SHOTLIST

AP Images

FILE: Santa Barbara - 28 September 2008

1. Still of Heather Locklear

AP Entertainment

FILE: Exact location unknown, US - August 2003

2. Heather Locklear talking to reporters

AP Entertainment

FILE: Los Angeles - April 2005

3. Heather Locklear and husband Richie Sambora talking to reporters

STORYLINE:

PAPARAZZI PHOTOGRAPHER WHO CALLED POLICE ON HEATHER LOCKLEAR CLAIMS 'CIVIC DUTY'

A photographer who called 911 to report Heather Locklear allegedly driving erratically runs a paparazzi agency and profited from images she took of the actress's subsequent arrest, the woman's attorney said Wednesday (1 OCT 2008).

But Nicholas Tepper, who represents photographer Jill Ishkanian, said in a written statement Wednesday that her phone call to authorities was motivated by "civic duty" and a concern for Locklear's safety.

He also defended Ishkanian's right to then take photos of the arrest, which took place on 27 September 2008.

"The fact she witnessed Ms. Locklear's erratic driving and reported it to the police did not mean she was disqualified from reporting the story, which she in fact did," Tepper wrote.

He said Ishkanian then sold the photos to celebrity gossip site TMZ for $27,000 - but did it through a third party, KM Press Group, because her standing in the industry has been damaged by a lawsuit against her former employer, US Weekly.

In its postings this week, TMZ questioned whether Ishkanian was "up to no good" and claimed she alerted fellow paparazzi to Locklear's impending arrest. TMZ head Harvey Levin said Wednesday that the owner of KM Press Group has repeatedly told him that one of the agency's photographers snapped the photos and that Ishkanian called to tip him off to Locklear's arrest.

Tepper said Ishkanian had been visiting family and friends in the Montecito area when she spotted Locklear's car driving erratically Saturday afternoon, called 911 and was advised by a CHP dispatcher to stop following the car.

But Levin said some of the pictures appear to be taken well before Locklear's arrest, and questioned Tepper's contention that Ishkanian just happened to run into her acting erratically at a market. At least one of the photos shows Locklear coming out of a shop.

Tepper initially said Ishkanian took all the photos after phoning authorities. But when pressed about the image of Locklear appearing to leave a store, he said he wasn't sure about the sequence that the photos were taken in, only that Ishkanian shot them all.

Levin said he did not consider the photos tainted. "Ultimately, these are photographs of an arrest."

The California Highway Patrol, which would not confirm the identity of the 911 caller, said she didn't identify that the driver was Locklear, but said the actress appeared "drunk" in a market. The CHP said in a news release that Locklear showed "obvious impairment," but alcohol has been ruled out.

Santa Barbara County prosecutors will have to decide whether to pursue charges after test results are returned that could show whether Locklear was under the influence of other substances.

CHP Lt. Dane Lobb said Wednesday that Ishkanian's involvement would not change what was going forward as a regular DUI investigation. "We determined (Locklear) was someone who shouldn't be operating a vehicle," he said.

Locklear's attorney, Blair Berk, did not return an e-mail message seeking comment Wednesday evening.

Tepper later said in an interview that Ishkanian also provided authorities with a statement and would testify against Locklear if necessary. He said Ishkanian sold the photos without disclosing that she was the shooter because of her $55 million lawsuit against US Weekly; that suit claims the magazine's employees damaged her career by accusing her of stealing information from company computers.

Federal agents later raided Ishkanian's home and business, but she has never been arrested or charged. Her lawsuit seeks damages for emotional distress, libel, slander, and conspiracy.

Tepper said Wednesday the US Weekly lawsuit has limited her business, claiming others in the industry refuse to use her material. The magazine is appealing a judge's ruling that refused to dismiss several of Ishkanian's claims.

US Weekly said through a spokesman Wednesday night that it had no comment.

After leaving the magazine, Ishkanian helped form Sunset Photo and News, a paparazzi and celebrity reporting agency.

Heather Locklear is a six-time Golden Globe nominated actress, famous for the roles in the American television shows including 'Dynasty' and 'Spin City' .

She was married to Motley Crue band member Tommy Lee until 1993 before divorcing and marrying Richie Sambora, guitarist for Bon Jovi. They divorced in 1997.

She has one daughter with Richie Sambora named Ava Elizabeth.

BILL COSBY SWITCHING LAWYERS IN CIVIL CASES AROUND COUNTRY

Bill Cosby has replaced the law firm overseeing civil litigation around the country linked to accusations he drugged and molested women.

Liner LLP, known for its work in entertainment law, is replacing lawyers with the powerhouse litigation firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, Cosby spokesman Andrew Wyatt confirmed Monday (11 JULY 2016.) Both firms are based in Los Angeles.

Litigation department chairwoman Angela Agrusa will now represent Cosby in the defamation and sex-assault lawsuits. Several women have sued Cosby for branding them liars in lawsuits filed in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and California. Cosby has countersued some of them.

Agrusa, in a statement, said she did not want to try the cases in the media. She said Cosby "deserve(s) representation to ensure that justice does not yield to news cycles and soundbites."

"Trying Mr. Cosby in a court of public opinion — as imbalanced media coverage promotes — runs directly counter to our judicial system's most fundamental guarantees of fairness under the law," she said.

The Liner firm currently represents singer Blake Shelton in a defamation case against a celebrity magazine. The firm also defended the doctor charged with overprescribing painkillers to the late model Anna Nicole Smith.

Quinn Emanuel may stay involved in the criminal sex-assault case heading to trial in suburban Philadelphia, Wyatt said. The firm's Christopher Tayback last week argued for the charges to be dismissed or for Cosby to be granted a new preliminary hearing to weigh the evidence. The trial judge denied the motion.

Cosby, 78, has been spending millions in an aggressive bid to stay out of prison, salvage his reputation and avoid legal judgments that could threaten his fortune.

BILL COSBY SWITCHING LAWYERS IN CIVIL CASES AROUND COUNTRY

Bill Cosby has replaced the law firm overseeing civil litigation around the country linked to accusations he drugged and molested women.

Liner LLP, known for its work in entertainment law, is replacing lawyers with the powerhouse litigation firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, Cosby spokesman Andrew Wyatt confirmed Monday (11 JULY 2016.) Both firms are based in Los Angeles.

Litigation department chairwoman Angela Agrusa will now represent Cosby in the defamation and sex-assault lawsuits. Several women have sued Cosby for branding them liars in lawsuits filed in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and California. Cosby has countersued some of them.

Agrusa, in a statement, said she did not want to try the cases in the media. She said Cosby "deserve(s) representation to ensure that justice does not yield to news cycles and soundbites."

"Trying Mr. Cosby in a court of public opinion — as imbalanced media coverage promotes — runs directly counter to our judicial system's most fundamental guarantees of fairness under the law," she said.

The Liner firm currently represents singer Blake Shelton in a defamation case against a celebrity magazine. The firm also defended the doctor charged with overprescribing painkillers to the late model Anna Nicole Smith.

