Legal proceedings – Page 5

Illinois appeals court hears arguments on Jussie Smollett request to toss convictions

12Sep

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Illinois appeals court hears arguments on Jussie Smollett request to toss convictions

CHICAGO -- Jussie Smollett's lawyers told an Illinois appellate court Tuesday it should toss the former “Empire” actor’s convictions for staging a racist, homophobic attack against himself in 2019 and then lying about it to Chicago police, arguing that anger over the case led to properly dismissed charges being improperly restored. Smollett, foregoing his usual three-piece suits in favor of a casual beige jacket and blue jeans, slipped into court for the hour-long oral arguments Tuesday and sat on spectator benches. He seemed to listen intently, leaning forward to follow the debate before the three-judge panel.Smollett, 41, didn't speak to reporters after the hearing, and Chicago TV station WGN showed footage of him from behind leaving the court building via an alley, wearing a hat and di...

Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologize for ‘pain’ their letters on behalf of Danny Masterson caused

10Sep

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Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologize for ‘pain’ their letters on behalf of Danny Masterson caused

Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are apologizing for character letters the celebrity couple wrote on behalf of fellow “That ’70s Show” actor Danny Masterson before he was sentenced for rape this weekByThe Associated PressSeptember 9, 2023, 6:39 PMFILE - Ashton Kutcher, left, and Mila Kunis arrive at the Oscars on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. The couple are apologizing for character letters they wrote on behalf of actor Danny Masterson ahead of this week's sentencing of their fellow "That '70s Show" cast member. A judge in Los Angeles on Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023, sentenced Masterson to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women in 2003. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)The Associated PressLOS ANGELES -- Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis apologized Sat...

‘That ’70s Show’ actor Danny Masterson could get decades in prison at sentencing for 2 rapes

7Sep

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‘That ’70s Show’ actor Danny Masterson could get decades in prison at sentencing for 2 rapes

LOS ANGELES -- LOS ANGELES (AP) — “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson could get as much as 30 years to life in prison at his sentencing Thursday for the rapes of two women two decades ago. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo is set to sentence the 47-year-old actor after ruling on a defense motion for a new trial that she’s very likely to reject, and after hearing impact statements from the victims.A jury of seven women and five men found Masterson guilty of two counts on May 31 after seven days of deliberations. Both attacks took place in Masterson’s Hollywood-area home in 2003, when he was at the height of his fame on the Fox network sitcom “That ’70s Show.”The jury could not reach a unanimous verdict on a third count, an allegation that Masterson also raped a longtim...

Visual artists fight back against AI companies for repurposing their work

31Aug

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Visual artists fight back against AI companies for repurposing their work

NEW YORK -- Kelly McKernan’s acrylic and watercolor paintings are bold and vibrant, often featuring feminine figures rendered in bright greens, blues, pinks and purples. The style, in the artist’s words, is “surreal, ethereal … dealing with discomfort in the human journey.”The word “human” has a special resonance for McKernan these days. Although it’s always been a challenge to eke out a living as a visual artist — and the pandemic made it worse — McKernan now sees an existential threat from a medium that's decidedly not human: artificial intelligence.It’s been about a year since McKernan, who uses the pronoun they, began noticing online images eerily similar to their own distinctive style that were apparently generated by entering their name into an AI engine.The Nashville-based McKernan...

Prosecutors weigh second gun analysis in fatal shooting of cinematographer by Alec Baldwin

16Aug

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Prosecutors weigh second gun analysis in fatal shooting of cinematographer by Alec Baldwin

SANTA FE, N.M. -- Prosecutors have received a second expert analysis of the revolver fired in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by Alec Baldwin on the set of a Western film in New Mexico, as they weigh whether to refile charges against the actor. Baldwin has said the gun fired accidentally after he followed instructions to point it toward cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who was behind the camera in rehearsal. Baldwin said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the gun fired, fatally wounding Hutchins on Oct. 21, 2021, at a movie ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe.Special prosecutors dismissed an involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin in April, saying they were informed the gun might have been modified before the shooting and malfunctioned. They commissioned ...

