded to reports of an argument at a residence in the San Fernando Valley. The altercation is being investigated as a battery, though it’s not clear at this time if Brown will face charges. Via TMZ’s anonymous police sources — who are often, though certainly not always, accurate — the alleged victim received a smack across her head that caused part of her weave to come out. Reportedly, she sustained no injuries, and Brown has not been arrested. If true, the troubled singer would likely face misdemeanor charges — if he were charged at all. No other relevant information can be confirmed at this time, but the story will be updated as news co...
Report: Britney Spears Has Been Pushing to End Her Father’s Conservatorship for Years
Ahead of Britney Spears’ appearance in court on Wednesday to address the status of her conservatorship, The New York Times has published an expansive report detailing her behind-the-scenes push to change the situation. According to confidential records obtained by The Times, the pop singer has for several years called for the removal of her father from his role as conservator. During a 2014 hearing closed to the public, Britney’s lawyer Samuel Ingham III told the court his client wanted to explore the removal of her father from control of her finances and career. According to Ingham, Spears had raised a “shopping list” of grievances including his drinking. In 2016, a court investigator assigned to Britney’s case reported she felt the conservatorship had become “an oppressive and controllin...
Polo G Arrested in Miami for Battery Against a Police Officer
Polo G was arrested in Miami early Saturday morning on charges of battery against a police officer, resisting arrest, and criminal mischief. The Miami Herald reports that Polo G was booked into the Guilford Knight Correctional Center around 8:00 a.m. local time on Saturday. He was subsequently released after posting a $19,500 bond. In a video uploaded to Instagram, Polo G’s mother and manager, Stacia Mac, said that police pulled over her son and his younger brother while they were riding in a car following an album release party for Polo G’s Hall of Fame, which dropped earlier on Friday. Related Video “My kids called me in a frenzy saying the police are behind them, 20 cars behind them,” Mac said, adding that “They refused to let me speak to my minor son, who is 16 years old.” It’s un...
Lil Reese Arrested on Domestic Violence Charges
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-06-06T17:47:17+00:00“>June 6, 2021 | 1:47pm ET Lil Reese was arrested late last month on charges of domestic battery. According to a report by TMZ, the “Traffic” rapper was taken into custody on the evening of May 29th after the police were called to his Chicago home following a heated physical confrontation with his girlfriend. The unnamed woman allegedly told police Reese had pulled her hair and struck her in the face with his closed fist — resulting in a visible abrasion to her lip — during an argument. While he was charged with a misdemeanor, Reese soon posted a $10,000 bond and was subsequently released from custody. His spokesperson denied the charge against him, saying, “That...
Drake Bell, Star of Drake and Josh, Charged with Crimes Against a Child
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-06-04T17:58:13+00:00“>June 4, 2021 | 1:58pm ET Jared Drake Bell, the veteran television actor who starred in Nickelodeon’s Drake and Josh, has been arrested and charged with disseminating matter harmful to juveniles and attempted endangering children, according to a local Fox affiliate in Ohio. Details are scarce at this time, but the alleged incident occurred on December 1st, 2017. The actor’s mug shot is dated yesterday, June 3rd, and court documents name the arresting agency as the Cleveland Division of Police. He’s been released on a $2,500 bail bond, which is surprisingly low, and may suggest that the crime is not considered serious. For comparison, when Bell was arre...