Quinn Emanuel may stay involved in the criminal sex-assault case heading to trial in suburban Philadelphia, Wyatt said. The firm's Christopher Tayback last week argued for the charges to be dismissed or for Cosby to be granted a new preliminary hearing to weigh the evidence. The trial judge denied the motion.

Cosby, 78, has been spending millions in an aggressive bid to stay out of prison, salvage his reputation and avoid legal judgments that could threaten his fortune.

Pool

Norristown, Pennsylvania, 7 July 2016

1. Medium of Bill Cosby leaving court

AP Entertainment

Washington, D.C. 6 Nov. 2014

2. Wide of Bill Cosby, center, and wife Camille, right, at a Smithsonian event

3. Exchange between AP reporter Brett Zongker (off-camera) and comedian Bill Cosby:

Zongker: "On a separate note, I have to ask about your name coming up in the news recently regarding this comedian..."

Cosby: "No, No. We don't answer that."

Zongker: Okay, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond at all about whether any of that was true..."

Cosby: "There's no response."

Zongker: "Okay. Can I ask you if - with the persona that people know about Bill Cosby, should they believe anything differently than what..."

Cosby: "There is no comment about that. (okay) And I'll tell you why -- I think you were told, I don't want to compromise your integrity, but - I don't talk about it..."

'BFG' STARS DISCUSS BRITAIN'S EU REFERENDUM

The intense debate over Britain's future in or out of the European Union came to Hollywood Tuesday (21 June 2016) as the stars of Steven Spielberg's "The BFG" weighed in on the high-stakes issue at their film's Los Angeles premiere.

Academy Award winner Mark Rylance expressed his concerns about the EU referendum while remembering slain British lawmaker Jo Cox.

"It's a very big week and it's been really tragic to see the death of that wonderful woman, you know who such a compassionate campaigner. And just to see there are things about Europe that worry me. There are trade agreements. This horrible TTIP agreement is a terrible thing. I don't know why Obama is backing it. It gives corporations the right to sue us if we change our minds as a people. It's not democratic. But on the other hand, all the guys who are backing separation are so awful about refugees. They're all rather nasty businessman, like Rupert Murdoch. So it's a very complicated issue. But I think like here in America there is a real anger and a loss of identity. People don't know who they are and they feel betrayed by the government so have really sold out to business too often, too long. And so you're seeing some rather nasty characters, like Mr. Trump in my opinion. And in England also, some nasty characters being promoted just because people are angry. They don't know who they are and what's going on. But these big businessman, they ain't the answer. You know we've got to get together, I think, more. Or the refugees. The refugees are climate change refugees. You can't be making wars like England and America are and then drop your arms saying 'we're not going to accept your refugees' when you've bombed their countries and depleted uranium. You asked me a question that's not the right one to ask me tonight. But anyway, there's my answer. It's a personal question for people," said Rylance.

Cox, a Labour lawmaker who had championed the cause of Syrian refugees, was stabbed and shot to death outside a library in her constituency Thursday. The suspect gave his name in court as "death to traitors, freedom for Britain."

"Downton Abbey" actress Penelope Wilton said leaving would be a "disaster."

"I want to stay in Europe with all my heart. I want to stay in Europe. I think it would be a disaster. We've had peace in Europe for seventy years and there's a lot of right-wing factions building up all over and it's very important that we stick together. And we are a global economy now and we're a global world and can't afford to go back to being little England anymore. We've got to join in and learn to join in," Wilton said.

For actress Rebecca Hall the issue is a matter of identity.

"I don't want us to leave the EU. I feel very strongly about it and I don't think we should and I think it's … That is my belief. I think it's been a really important thing. I identify as European as much as English and always have and I think that's very important," she said.

Hall added that she has shied away from discussing politics in the past, but is moved to speak up about the referendum.

"I'm really torn about this because I've always thought my job is to do my job. I'm not a politician. I'm not a spokesperson. But on the other hand, I do appreciate that the things I say may get to people or might influence people. And I think when things get really confusing like they do now and you have a lot of people who are frightened and confused and not seeing things clearly and things are not communicating well then yeah, I suppose you do start wanting to speak up," she said.

British voters head to the polls on Thursday to decide if the country should stay in the European Union or leave it.

'BFG' STARS DISCUSS BRITAIN'S EU REFERENDUM

The intense debate over Britain's future in or out of the European Union came to Hollywood Tuesday (21 June 2016) as the stars of Steven Spielberg's "The BFG" weighed in on the high-stakes issue at their film's Los Angeles premiere.

Academy Award winner Mark Rylance expressed his concerns about the EU referendum while remembering slain British lawmaker Jo Cox.

"It's a very big week and it's been really tragic to see the death of that wonderful woman, you know who such a compassionate campaigner. And just to see there are things about Europe that worry me. There are trade agreements. This horrible TTIP agreement is a terrible thing. I don't know why Obama is backing it. It gives corporations the right to sue us if we change our minds as a people. It's not democratic. But on the other hand, all the guys who are backing separation are so awful about refugees. They're all rather nasty businessman, like Rupert Murdoch. So it's a very complicated issue. But I think like here in America there is a real anger and a loss of identity. People don't know who they are and they feel betrayed by the government so have really sold out to business too often, too long. And so you're seeing some rather nasty characters, like Mr. Trump in my opinion. And in England also, some nasty characters being promoted just because people are angry. They don't know who they are and what's going on. But these big businessman, they ain't the answer. You know we've got to get together, I think, more. Or the refugees. The refugees are climate change refugees. You can't be making wars like England and America are and then drop your arms saying 'we're not going to accept your refugees' when you've bombed their countries and depleted uranium. You asked me a question that's not the right one to ask me tonight. But anyway, there's my answer. It's a personal question for people," said Rylance.

Cox, a Labour lawmaker who had championed the cause of Syrian refugees, was stabbed and shot to death outside a library in her constituency Thursday. The suspect gave his name in court as "death to traitors, freedom for Britain."

"Downton Abbey" actress Penelope Wilton said leaving would be a "disaster."

"I want to stay in Europe with all my heart. I want to stay in Europe. I think it would be a disaster. We've had peace in Europe for seventy years and there's a lot of right-wing factions building up all over and it's very important that we stick together. And we are a global economy now and we're a global world and can't afford to go back to being little England anymore. We've got to join in and learn to join in," Wilton said.

For actress Rebecca Hall the issue is a matter of identity.

"I don't want us to leave the EU. I feel very strongly about it and I don't think we should and I think it's … That is my belief. I think it's been a really important thing. I identify as European as much as English and always have and I think that's very important," she said.

Hall added that she has shied away from discussing politics in the past, but is moved to speak up about the referendum.

"I'm really torn about this because I've always thought my job is to do my job. I'm not a politician. I'm not a spokesperson. But on the other hand, I do appreciate that the things I say may get to people or might influence people. And I think when things get really confusing like they do now and you have a lot of people who are frightened and confused and not seeing things clearly and things are not communicating well then yeah, I suppose you do start wanting to speak up," she said.

British voters head to the polls on Thursday to decide if the country should stay in the European Union or leave it.

