Paris Hilton’s brother, Barron fined $4.9m for DUI

n predictable proof that ‘stupid’ runs in families, Barron Hilton, the 21-year old brother of Paris Hilton has been ordered to pay $4.9-million to a gas station attendant he nearly killed in a DUI incident in 2008.

The victim, Fernando Tellez told a New York courtroom he was refilling a car at a local gas station when Barron ran into him in his Mercedes, knocked him to the ground and caused injuries that left Tellez with a severe limp and chronic back pain, and also caused the loss of his marriage.

Hilton was arrested shortly after by the LAPD. At first he flatly denied he was driving, then told officers he was at the wheel but didn’t hit the attendant.

He was then breathalysed. The score was ’0.14′ – almost twice the legal limit.

“It particularly bothered me that for two years Hilton admitted he was drunk but said he wasn’t driving,” Tellez’ attorney, Joseph Kar told the News. “Then we went to trial and he changed his story. The jury didn’t believe him, clearly,”

Another witness told the court Barron almost crashed into her car the same night while he was driving along the Pacific Coast Highway – (Read more...)

Desperate Housewives’ Nicollette Sheridan $20m lawsuit heats up

In a simmering court case that could keep Desperate Housewives in scandal and plots for two seasons at least, the show’s creator, Marc Cherry is now fighting back against Nicollette Sheridan after she claimed he discriminated against her because she’s a woman.

Nicollette filed her suit in April last year, claiming assault, battery, emotional distress, gender violence and wrongful termination. And she wants a cool $20-million to settle.

“Mr. Cherry harassed and discriminated against me because I am a woman,” says the brief. “At a July 2008 event panel, Mr. Cherry sang the praises of the other actresses, but made disparaging comments about me and my character, Edie Britt.”

ABC says the claims were “entirely without merit.”

Nicollette has since dropped the claims of physical injury and emotional distress after the network wanted her to undergo psychiatric evaluation before they’d proceed. But she still insists those claims are all valid.

Yesterday Marc filed a brief with the court and denied all the charges, saying he never hit Nicolette. He admits merely giving her ‘a light tap on the head.’

“I did not hit, or otherwise touch Sheridan because she is a woman,” says his reply. “I also never made (Read more...)

Halle Berry slaps restraining order on stalker

After her dramatic encounter with Richard Franco, the stalker who entered her property three times last weekend, Halle Berry has now wisely obtained a restraining order to keep him away while the LAPD sorts out the case.

The 27-year old drifter had entered Halle’s yard twice before police finally caught him on Monday. The court’s order now requires him to stay at least 100 yards away from the Oscar-winning actress and her 3-year old daughter Nala.

In the sworn statement required by a court to obtain the order Halle says this:

“This person has jeopardized not only my personal safety, but also the safety and well-being of my family. This person has invaded and trampled upon the most fundamental sense of security I have, and I am extremely frightened of him and what he might do to me or those I love.”

Franco is now due in court for a hearing on August 1st. Should that go down as expected the order will be enforced against him for another three years.

Any breach of the rules in that time and he goes straight to jail…

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‘Happy Days’ stars sue CBS for $10m, ‘despicable conduct’

Since ‘Happy Days’ debuted in 1974 it’s become one of the most loved shows on the air, but four of the stars, Marion Ross, Don Most, Anson Williams and Erin Moran say the way CBS handled the merchandise deals was more like borderline hatred.

The four, plus the widow of Tom Bosley who played Mr. Cunningham, are suing CBS for $10-million, saying the network short-changed them on the huge sales of Happy Days gear.

“In this lawsuit, plaintiffs seek their share of the money collected as a result of the use of the actors’ names and likenesses in connection with merchandising,” says the lawsuit, filed by their attorney Jon Pfeiffer in LA’s Superior Court. “Plaintiffs also want the jury to punish defendants for their despicable conduct.”

The actors were guaranteed 5% of all sales and Don Most says all they want is their share. They filed suit in April and CBS have since done everything legally possible to avoid a response.

“This is one of the most heavily merchandised shows ever,” Don tells CNN. “People loved ‘Happy Days’ and it’s been on everything from bedsheets to lunch boxes.”

For their part CBS claim the actors are “attempting to generate (Read more...)

Britney Spears spared trial in $10m lawsuit

Despite being one of the most successful brands in marketing history, Britney Spears’ recent perfume deal with Elizabeth Arden earned the singer a lawsuit. But a Judge has just ruled she need not take part.

Britney recently agreed a deal with the Arden team to market a fragrance. That deal was brokered by a firm called ‘Brand Sense,’ and they recently sued Brit for not paying commission. But this morning a Judge ruled Brit cannot be deposed in the case because she’s still under a conservatorship, which could sink their whole claim.

