Legal news
Alabama Shakes Drummer Steve Johnson Arrested for Child Abuse
Alabama Shakes drummer Steve Johnson is in custody after being charged with child abuse. According to the Associated Press, Johnson was arrested on Wednesday (March 24th) in Limestone County, Alabama, after being indicted on charges of “willful torture, willful abuse, and cruelly beating or otherwise willfully maltreating a child under the age of 18.” An arraignment is set for April 7th. Johnson previously pleaded guilty in March 2020 to violating a domestic violence protection order. He received a suspended sentence of a year in jail, with 24 months on probation. Alabama Shakes has been on hiatus since 2018 as singer Brittany Howard focuses on her solo career. Neither Howard nor the band has yet to publicly address Johnson’s arrest. Related You Deserve to Make Money Even When you ar...
YoungBoy Never Broke Again in FBI Custody After Police Chase
Rapper YoungBoy Never Broke Again, aka NBA YoungBoy, was arrested on Monday afternoon and taken into FBI custody in the Los Angeles area, according to CBSN Los Angeles. The 21-year-old Louisiana native, whose real name is Kentrell Gaulden, was wanted for an outstanding warrant. Police attempted to pull him over, but wound up in a short pursuit ending in the rapper trying to flee on foot. According to TMZ, police reportedly found a firearm in the vehicle — although it’s unclear if it belongs to Gaulden. An alleged video of the arrest was shared with TMZ, which you can watch below. Baton Rouge’s ABC affiliate, WBRZ, reported back in February that Gaulden was under federal investigation following his September 2020 arrest on drug and weapons charges. In November 2016, Gaulden was arrested and...
Jamie Spears Says He Would “Love Nothing More Than to See Britney Not Need a Conservatorship”
In the wake of the New York Times documentary Framing Britney Spears, the pop star’s father Jamie Spears has faced renewed scrutiny over his conservatorship of her estate. Through his attorney, Jamie has now responded to calls that he step aside, telling CNN that he would “love nothing more than to see Britney not need a conservatorship.” Spears’ lawyer Vivian Lee Thoreen also offered her client’s perspective on the recent court tussles over the $60 million estate. Last month, a judge ruled that Bessemer Trust would serve as a co-conservator alongside Jamie. At the time, reporting suggested that this happened despite the elder Spears’ objections. “Jamie never contested or objected to Bessemer being appointed as his co-conservator,” Thoreen contended. “And at the last hearing...
Trump’s Lawyers Used Madonna and Johnny Depp in Impeachment Defense
Madonna (photo by Paul Morigi), Donald Trump, and Johnny Depp (photo via YouTube) Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial has been taking place over the past few days, and his lawyers haven’t been doing that great of a job defending him. For example, on Friday they argued that Democrats have previously used the same type of provocative language that Democrats are now claiming the former president used to incite the Capitol siege. To prove their point, Trump’s lawyers played a video that featured “fight” rhetoric used by Madonna and Johnny Depp, neither of whom provoked a violence insurrection. Trump’s attorney David Schoen accused the House impeachment managers of deceptively editing Trump’s words in their own video, which focused on Trump’s rallying cries on January 6th that were the...
Bruce Springsteen Blew a 0.02 During DWI Arrest — Quarter of the Legal Limit
Last November, Bruce Springsteen was arrested and cited for a DWI, reckless driving, and consuming alcohol in a closed area. However, new information reveals that his blood-alcohol content at the time of the arrest was just 0.02 — a quarter of the legal limit in New Jersey. Springsteen was detained on November 14th at Gateway National Recreation Area, a federal park in New Jersey. According to the Asbury Park Press, a source familiar with the case confirmed that Springsteen’s BAC was nowhere near the number needed to be arrested. In all states except for Utah, it is illegal for anyone 21 years or older to operate a vehicle with a BAC of 0.08 or higher. A BAC level of 0.02, which Springsteen had, is “the lowest level of intoxication” that can impact the brain, resulting in a slightly a...
“Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” Rapper Silento Arrested for Murder
Silento, the Atlanta rapper best known for the viral hit “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)”, has been charged with murdering his cousin. The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that Silento (born Ricky Lamar Hawk) was arrested by DeKalb police on Monday. Hawk’s cousin, Frederick Rooks, was shot and killed on the morning of January 21st. “After a thorough investigation, DKPD detectives identified Hawk as Rooks’ cousin, and the person responsible for Rooks’ murder,” according police spokeswoman Michaela Vincent. Detectives are still working to establish a motive. The 23-year-old Hawk has had several previous run-ins with the law. In August, he was arrested twice on domestic violence and gun charges. Then in October, he was booked after being clocked speeding at more than 140 mph. Hawk achieved ...