Los Angeles, 21 June 2016

1. Wide of "The BFG" cast posing for photos

2. Medium of Mark Rylance speaking to reporters

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Mark Rylance, actor:

"It's a very big week and it's been really tragic to see the death of that wonderful woman, you know who such a compassionate campaigner. And just to see there are things about Europe that worry me. There are trade agreements. This horrible TTIP agreement is a terrible thing. I don't know why Obama is backing it. It gives corporations the right to sue us if we change our minds as a people. It's not democratic. But on the other hand, all the guys who are backing separation are so awful about refugees. They're all rather nasty businessman, like Rupert Murdoch. So it's a very complicated issue. But I think like here in America there is a real anger and a loss of identity. People don't know who they are and they feel betrayed by the government so have really sold out to business too often, too long. And so you're seeing some rather nasty characters, like Mr. Trump in my opinion. And in England also, some nasty characters being promoted just because people are angry. They don't know who they are and what's going on. But these big businessman, they ain't the answer. You know we've got to get together, I think, more. Or the refugees. The refugees are climate change refugees. You can't be making wars like England and America are and then throw up your arms saying 'we're not going to accept your refugees' when you've bombed their countries and depleted uranium. You asked me a question that's not the right one to ask me tonight. But anyway, there's my answer. It's a personal question for people."

4. Medium of Penelope Wilton speaking to reporters

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Penelope Wilton, actress:

"I want to stay in Europe with all my heart. I want to stay in Europe. I think it would be a disaster. We've had peace in Europe for seventy years and there's a lot of right-wing factions building up all over and it's very important that we stick together. And we are a global economy now and we're a global world and can't afford to go back to being little England anymore. We've got to join in and learn to join in."

6. Wide of Rebecca Hall speaking to reporters

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Hall, actress:

"Yeah, I don't want us to leave the EU. I feel very strongly about it and I don't think we should and I think it's … That is my belief. I think it's been a really important thing. I identify as European as much as English and always have and I think that's very important."

8. Medium of Rebecca Hall speaking to reporters

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Hall, actress – on the role of celebrities in politics:

"I mean, I'm really torn about this because I've always thought my job is to do my job. I'm not a politician. I'm not a spokesperson. But on the other hand, I do appreciate that the things I say may get to people or might influence people. And I think when things get really confusing like they do now and you have a lot of people who are frightened and confused and not seeing things clearly and things are not communicating well then yeah, I suppose you do start wanting to speak up."

10. Wide of "The BFG" cast posing for photos

PHOTOGRAPHER WANTS BIG DAMAGES IN BIEBER LAWSUIT

A celebrity photographer sought to boost the potential damages he could win from Justin Bieber in a lawsuit that accuses the singer and a bodyguard of battery in a confrontation outside a recording studio.

The photographer's attorney, Mark DiCowden, said at a Tuesday (1 MAY 2014) hearing that he has documented at least 11 similar alleged assaults against photographers over two years involving Bieber and his security personnel. DiCowden said a punitive damage award for Jeffrey Binion could deter future assaults against celebrity photographers, known as "paparazzi."

"It's not a financial fishing expedition," DiCowden said in asking Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Sarah Zabel to allow him to pursue unspecified punitive damages. "It is well known around the world that Justin Bieber does not like to be photographed in public."

Zabel did not immediately rule. Bieber attorney Jared Lopez said there is no evidence that Binion was physically harmed in the alleged attack in June - meaning compensatory damages for the photographer might be minimal - and no proof that Bieber himself told bodyguard Hugo Hesny to go after Binion.

"I don't tell security how to do their job," Bieber said in a March deposition in the case, according to Lopez.

Outside the courtroom, Bieber attorney Roy Black called the lawsuit "frivolous" and intended mainly to generate publicity. DiCowden denied that.

Hesny is facing a misdemeanor battery charge in the Binion case, and he was also recently charged in another photographer confrontation in Atlanta. Bieber is not facing criminal charges in either case. Other incidents involving Bieber bodyguards have occurred in Los Angeles, Hawaii, Argentina and England, according to court papers.

DiCowden also wants Zabel to order Bieber to return to Miami for another deposition to answer questions about his on-again, off-again girlfriend, singer and actress Selena Gomez. DiCowden claims he was improperly prevented from asking those questions during the March deposition and that they are important to the Florida case because she may have been present during previous photographer attacks.

Zabel is holding a hearing in June on that request.

Separately, Bieber has pleaded not guilty to DUI, resisting arrest and driving with an expired license after a Jan. 23 arrest in Miami Beach. A May 5 trial date is set in that case.

AP Entertainment

Miami, 1 April 2014

1. Wide of court

2. Medium of attorney Mark DiCowden speaking in court

AP Entertainment

New York, 7 Nov. 2012

3. Various of Justin Bieber arriving at annual Victoria's Secret fashion show

AP Entertianment

New York, 8 Sept. 2011

4. Various of Justin Bieber at a Fashion's Night Out event

AP Entertainment

Miami, 1 April 2014

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Mark DiCowden/Attorney for Plaintiff Jeffrey Binion

"When somebody does something intentional they are absolutely held accountable for that not just for the damages that they create to the person individually but also the turn effect in the future for anything else so they don't repeat this conduct."

6. Medium of judge Sarah Zabel listening in court

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Roy Black/Attorney for Justin Bieber

"Mr. Bieber has to litigate this against a plaintiff who has no damages whatsoever who admitted that he wasn't even injured in any way so this is more for social media and for publicity than it is as a real lawsuit.

8. Medium of attorney Mark Dicowden speaking in court

SHOTLIST (including transcript):-

AP Entertainment

Norristown, Pennsylvania, 2 February 2016

1. Various shots Bill Cosby emerging from car and being to courthouse

2. Wide shot courthouse

3. SOUNDBITE (English) David Walker, court analyst:

"Well so far the defense has landed body blow after body blow. It's been about an hour of testimony and they have not even gotten to the agreement. What the defense has done is used this opportunity as a chance to show out their case or what they plan to do and what they've done is put up former District Attorney Bruce Castor as almost an expert witness about why this is not a good case for the commonwealth, the problems with both the forensic evidence, the problems with the complainant Andrea Constand's original non-reporting of the incident for a year, additionally no forensic evidence. So what the defense has done is gone on the offensive. They have come out swinging and they've used this opportunity to basically show that what they think is a weak case that the commonwealth has or intends to put on. So while it started out as only on this agreement - and they haven't gotten to it yet - but what they've done is allowed Bruce Castor to talk about what he thought about the case and the steps that his investigation has led him to. It was a brilliant move by the defense to come out swinging in the early going like this."

4. Wide shot press trucks outside courthouse

5. SOUNDBITE (English) David Walker, court analyst:

(Reporter: "What's the temperature in the courtroom? What's Mr Cosby's demeanor like?")