Brand Sense say the Spears family stopped paying the 35% commission they agreed to in the contract and the firm wants $10-million to settle the case. But the Judge swiftly said no and Brit’s opponents aren’t too happy, calling the decision “A ruling the plaintiffs heartily dispute”;

“Brand Sense intends to seek immediate relief from the probate court’s order,” says the whiny response. “The notion that Britney Spears is unfit to testify under oath is a sham. Ms. Spears currently has the mental, emotional and physical capacity to endure the strain of a concert tour, make numerous public appearances, engage in interviews, participate in promotional campaigns and maintain (Read more...)

Real Housewives star, NeNe Leakes’ son arrested

The carefully crafted illusion that is reality TV got a little too real for one star last night – Bryson Bryant, the son of ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’ star NeNe Leakes has been arrested in Georgia for shoplifting.

Police in Gwinnett County say Bryson was seen leaving a local store at around 9pm yesterday without paying for all of his items. He’s since been charged with shoplifting and will need to settle the case with a fine.

But that’s not all – On March 7th last year Bryson was arrested for marijuana possession and spent some time in a cell. And this latest transgression means he’s in violation of the probation he got for the drugs charge – which means even more trouble.

As you might expect, Momma Leakes has made no public statement so far, but it’s pretty certain the next few shows of ‘Real Housewives’ will address her son’s latest failing. A lot.

Source: TMZ

Maria Shriver finds new $10m home

The oncoming divorce of Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger could keep us in stories for months…and here’s another; It’s been revealed that Maria has just closed on a $10-million home in Brentwood as her new single lair.

Sources close to the splintering couple say Maria, 55, had been house-hunting for six months, but the collapse of her marriage gave the hunt added vigor. And while the luxurious new digs are near her old home with Arnold, that’s only to make it easier when they start sharing custody of the kids, so we’re told.

One uneasy detail, however, is the home is very close to the one in which O.J. Simpson lived when he got entangled in the Nicole Brown Simpson murder case back in 1994.

And the former couple are apparently determined to keep the split both friendly and private. Arnold plans to offer more cash as a settlement than he’s required to by law,. but it’s not yet known what concessions Maria might make in return.

The house is still in escrow at present, but sources say it’s a done deal and Maria will soon get the keys.

TMZ

Tiger Woods, A-Rod’s doctor pleads guilty

Dr. Anthony Galea, the unlicensed doctor whose clients were thought to include Tiger Woods and Alex ‘A-Rod’ Rodriguez has just pleaded guilty in New York federal court to supplying performance-enhancing drugs to as many as twenty of the top names in sports.

Based in Toronto, Dr. Galea was indicted by a federal grand jury in October who determined he had smuggled the Human Growth Hormone drug ‘Nutropin’ and other banned substances into the US, then lied to border patrol agents to cover it up.

The drugs were then used to treat a long list of mystery clients for almost two years. These included several famous baseball and football players, but his best known customer was Tiger Woods.

By pleading guilty Galea, 51, will not face a trial. Those close to the case say the plea was his way to ensure details of his celebrity client list never become public.

Federal prosecutors say the Doctor gave these clients injections of HGH, which is banned by all the major sports bodies. Some also received treatment with ‘Actovegin,’ which is a derivative of animal blood and is also illegal in the US.

Tiger Woods has admitted being treated by the defendant, but denies (Read more...)

‘Dancing with the Stars’ Mark Ballas sued

While on the dance floor the cast of ‘Dancing with the Stars’ all look happy, yet Mark Ballas is anything but – He fired his PR firm for what he says was shoddy work…and now they’re suing.

Back in September the 25-year old Texan, who’s been romantically linked with American Idol contestant Pia Toscano fired his publicists, Ace PR for what he insists was an inadequate level of work.

Now Ace say he never paid them a ‘30-day termination fee’ as agreed in their contract and they want the spat settled in LA’s Small Claims Court.

But sources close to the defendant say Mark believes the cash is simply not owed because Ace voided the contract, and therefore their right to get paid because they did such a terrible job.

The disputed amount is just $2,637.75.

The two sides are now due to face off in court on July 8 where the matter will be resolved by a magistrate.

This has the potential to be a prime-time cat-fight so stay tuned….

Source: TMZ

‘Real World’s David ‘Puck’ Rainey arrested

Reality TV is not known as the refuge of rocket scientists and further proof of that can be found in the news that ex ‘Real World’ trouble-maker David ‘Puck’ Rainey has been arrested for domestic violence.

The 42-year old was busted by the LAPD on June 19th at a home on Burnet Avenue in Mission Hills. The cause of arrest is listed as being “Suspicion of felony corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant.”

He’s now being held at the L.A. County Men’s Central Jail pending a trial and bail has been set at $30,000. So far, no-one’s helped.

Dave was previously arrested for domestic violence in 2003 but the Police dropped the charges. It happened again in 2009 and he then served a year in the same jail he’s in now. He also got three years probation for carrying an unlicensed gun.

Sadly, there’s more – In 2010 he was arrested in San Diego and charged with DUI after a car crash in which his 8-year old son was badly hurt.

This latest brush with the law is due to be resolved in a court in San Fernando on July 6th and David could be facing at least one (Read more...)