Tory Lanez gets 10 years in prison for shooting Megan Thee Stallion

9Aug

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Tory Lanez gets 10 years in prison for shooting Megan Thee Stallion

LOS ANGELES -- A judge sentenced rapper Tory Lanez to 10 years in prison Tuesday for shooting and wounding hip-hop superstar Megan Thee Stallion in the feet, bringing a conclusion to a three-year legal and cultural saga that saw two careers, and lives, thrown into turmoil. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Herriford handed down the sentence to the 31-year-old Lanez, who was convicted in December of three felonies: assault with a semiautomatic firearm; having a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle and discharging a firearm with gross negligence.From the initial incident in the Hollywood Hills in July of 2020, to the marathon two-day sentencing hearing, the case created a firestorm in the hip-hop community, churning up issues including the reluctance of Black victims to speak to p...

Lawsuit by former dancers accuses Lizzo of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment

1Aug

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Lawsuit by former dancers accuses Lizzo of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment

LOS ANGELES -- Lizzo has been sued by three former dancers who accuse the Grammy winner of sexual harassment and allege the singer and her production company created a hostile work environment. The civil lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court claims Lizzo pressured one of the dancers to engage with nude performers at a club in Amsterdam and shamed another dancer for her weight gain before firing her. Plaintiffs Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez make numerous charges including sexual, religious and racial harassment, disability discrimination, assault and false imprisonment. The legal complaint seeks unspecified damages and names Melissa Viviane Jefferson, known professionally as Lizzo, her production company Big Grrrl Big Touring, Inc., and Shirlene ...

Michael Jackson sexual abuse lawsuits on verge of revival by appeals court

26Jul

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Michael Jackson sexual abuse lawsuits on verge of revival by appeals court

A California appeals court will consider reviving the lawsuits of two men who allege Michael Jackson sexually abused them as childrenByANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment WriterLOS ANGELES -- A California appeals court on Wednesday will consider reviving the dismissed lawsuits of two men who allege Michael Jackson sexually abused them as children for years, a move the court appears likely to make after a tentative decision that would order the cases back to a lower court for trial. The suits were filed after Jackson's 2009 death by Wade Robson in 2013 and James Safechuck the following year. The two men became more widely known for telling their stories in the 2019 HBO documentary, “ Leaving Neverland.”Both sued MJJ Productions Inc. and MJJ Ventures Inc., two corporations for which Jackson was ...

A former Trump supporter who got caught up in a January 6 conspiracy theory sues Fox News

13Jul

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A former Trump supporter who got caught up in a January 6 conspiracy theory sues Fox News

DOVER, Del. -- A former Donald Trump supporter who became the center of a conspiracy theory about Jan. 6, 2021, filed a defamation lawsuit against Fox News on Wednesday, saying the network made him a scapegoat for the U.S. Capitol insurrection.Raymond Epps, a former Marine who said he was forced from his Arizona home because of threats, is asking for unspecified damages and a jury trial.He filed his lawsuit in Superior Court in Delaware, the same court where Dominion Voting Systems sued Fox for lies broadcast following the 2020 presidential election. Shortly before a trial was to begin this spring, Fox agreed to pay Dominion $787 million to settle the charges.Fox did not respond to texts, phone calls and emails seeking comment on Epps' lawsuit.The suit also states that the Justice Departm...

Jury decides 2014 document found in Aretha Franklin’s couch is a valid will

11Jul

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Jury decides 2014 document found in Aretha Franklin’s couch is a valid will

PONTIAC, Mich. -- A document handwritten by singer Aretha Franklin and found in her couch after her 2018 death is a valid Michigan will, a jury said Tuesday, a critical turn in a dispute that has turned her sons against each other.It’s a victory for Kecalf Franklin and Edward Franklin whose lawyers had argued that papers dated 2014 should override a 2010 will that was discovered around the same time in a locked cabinet at the Queen of Soul’s home in suburban Detroit.The jury deliberated less than an hour after a brief trial that started Monday. After the verdict was read, Aretha Franklin's grandchildren stepped forward from the first row to hug Kecalf and Edward.“I'm very, very happy. I just wanted my mother's wishes to be adhered to,” Kecalf Franklin said. “We just want to exhale right n...