"Mr Cosby is sombre, he's attentive, listening. He's talking with his other attorneys. But right now this is the defense lawyer show. The prosecution has objected numerous times, saying that 'no, we can't litigate these issues here now.' But Judge (Steven T.) O'Neill says they're relevant because this is why Bruce Castor declined prosecution and may at some point be used to bolster why he made this non-prosecution agreement. But again, we haven't even gotten there yet."

6. Wide shot of courthouse

COSBY'S LAWYERS PUSH TO GET SEXUAL ASSAULT CASE THROWN OUT

The former district attorney who declined a decade ago to prosecute Bill Cosby testified Tuesday (2 FEB. 2016) that he hoped the decision would free the comedian to testify in his accuser's lawsuit and help her win damages.

Cosby did, in fact, go on to testify as part of Andrea Constand's civil case, and she eventually settled for an undisclosed amount.

"I did not believe it was just to go forward with the criminal prosecution, but I wanted there to be some measure of justice" for Costand, former Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor said.

The testimony came at a court hearing where Cosby's lawyers asked a judge to throw out the sexual assault charges because of what they said was a binding, decade-old commitment from Castor that Cosby would never be prosecuted.

The current district attorney has said he has no record of such an agreement.

Speaking outside the courthouse, court analyst David Walker discussed the work of Cosby's defense team.

"What the defense has done is used this opportunity as a chance to show out their case or what they plan to do and what they've done is put up former District Attorney Bruce Castor as almost an expert witness about why this is not a good case for the commonwealth, the problems with both the forensic evidence, the problems with the complainant Andrea Constand's original non-reporting of the incident for a year, additionally no forensic evidence. So what the defense has done is gone on the offensive."

"They have come out swinging and they've used this opportunity to basically show that what they think is a weak case that the commonwealth has or intends to put on. So while it started out as only on this agreement - and they haven't gotten to it yet - but what they've done is allowed Bruce Castor to talk about what he thought about the case and the steps that his investigation has led him to. It was a brilliant move by the defense to come out swinging in the early going like this."

Walker went on to describe Cosby's demeanor as "sombre."

"He's attentive, listening. He's talking with his other attorneys. But right now this is the defense lawyer show," said Walker.

"The prosecution has objected numerous times, saying that 'no, we can't litigate these issues here now.' But Judge (Steven T.) O'Neill says they're relevant because this is why Bruce Castor declined prosecution and may at some point be used to bolster why he made this non-prosecution agreement."

Cosby, 78, is charged with drugging and violating Constand, a former Temple University athletic department employee, at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004. He could get up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

Castor investigated the allegations back then and said he saw serious flaws in the case and decided that Cosby "would not be prosecuted, no matter what."

He said he relayed word to Cosby's then-attorney, Walter Phillips, in hopes of making sure Cosby couldn't invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination to avoid testifying in a lawsuit Constand was filing against him.

However, Castor said the two lawyers did not have "an agreement."

"Mr. Phillips never agreed to do anything in exchange for Mr. Cosby not being prosecuted," Castor said. "I thought making Mr. Cosby pay money was the best I was going to be able to set the stage for."

Phillips is now dead.

Kevin Steele, the newly elected DA who is pursuing the case, has said Cosby would need an immunity agreement in writing to get the case thrown out. He has said he has no evidence one exists.

In a barrage of allegations that have destroyed Cosby's image as America's Dad, dozens of women have accused the former TV star of drugging and sexually assaulting them since the 1960s. But this is the only case in which he has been charged.

Damaging testimony from Constand's lawsuit was unsealed last summer, prompting Castor's successors to reopen the case and ultimately charge Cosby.

Cosby admitted in the deposition that he had affairs with young models and actresses, that he obtained quaaludes to give to women he wanted to have sex with and that he gave Constand three pills at his home. He said he reached into her pants in what he insisted was consensual contact.

Castor defended his decision not to bring charges, testifying that he saw Constand's year-long delay in reporting the allegations, inconsistencies in her statements and her contact with a lawyer before going to police as red flags.

Castor said Constand's delay was of "enormous significance" in his consideration of the case. He said it thwarted his ability to test her hair or fingernails for evidence she was drugged.

Still, Castor said, he investigated the case thoroughly because he wanted to show authorities in Constand's native Canada that celebrities don't get preferential treatment in America.

Anne Poulin, a law professor at Villanova University, said the defense has a high bar to meet to get the case thrown out early on. But "if they can win without this ever going to trial, then they've done their client a big service."

It was not immediately clear when Common Pleas Judge O'Neill would rule.

SHOTLIST (including transcript):-

AP Entertainment

Los Angeles, 29 March 2016

1. Wide exterior LA Superior Court courthouse

2. Medium courthouse signage

3. UPSOUND Janice Dickinson and attorney Lisa Bloom exit courthouse, Bloom declares 'big victory'

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Lisa Bloom/Attorney: "Today the court said that we are going to have a trial against Bill Cosby, about whether or not he raped Janice Dickinson. For years, Bill Cosby has fought to keep women out of court with regard to the rape allegations. Janice and I, side-by-side, have been fighting for this day for a year. And today, the judge ruled for us and ruled that Mr. Cosby's statements -"

Janice Dickinson/Model: "Victory!"

Bloom: " ... that she is a liar, can be proven false. And we intend to prove them false at trial."

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Janice Dickinson/Model: "Rapists should go to jail!"

6. Wide Dickinson walking with media

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Lisa Bloom/Attorney: "Mr. Cosby's strategy in all of his cases has been to block access to the courts for women. When that fails -"

Janice Dickkinson/Model: "And call them liars."

Bloom: "Yes, and calling them liars. That's right. When that fails, his second strategy is to delay and delay and delay."

Dickinson: "He can delay until next - until the cows come in, because he's got a lot of money. But that shouldn't - that should not - he should not delay any longer. I want Bill Cosby in court. I want him to stand under oath. I want the judge to rule in fairness to my story, which I am telling you the truth."

8. Wide Dickinson walks outside courthouse with media

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Janice Dickinson/Model: "I have to excuse myself now because I have to go to UCLA to find out what's going on with my condition. This is a different story, which you will of course be updated on as time goes on. I'm not feeling well. But I will say, there is a God. You know, and I'm very proud to be an American. But I will say that harboring this secret that I held on to because of character victimization for years did not work for the betterment of my soul. It drove me to the depths of misery through alcohol and drugs. I have since conquered that. I am sober today through the grace of God. And I will say - don't take no for an answer, ladies. Tell your side of the story. And for all of you out there that haven't come forward, please find a Lisa bloom in your life. Tell someone. There is fairness thanks to judge Weintraub. I really have to go. Thank you very much, press. Thank you so much. Thank you, Lisa."

Lisa Bloom/Attorney: "And never be silent. To all the victims out there, never be silent. Keep fighting. If Janice can fight and I can fight, you can fight too."

Dickinson: "We fight for all women. Thank you."

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Janice Dickinson/Model: "I don't know how I'm feeling. I just - I have to go to UCLA right now to find out the real fight of my life. Let's go."

