Josh Brolin, Jeffrey Wright Cleared in Bar Brawl
Looks like there'll be no need for a presidential pardon for this W. crew.
Prosecutors in Shreveport, La., have reached a deal with attorneys for Josh Brolin and Jeffrey Wright, agreeing to drop all charges stemming from their highly publicized July bar brawl.
Cindy Kemp, spokeswoman for the Shreveport City Court, tells E! News that as long as the actors and five others accept "district attorney's probation" and stay out of further trouble, all misdemeanor counts against the group will be dismissed at their next court date, scheduled for March 11.
The W. gang was out celebrating the wrap of the Oliver Stone biopic at the Stray Cats bar when cops were called to break up a disturbance in the early hours of July 12, 2008. Brolin, the celluloid commander in chief, tried to talk cops out of arresting a drunk crew member, but he and Wright, who plays Colin Powell in the movie, wound up getting pepper sprayed and arrested for interfering with an officer.
Amy Winehouse Says Fine to Norwegian Fine
Amy Winehouse may not have given in to wearing her bathing suit all the time, but she has agreed to pay the fine for her 2007 illegal marijuana possession charge in Norway.
The "Rehab" singer was touring when police caught her, hubby Blake Fielder-Civil and a crew member with a quarter ounce of pot in their hotel room. Each paid a $415 fine to make the charge disappear, but the troubled star later appealed, claiming police coerced her into signing a confession.
The initial March 2008 trial date was postponed and the 25-year-old chanteuse was summoned to appear next Monday. Now that she has withdrawn her appeal and accepted the fine, she will not need to make the trip to Norway.
Unfortunately, agreeing to pay the fine serves as a de facto guilty plea and may make it difficult for Winehouse to perform in the United States. When she paid the fine at the time of the incident, her visa application was delayed and she was unable to appear at the 2008 Grammys, where she received five awards.
30 Rocker Rolled by DUI
Rip Torn apparently had too much of the Christmas spirit(s), at least according to Connecticut's finest.
The 30 Rock costar pleaded not guilty Monday to two counts stemming from a Dec. 14 drunken driving arrest.
The 77-year-old was rung up on charges of illegal operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence and failure to drive in the proper lane after cops caught him cruising the breakdown lane of Route 44 with a Christmas tree tied to the roof of his Subaru. Torn lives in Salisbury, Conn., near the New York border.
Roman Polanski Wants Court Off His Case
You can take the case out of court, but can you take the court out of the case?
Roman Polanski, who last month moved to have a decades-old charge of unlawful intercourse with a minor dismissed, filed a motion Monday to have the entire case removed from the Los Angeles Superior Court system and handed to the California Judicial Council for review.
Citing judicial bias and misconduct that was alleged in the recent documentary Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired, the 75-year-old filmmaker's legal camp states that the "entire case should be referred to the Judicial Council for further proceedings and a determination free from even the appearance of bias and taint."
Update
Heather Locklear Cops Plea, Makes DUI Disappear
The new year is bringing a clean slate for Heather Locklear.
E! News has confirmed that Santa Barbara prosecutors have dismissed a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence after the actress pleaded no contest to a lesser charge stemming from her Sept. 27 arrest.
The plea, for misdeameanor reckless driving, was entered by attorney Blair Berk.
Locklear was fined $700 fine, placed on informal probation for three years and ordered to attend a 12-hour drug-education program, according to the Santa Barbara District Attorney.
The once and possibly future Melrose Place star was charged with DUI on Nov. 17 after a somewhat lengthy investigation into her roadside arrest.
—Additional reporting by Ashley Fultz
(Originally published Jan. 2, 2009 at 10:28 a.m. PT.)
Marilyn Manson Wants Ex-Wife Back...for Trial
Marilyn Manson wants to hook back up with Dita Von Teese...and Trent Reznor and several other old pals.
The shock-rocker's camp has unveiled a witness wish list that includes his ex-wife and his Nine Inch Nails-fronting mentor to testify on his behalf in an upcoming court showdown with estranged keyboardist Stephen Bier.
Bier, otherwise known as Madonna Wayne Gacy, sued Manson for more than $20 million last year, claiming Manson siphoned off millions of dollars in band revenue.