Nicki Minaj Will Pay Tracy Chapman $450,000 to Settle Copyright Lawsuit
Is it too late to say “Sorry”? Via The Hollywood Reporter, Nicki Minaj has agreed to pay Tracy Chapman $450,000 to settle a copyright lawsuit over Minaj’s “Sorry”, which sampled Chapman’s “Baby Can I Hold You” without permission. Minaj wrote the song with Nas for her 2018 album Queen. Initially, Her Pinkness didn’t know she had interpolated “Baby Can I Hold You”, only finding out shortly before the album’s release that, like a Russian nesting doll, one of her samples had itself sampled Chapman. Minaj pleaded with Chapman to clear the song over Twitter, to no avail. Ultimately, Queen dropped without the offending track, and that might have been the end of it. However, Minaj allegedly leaked “Sorry” to Funkmaster Flex, after which it landed on the internet. The two women have ...
Harassment Suit Against Danny Masterson Headed to Scientology Mediation After Judge’s Ruling
A judge has ruled that four of five allegations of stalking and intimidation filed again Danny Masterson must be mediated within the Church of Scientology. The case was filed last summer, alleging that Masterson and the Church of Scientology threatened and harassed four women and one of their husbands who had publicly accused the disgraced That ’70s Show actor of sexual assault. Because four of the complainants — Chrissie Carnell Bixler; her husband, At the Drive-In frontman Cedric Bixler-Zavala; and two Jane Does — were previously members of Scientology and signed an arbitration agreement with the Church, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Steven Kleifield ruled those charges must mediated by Scientology officials. A fourth woman, Marie Bobette Riales, was never a member of the Churc...
Harassment Suit Against Danny Masterson Headed to Scientology Mediation After Judge’s Ruling
A judge has ruled that four of five allegations of stalking and intimidation filed again Danny Masterson must be mediated within the Church of Scientology. The case was filed last summer, alleging that Masterson and the Church of Scientology threatened and harassed four women and one of their husbands who had publicly accused the disgraced That ’70s Show actor of sexual assault. Because four of the complainants — Chrissie Carnell Bixler; her husband, At the Drive-In frontman Cedric Bixler-Zavala; and two Jane Does — were previously members of Scientology and signed an arbitration agreement with the Church, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Steven Kleifield ruled those charges must mediated by Scientology officials. A fourth woman, Marie Bobette Riales, was never a member of the Churc...
Lil Wayne Pleads Guilty to Federal Weapons Charge
Lil Wayne pleaded guilty to a federal weapons charge in a South Florida court on Friday afternoon. According to the Associated Press, the 38-year-old rapper entered the plea during a hearing held remotely. “Your honor, I plead guilty to the charge,” Wayne told U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams. A sentencing date has been set for January 28th, 2021. The charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, but Judge Williams said she would impose a sentence that is “reasonable under the circumstances” of the case. Wayne was released on $250,000 bail pending sentencing. In November, Lil Wayne was charged with one count of possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon stemming from the discovery of a firearm aboard his private plane in December 2019. An anonymou...
Rick Rubin Charged with Breaking Hawaii’s COVID-19 Quarantine Protocols
Famed producer Rick Rubin has been charged with violating Hawaii’s COVID-19 quarantine protocols, according to the local Kauai newspaper The Garden Island. His next court date is February 9th, 2021. Kauai County and the state of Hawaii require off-island visitors to quarantine for 14 days. But on September 2nd, Rubin was spotted walking along Anini Beach near his resort before his two-week isolation had ended. The beach was empty, and Rubin was alone except for a member of the paparazzi that had reportedly been following him since his arrival on the island. A passerby took a cell phone video and reported Rubin to the authorities. The infraction carries a maximum fine of $5,000 and potential jail time. Since Rubin was strolling on a deserted beach, and not hosting superspreader parties...
Kanye West Being Sued for Unchristian Treatment of Christian Opera Workers
Kanye West is facing two different class-action lawsuits over the alleged poor treatment of workers on his Christian opera Nebuchadnezzar, as Vice reports. Because while Jesus said, “Sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.” Yeezus said misclassify your employees as independent contractors, deny them overtime, and keep them waiting months for checks, and you will be a billionaire on Earth. The ill-fated performance of Nebuchadnezzar took place on November 24th at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. It came on the heels of his execrable album Jesus Is King, and was announced only a week before it bowed. The mess began long before curtain — West put the wrong emperor on his invitations — and afterwards it was panned by critics. The show, such...