11. Medium of Janice Dickinson walking away

JUDGE: DICKINSON'S LAWSUIT VS. COSBY CAN PROCEED

Janice Dickinson's defamation lawsuit against Bill Cosby should move forward, a judge ruled Tuesday (29 MARCH 2016), saying a trial can determine the truthfulness of the model's claims that the comedian raped her in 1982.

A jury can decide the credibility of Dickinson's allegations and whether a statement by Cosby's former lawyer branding her a liar was defamatory, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Debre Katz Weintraub said.

The judge said in her ruling that she was not assessing the credibility of either Dickinson or Cosby. It also allows for the possibility that Dickinson could recoup punitive damages if she wins the case.

Dickinson sued Cosby in May after he denied her claims that he drugged and raped her in Lake Tahoe in 1982. She says she tried to include the story in a 2002 memoir, "No Lifeguard on Duty: The Accidental Life of the World's First Supermodel," but her publisher refused.

Cosby's attorneys tried to get the suit dismissed, arguing Dickinson's story about her interactions with Cosby had changed over the years. His legal team will have several other opportunities to challenge the case before it goes to trial, whose date has not been set.

Cosby lawyer Monique Pressley said in a statement that they are considering an appeal and believe Dickinson's lawsuit should be completely thrown out.

Dickinson's suit says she felt victimized again after the comedian's former lawyer, Marty Singer, denied the allegations.

Letters that Singer sent to reporters threatening to sue if they published Dickinson's claims are protected legal communications and cannot be used at trial, Weintraub also ruled.

The judge said her review of the evidence so far shows that while Singer offered an opinion on Dickinson's credibility based on certain facts, there is no indication he investigated whether the rape actually occurred.

"I will not go down," Dickinson told reporters after the ruling.

"I want Bill Cosby in court," she said. "I want him to stand under oath."

Her appearance in court came a day after the model announced she has been diagnosed with breast cancer and will undergo surgery and radiation treatment.

Dickinson also was a cast member of VH1's "The Surreal Life" and UPN's "America's Next Top Model" and appeared on celebrity rehab.

She said Tuesday that she is sober but that not speaking out about the incident with Cosby "did not work for the betterment of my soul. It drove me to the depths of misery through alcohol and drugs."

Her attorney, Lisa Bloom, said the ruling was significant because of how vehemently Cosby has fought accusations of sexual misconduct.

"Bill Cosby has fought to keep women out of court with regard to their rape allegations," Bloom said. "Janice and I, side by side, have been fighting for this day for a year."

Dozens of women have accused Cosby, 78, of sexual abuse, but the statutes of limitations in most instances have passed.

The comedian has been charged with sexually assaulting a former Temple University worker at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. He is free on $1 million bail in the criminal case, which is on hold amid an appeal.

COSBY DROPS LITIGATION AGAINST ACCUSER IN SEX ASSAULT CASE

Bill Cosby has dropped a lawsuit that argued a confidential settlement agreement was violated by a woman accusing him of sexual assault.

Cosby's lawsuit also had accused the woman's two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer. His lawyers filed a one-sentence document Thursday (28 JULY 2016) voluntarily dismissing the litigation.

A federal judge in the case ruled recently the defendants couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about the woman's allegations. The judge had left in place issues about the accuser's tweets in 2014 and 2015 and an interview she gave the Toronto Sun.

Cosby awaits an assault trial outside Philadelphia over a 2004 encounter he considers to have been consensual. Prosecutors say the woman was drugged and assaulted.

Cosby paid her an undisclosed amount of money two years later. His lawyers haven't responded to a phone message seeking comment.

COSBY DROPS LITIGATION AGAINST ACCUSER IN SEX ASSAULT CASE

Bill Cosby has dropped a lawsuit that argued a confidential settlement agreement was violated by a woman accusing him of sexual assault.

Cosby's lawsuit also had accused the woman's two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer. His lawyers filed a one-sentence document Thursday (28 JULY 2016) voluntarily dismissing the litigation.

A federal judge in the case ruled recently the defendants couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about the woman's allegations. The judge had left in place issues about the accuser's tweets in 2014 and 2015 and an interview she gave the Toronto Sun.

Cosby awaits an assault trial outside Philadelphia over a 2004 encounter he considers to have been consensual. Prosecutors say the woman was drugged and assaulted.

Cosby paid her an undisclosed amount of money two years later. His lawyers haven't responded to a phone message seeking comment.

Pool

Norristown, Pennsylvania, 7 July 2016

1. Medium of Bill Cosby leaving court

AP Entertainment

Washington, D.C. 6 Nov. 2014

2. Wide of Bill Cosby, center, and wife Camille, right, at a Smithsonian event

3. Exchange between AP reporter Brett Zongker (off-camera) and comedian Bill Cosby:

Zongker: "On a separate note, I have to ask about your name coming up in the news recently regarding this comedian..."

Cosby: "No, No. We don't answer that."

Zongker: Okay, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond at all about whether any of that was true..."

Cosby: "There's no response."

Zongker: "Okay. Can I ask you if - with the persona that people know about Bill Cosby, should they believe anything differently than what..."

Cosby: "There is no comment about that. (okay) And I'll tell you why -- I think you were told, I don't want to compromise your integrity, but - I don't talk about it..."

JUDGE TOSSES PARTS OF COSBY'S LAWSUIT OVER SECRECY PROMISES

A federal judge is paring back a lawsuit in which Bill Cosby claims a woman accusing him of sexual assault, her mother, two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer violated a confidential settlement agreement.

U.S. Judge Eduardo Robreno ruled Friday (15 JULY 2016) that the accuser and others couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about her allegations. But other aspects of the lawsuit were left intact and will proceed.

Cosby's lawsuit claims all five parties breached a 2006 secrecy deal and that the woman's actions have unjustly enriched her.

The judge is dismissing the accuser's mother from the lawsuit. He's letting the case continue regarding recent statements and actions by the accuser, her lawyers and American Media.

Cosby is awaiting trial for the alleged aggravated indecent assault of the woman in 2004.

JUDGE TOSSES PARTS OF COSBY'S LAWSUIT OVER SECRECY PROMISES

A federal judge is paring back a lawsuit in which Bill Cosby claims a woman accusing him of sexual assault, her mother, two lawyers and the publisher of the National Enquirer violated a confidential settlement agreement.

U.S. Judge Eduardo Robreno ruled Friday (15 JULY 2016) that the accuser and others couldn't be sued for talking to law enforcement about her allegations. But other aspects of the lawsuit were left intact and will proceed.

Cosby's lawsuit claims all five parties breached a 2006 secrecy deal and that the woman's actions have unjustly enriched her.

The judge is dismissing the accuser's mother from the lawsuit. He's letting the case continue regarding recent statements and actions by the accuser, her lawyers and American Media.

Cosby is awaiting trial for the alleged aggravated indecent assault of the woman in 2004.

Pool

Norristown, Pennsylvania, 7 July 2016

1. Medium of Bill Cosby leaving court

AP Entertainment

Washington, D.C. 6 Nov. 2014

2. Wide of Bill Cosby, center, and wife Camille, right, at a Smithsonian event

3. Exchange between AP reporter Brett Zongker (off-camera) and comedian Bill Cosby:

Zongker: "On a separate note, I have to ask about your name coming up in the news recently regarding this comedian..."