The funds allegedly paid for drugs, assorted Nazi paraphernalia, the cost of Von Teese's engagement ring and the ex-couple's 2005 wedding, and the interior decorating of Manson's mansion, which features a stuffed grizzly bear, a pair of baboons and the skeleton of a 4-year-old Chinese girl.
DJ AM: I'm Not After Crash Pilots' Money
DJ AM wants us to know he's not taking the fatal plane crash he survived personally.
In response to reports about his recently filed negligence lawsuit against those his legal camp feels are liable for the Sept. 19 crash that killed four and left AM and Travis Barker with severe burns, the celebrity spinner has taken issue with the interpretation that he is suing the families of the deceased pilots.
"Normally I don't feel like I NEED to make a statement like this, but after I read some recently reported untruths I feel like I have to," AM, whose real name is Adam Goldstein, wrote on his MySpace blog. "I want to take a second to address the hurtful posts and clear up any misunderstandings any of you may have about my law suit. I would NEVER sue the deceased pilots' estates or personal holdings."
Exclusive
Nikki Blonsky, Next Top Modeler Cleared in Airport Smackdown
The Hairspray star's assault charges have officially been washed away.
Nikki Blonsky and onetime America's Next Top Model contestant Bianca Golden are clear of all charges stemming from their July 29 arrests following a blowout, family-style airport smackdown.
"The cases against Nikki Blonsky and Bianca Golden have been dropped," Turks and Caicos Police Sgt. Calvin Chase told E! News.
"The only case that is still proceeding is against [Blonsky's] father."
Update
Dane Cook's Biz Manager Not a Stand-Up Sibling?
UPDATE: McCauley pleaded not guilty Wednesday to all charges and was ordered held on $3 million bail.
__________________________
Dane Cook's business manager has blown his chances at being Employee of the Month.
Cook's brother, Darryl McCauley, is set to be arraigned Wednesday morning on larceny and forgery charges for allegedly stealing millions from his little bro between July 2007 and December 2008.
McCauley, 43, was arrested Tuesday by Massachusetts State Police after a two-week investigation and charged with two counts of larceny of more than $250, forgery and larceny by continuous scheme.
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, who would only confirm that the alleged victim was a nationally known entertainer, says McCauley transfered money from his client's account into his own without permission, at one point forging a $3 million check.
(Originally published Dec. 30, 2008 at 4:10 p.m. PT.)
Amy Winehouse Summoned to Go Courting in Norway
They're trying to make Amy Winehouse go to Norway, but will she go, go, go?
The "Rehab" songbird has been summoned to appear at a Norwegian appellate court hearing in January in connection with an Oct. 18, 2007, drug arrest, according to the country's online newspaper Nettavisen.
Winehouse was on tour in the western Norway town of Bergen when she, hubby Blake Fielder-Civil and a member of her crew were busted for pot possession after police found less than a quarter of an ounce of marijuana in a hotel room.
Matt Dillon Driven to Arrest
Matt Dillon felt the need for speed. The Vermont State Police felt the need to bust him for it.
The Oscar-nominated—and apparently lead-footed—actor was arrested and cited for excessive speeding in Newbury, Vt., last night after local police clocked him going 106 mph in a 65-mph zone.
According to state troopers, officers pulled the 44-year-old star over at roughly 10 p.m. after spotting his excessively zippy ride on Interstate 91.
The Crash star was fingerprinted, cited and photographed before being sent on his law-abiding way.
He is due to appear in Vermont's Orange County Court Jan. 21 to answer to the charge.
DMX Cuts a Deal on Dog, Drug, Theft Charges
Perhaps DMX has seen the error of his ways and is looking to make a fresh start in 2009.
Just in time to make New Year's resolutions, the oft-arrested rapper has cut a deal in his pending animal cruelty, drug possession and identity theft cases in order to avoid being prosecuted for more than a dozen crimes.
Instead, DMX, whose real name is Earl Simmons, pleaded guilty Tuesday in a Phoenix court to one count apiece of animal cruelty, theft, marijuana possession and possession of a narcotic, the last three of which are felonies.
Sentencing has been set for Jan. 30 in Maricopa County Superior Court. Additional charges will be dismissed at that time but DMX is facing at least 90 days in jail, according to prosecutors.
"I am pleased that this defendant will be held accountable for both his drug and animal cruelty offenses," said County Attorney Andrew Thomas.