Cosby: "No, No. We don't answer that."

Zongker: Okay, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond at all about whether any of that was true..."

Cosby: "There's no response."

Zongker: "Okay. Can I ask you if - with the persona that people know about Bill Cosby, should they believe anything differently than what..."

Cosby: "There is no comment about that. (okay) And I'll tell you why -- I think you were told, I don't want to compromise your integrity, but - I don't talk about it..."

SHOTLIST

AP Television

++FILE: Los Angeles, 30 September 2009

1. Tilt up David and Victoria Beckham

AP Television

++FILE: New York, 10 September 2010

2. Wide shot of Victoria Beckham

3. Wide of crowd

4. Tilt down and up of Victoria Beckham

AP Television

++FILE: Los Angels, California, 16 July 2008

5. Various David Beckham and wife, Victoria Beckham posing for photographers

AP Television

++FILE: Heathrow Airport, London - 12 July 2007

6. Various of David and Victoria Beckham and their three sons walking through Heathrow airport, surrounded by security and photographers

STORYLINE

DAVID BECKHAM'S LAWSUIT AGAINST MAGAZINE DISMISSED

A federal judge on Monday dismissed David Beckham's libel and slander lawsuit against In Touch magazine over a story that claimed he cheated on his wife with a prostitute.

Beckham's attorney, Richard B. Kendall, vowed to appeal the ruling and disprove the celebrity tabloid's claims about the international soccer star, who is married to a former Spice Girl.

U.S. District Judge Manuel Real said in his ruling that Beckham is a public figure and his attorneys hadn't shown any evidence In Touch published the story with malice. He also said that allegations of any infidelity by Beckham would be of interest to the public.

Elizabeth McNamara, who represented In Touch's owner Bauer Publishing Co., said the magazine did everything possible to corroborate details from the prostitute's on-the-record interview. She told Real that the woman's account was "entirely consistent with Mr. Beckham's reputation as a serial philanderer."

The magazine has not retracted the story.

Beckham's camp continued to deny and attack In Touch's story, and said they had already won a judgment over the report.

"We have already won a court ruling in Germany and are awaiting damages," Beckham spokesman Jeff Raymond said in a statement. "Unfortunately, the U.S. legal system requires us to show that the magazine acted maliciously. Any knowledgeable person knows this story not to be true, and we will continue to fight this in court and the decision will be appealed."

Beckham sued In Touch in September and was seeking $25 million (US). The Los Angeles Galaxy star argued in a court filing in January that he was visiting his ailing father in London during one of the alleged trysts with the purported call girl Irma Nici.

Kendall said a basic investigation by the magazine would have shown that Beckham was elsewhere when the alleged trysts occurred. He asked the judge to allow the case to proceed so that he could conduct depositions that would bolster Beckham's case, but Real refused.

"We were left with two hands tied behind our back for the purposes of this motion," Kendall said after the hearing.

He said In Touch had taken specific steps to block its story from being seen in Beckham's native England, where Kendall said libel laws would have resulted in a quicker resolution to the case in the soccer star's favor.

"Obviously, we're pleased," McNamara said after the hearing. "We think the court followed the law and did the correct thing."

Beckham and his wife, Victoria, said last month they are expecting their fourth child this summer.

FIRST HEARING SET IN DEFAMATION LAWSUIT AGAINST BILL COSBY

A federal judge is scheduled to hear arguments in a defamation lawsuit filed by three women who allege Bill Cosby sexually assaulted them decades ago.

The hearing, in U.S. District Court in Worcester, Massachusetts represents the first in the suit, which applies solely to the defamation allegation and not for any of assault allegation. It was originally filed in December.

Tamara Green, Therese Serignese and Linda Traitz say Cosby's representatives publicly branded them liars while trying to defend him as they publicly stepped forward with their accusations in recent years.

Cosby's lawyers argue the comedian and actor, who has denied any sexual misconduct, was merely acting in self-defense because his character was under attack.

The women are among dozens who have stepped forward in recent years to level various assault accusations against Cosby, who hasn't been charged with any crime.

Green, a California lawyer, says Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her in her Los Angeles-area apartment in the early 1970s. Serignese, a Florida nurse, says Cosby drugged and raped her in a dressing room after a show in Las Vegas around 1976. And Traitz alleges he tried to drug her and then groped her on a Southern California beach in about 1970.

The Associated Press generally does not publish the names of people alleging sexual assault but Green, Serignese and Traitz have publicly discussed the allegations.

Thursday's hearing is expected to focus on a request to subpoena records from the lawyers for Andrea Constand, the first woman to formally step forward and file a lawsuit against Cosby for alleged sexual transgressions.

Lawyers representing the three women with the most recent suit want documents related to their clients, but Cosby's lawyers say the request is unnecessary and improper and should be denied.

Constand, a former director of operations for the Temple University women's basketball program, accused Cosby of drugging and groping her in 2004. She filed a suit the following year, but dropped it in 2006 after the two sides reached an undisclosed settlement.

Thursday's hearing is the first in a series of court dates in Green, Serignese and Traitz's case.

A June 9 hearing in Springfield federal court will focus on Cosby's lawyers' motion to dismiss the lawsuit. The three women seek unspecified monetary damages.

Representatives for Cosby did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Cosby starred as Dr. Cliff Huxtable on the beloved sitcom "The Cosby Show" from 1984 to 1992. He has a home in western Massachusetts.

AP TELEVISION

Washington, D.C., 6 Nov. 2014

1. Medium of Bill Cosby and wife Camille, right, at Smithsonian event marking their display of African-American art

AP TELEVISION

Washington - November 10, 2014

2. Exchange between AP reporter Brett Zongker (off-camera) and comedian Bill Cosby:

Zongker: "On a separate note, I have to ask about your name coming up in the news recently regarding this comedian..."

Cosby: "No, No. We don't answer that."

Zongker: Okay, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond at all about whether any of that was true..."

Cosby: "There's no response."

Zongker: "Okay. Can I ask you if - with the persona that people know about Bill Cosby, should they believe anything differently than what..."

Cosby: "There is no comment about that. (okay) And I'll tell you why -- I think you were told, I don't want to compromise your integrity, but - I don't talk about it..."

AP Entertainment

Los Angeles, 5 Dec. 2014

3. Medium of worker with sander cleaning star, graffiti referring to sex abuse allegations against Bill Cosby, push in to star

4. Wide of crowd watching, tilt to worker sweeping star

5. Wide of crowd watching, tilt down to cleaned star

AP TELEVISION

Washington DC - 10 Dec 2014

6. Attorney Joseph Cammarata introduces himself and points at TV monitor showing live link with Tamara Green

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Tamara Green, Plaintiff - speaking from California via video link: (++QUALITY AS INCOMING++)

"I want to introduce myself as Tamara Green and I have filed an action for defamation against Bill Cosby."

8. Cammarata and monitor showing Green

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Joseph Cammarata, Attorney

"Ms. Green, and you have a copy of the complaint, has alleged that she was a victim of Mr. Cosby's unwanted sexual advances, and as a matter of fact he, according to her, sexually abused her and that she suffered harm as a result. Her claim, for sexual assault, has expired. The statute of limitations has expired. But just as Mr. Cosby did through his agents with the other women, Mr. Cosby's agents took to the airwaves, took to the press, and according to Ms. Green, branded her a liar. As a result of that public branding as a liar, Ms. Green has an opportunity to have her day in court. She claims that she is telling the truth. She claims that as a result of being called a liar, she suffered... her good name and reputation has been damaged. And as a result she has filed a lawsuit attempting to restore her good name and reputation."

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Tamara Green, Plaintiff - speaking from California via video link: (++QUALITY AS INCOMING++)

"I want to say that what I want to establish is the truth of the matter. I want it put to a jury. I want it to be a verdict. I want it be handled, finally. And I want my name restored for my friends, for my family, for my profession, for my community. All of this time, there's always been a slight doubt in everyone's mind as to the veracity of any of the allegation that have been made against Bill Cosby because he's a rich and powerful and famous man. So this will give me and other women if they take advantage of this opportunity that Mr. Cammarata has created for them, this will give us to go to a forum where we speak our stories and tell our truths. And the most important thing is that Bill Cosby will be required to appear in court and he will speak and he will finally be heard. And that's what I hope to accomplish."

11. Attorney thanks audience, zoom in to monitor showing Green

NEIGHBOR OF ALLEGED COSBY VICTIM SAYS 'I JUST WISH HER THE BEST'

A lawsuit by a woman who claims Bill Cosby molested her when she was 15-years-old has moved allegations of sexual misconduct against the comedian from the court of public opinion into the courthouse.

Judy Huth's lawsuit filed Tuesday (2 DEC. 2014) in Los Angeles accuses Cosby of forcing her to perform a sex act on him in a bedroom of the Playboy Mansion around 1974. She is the latest woman to accuse the comedian of sex abuse, and is the first one since 2005 to file a lawsuit.

Cosby has been beset for weeks by allegations by more than a dozen women that he drugged and sexually assaulted them in incidents spanning several decades. The comedian has not been criminally charged and many of the claims are so old, they are barred by statutes of limitations.

Huth's lawsuit, however, contends that she became aware of the serious effect the abuse had on her within the past three years. California law allows victims of sex abuse when they were minors to bring a claim after adulthood if they discover later in life that they suffered psychological injuries as a result of the abuse.

Cosby has not been criminally charged, but Netflix and NBC have scuttled projects featuring the comedian and several shows on his comedy tour have also been canceled.

His attorney Martin Singer did not return an email message seeking comment Tuesday night.

Huth's sexual battery and infliction of emotional distress lawsuit states that she and a 16-year-old friend first met Cosby at a Los Angeles-area film shoot and the comedian gave the girls drinks a week later at a tennis club.

The lawsuit states that Cosby took them to the Playboy Mansion after several drinks, and told the teenagers to lie and say they were 19-years-old if asked. Her lawsuit states Cosby forced her to perform a sex act on him with her hand.

"This traumatic incident, at such a tender age, has caused psychological damage and mental anguish for (Huth) that has caused significant problems throughout her life," the lawsuit states.

Huth's lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court is the first time a woman has gone public claiming Cosby abused her when she was underage. A second woman told Pittsburgh television station KDKA last month that Cosby drugged her to the point of unconsciousness in the 1980s when she was 15.

The suit does not specify how much Huth is seeking from Cosby.

Singer has denied previous accusations or said the women raising the claims in interviews had been discredited.

Singer's statement does not apply to a lawsuit brought in 2005 by Andrea Constand, who claimed Cosby drugged and molested her at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004. Constand, who worked for the women's basketball team at Temple University, and Cosby settled the case before trial.

Cosby resigned from the university's board of trustees on Monday. He had been the school's public face, appearing in advertisements, fundraising campaigns and delivering commencement speeches.

AP Entertainment

Canyon Lake, Calif., 3 Dec. 2014

1. Street sign

2. Wide exterior of home of Judy Huth, a woman who's suing Bill Cosby of molestation when she was 15 years old

3. Close of house number on curb

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Brenda Adams/Neighbor:

"She's been a neighbor next door for the past year or so and then part of that she lived around the corner and I knew her basically from working at the country club. She was a bartender at the country club for a while."

5. Wide of Judy Huth's house exterior

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Brenda Adams/Neighbor:

"Last night the 11 o'clock news I just happened to glance over and I saw a photo of the house and I said, 'Well, gee, that looks familiar' and they put a copy of the lawsuit on the screen and I saw her name and I was just shocked that it was her because I had heard about the incident during the course of the day but I had no idea that it was Judy."

7. Wide of Brenda Adams seated at her computer

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Brenda Adams/Neighbor:

"Oh, she's great. She's a very personable woman. Very well liked in the community. Everyone's just extremely fond of her to my knowledge."

9. Medium of Brenda Adams at her computer

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Brenda Adams/Neighbor:

"Oh I was absolutely shocked because I was talking to a friend earlier in the day about, 'Oh no not another one and someone so young' and then of course when I saw that last night I thought 'Oh my goodness'. So I went in and woke up my roommate to tell her about it because I was just really shocked."

11. Wide pan of Judy Huth's porch

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Brenda Adams/Neighbor:

"I just wish her the best. That's all. These are very disturbing things to a lot of us. Things come up that happen in our youth and many of us can relate to that. It's just unfortunate that this is such a traumatic incident for her."

13. Wide of neighborhood sign

14. Zoom out to wide of street

BIEBER GETS TRIAL DATE IN FLORIDA CASE, CHANTAL JEFFRIES FILES LIBEL LAWSUIT

A May 5 trial date has been set for Justin Bieber in the Florida case charging him with driving under the influence, resisting arrest and possessing an invalid driver's license.

Bieber and R&B singer Khalil Amir Sharieff were arrested Jan. 23 in Miami Beach after what police called an illegal drag race with high-end sports cars. Breath tests showed Bieber's blood-alcohol content was below the 0.02 limit for underage drivers.

Other tests detected marijuana and Xanax.

Meantime, the woman who was riding with the 20-year-old singer in a Lamborghini when he was arrested has sued the New York Daily News, accusing the newspaper of libel.

Attorney Andew Parker Felix filed the lawsuit Tuesday (11 MARCH 2014) on behalf of Chantel Jeffries. She is described in court papers as a student, model and entrepreneur.

The lawsuit claims Daily News stories posted on its website after the Jan. 23 incident falsely reported she had a criminal record and that she instigated a drag race between Bieber and R&B singer Khalil Amir Sharieff, who was driving a Ferrari. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and an order preventing future false stories about Jeffries.

The Daily News legal department and a spokesman for the newspaper didn't immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.

AP Entertainment

New York, 7 Nov. 2012

1. Various of Justin Bieber arriving at annual Victoria's Secret fashion show

AP Entertainment

New York, 8 Sept. 2011

2. Various of Justin Bieber at a Fashion's Night Out event

AP Entertainment

Los Angeles, 18 Nov. 2012

3. Justin Bieber poses for photos while arriving at the American Music Awards, his mother Pattie Mallette joins him

AP Entertainment

New York, 31 Dec. 2012

4. Various of Justin Bieber performing on New Year's Eve in Times Square

AP Entertainment

Miami, 23 Jan. 2014

5. Wide of Justin Bieber leaving jail --shot through a fence -- and climbing up on the roof of a waiting SUV to wave to fans

WALKER'S DAUGHTER SUES PORSCHE

Paul Walker's daughter is suing Porsche, claiming the sports car that her father was in when he was killed two years ago suffered from numerous design defects.

The lawsuit filed Monday (28 SEPT. 2015) by Meadow Rain Walker seeks unspecified damages for defects which her lawyers claim kept the actor trapped in the Porsche Carrera GT when it crashed and burst into flames in November 2013.

He was riding in a car, driven by friend and business associate Roger Rodas, when it spun out of control, struck three trees and burst into flames on a street in Santa Clarita, California.

Meadow Walker's lawsuit contends Porsche didn't include a stability control system in the Carrera GT model Rodas was driving but includes it in other models. It also claims the car lacked proper reinforcements in its doors and used rubber fuel lines that didn't break free to prevent a fire in a crash.

Similar allegations of design and safety defects were included in a wrongful death lawsuit by Rodas' widow, Kristine Rodas, which remains pending in a federal court in Los Angeles.

Rodas was trained as a race car driver and was only driving 55 mph (89 kph), according to his wife's lawsuit. He left behind two young children when he died.

Investigators concluded the Porsche was going much faster - up to 94 mph (151 kph) - when it crashed.

The investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and California Highway Patrol concluded that it was unsafe speed and not mechanical problems that caused the crash. That investigation was aided by engineers from Porsche, who evaluated the wreckage of the rare car.

Walker, the star of the "Fast & Furious" film franchise, co-owned an auto racing team with Rodas named Always Evolving. Meadow Walker, 16, is the sole heir of his estate.

Walker's death occurred on a break in the filming of "Furious 7," the latest sequel in the "Fast & Furious" franchise.

Walker's two brothers helped complete action scenes in "Furious 7," which earned more than $1.5 billion globally after it was released in April.

An email sent to representatives of Porsche North America was not immediately returned.

The lawsuit was first reported Monday by celebrity website TMZ.

+4:3+

AP ENTERTAINMENT

FILE: Los Angeles, 12 March 2009

1. Various of actor Paul Walker

AP ENTERTAINMENT

FILE: New Orleans, 25 April 2012

2. Paul Walker during interview

AP ENTERTAINMENT

FILE: Rio de Janeiro, 15 April, 2011

3.Medium (from left) Dwayne Johnson, Paul Walker, Vin Diesel and Tyrese Gibson

4. Medium of Walker, Vin Diesel and Gibson posing for photographs

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Walker, actor:

"When you realize along the way that things are not always black and white, good isn't always good and bad isn't always necessarily bad, you realize that you've got to measure it by the heart. He basically fell in love with Dominic Toretto, it's like his big brother now. This is the father figure that he never had."

+4:3+

AP ENTERTAINMENT

FILE: Los Angeles, 21 August 2005

6. Medium of Paul Walker on red carpet for "Into the Blue " premiere

JIM CARREY CALLS SUIT OVER EX-'S DEATH 'HEARTLESS'

Jim Carrey says a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the estranged husband of his ex-girlfriend is a heartless attempt to exploit him and vowed to fight the case.

Mark Burton of Portland sued Carrey in Los Angeles Superior Court on Monday (19 SEPT. 2016), accusing the actor of providing the prescription drugs his wife Cathriona White used to overdose in September 2015. The wrongful death lawsuit contends Carrey improperly obtained prescriptions for Ambien and the powerful opioid oxycodone under the alias Arthur King.

The suit accuses Carrey of giving White the medications days before she was found dead in one of Carrey's homes. White and Carrey dated in 2012 and were photographed together in May 2015.

"What a terrible shame," Carrey wrote in a statement. "It would be easy for me to get in a back room with this man's lawyer and make this go away, but there are some moments in life when you have to stand up and defend your honor against the evil in this world."

"I will not tolerate this heartless attempt to exploit me or the woman I loved," Carrey wrote. "I really hope that some day soon people will stop trying to profit from this and let her rest in peace."

Coroner's officials ruled the 30-year-old makeup artist's death a suicide.

Burton and White married in 2013. A coroner's official told reporters that the pair were separated and planned to divorce, however Burton's attorney Michael Avenatti declined to characterize their relationship beyond saying they were legally married at the time of White's death.

Carrey's attorney Marty Singer wrote in a statement that White and Burton never lived together.

The lawsuit accuses Carrey of violating a section of California's Health and Safety Code against the use of aliases to obtain prescription medications.

"White's death was tragic and easily avoidable," the lawsuit states.

Carrey's prescriptions were legally obtained and his doctor and insurers were aware of his alias use, Singer wrote. He said many actors use aliases for prescriptions to protect their privacy.

The issue of prescriptions issued to a celebrity under aliases because an issue when Los Angeles prosecutors attempted unsuccessfully to obtain felony convictions against two of Anna Nicole Smith's doctors and her lawyer-boyfriend over prescription drugs she obtained before her accidental overdose in 2007.

Defense lawyers contended the aliases were used to protect Smith's privacy, and last year a judge who dismissed the final felony counts against Smith's confidante Howard K. Stern said it was a common practice.

"Everyone did it," Judge Robert J. Perry said in July 2015. "Everyone did it to protect her privacy from the prying eyes of the ever-present press representatives in Ms. Smith's life."

FILE: Los Angeles, 11 March 2013

1. Wide of actor Jim Carrey on carpet posing for photographers

2. Cutaway cameras

3. Medium view of actor Jim Carrey on carpet posing for photographers

FILE: New York, 5 June 2012

4. Mid shot of Jim Carrey walking onstage at Nate Parker launch

5. Mid shot of Shawn Fanning, Jim Carrey and Sean Parker

FILE: Los Angeles, 12 June 2011

6. Wide of Jim Carrey on arrivals line at the "Mr. Popper's Penguins" premiere

FILE: Culver City, California, 4 June 2011

7. Medium Jim Carrey talks to reporter at Guys' Choice Awards

8. UPSOUND Jim Carrey shows of "Mantlers" trophy

BRYAN SINGER ACCUSER NAMES THREE MORE MEN IN HOLLYWOOD SEX ABUSE SUIT

The man who has accused "X-Men" director Bryan Singer of sexually abusing him when he was a teen on Monday (21 APRIL 2014) sued three additional entertainment industry figures claiming they also molested him.

Michael Egan III filed three lawsuits accusing the former head of television programming at Fox, a theater producer, and a former television executive who's worked with Disney, Current TV and other outlets of abusing him in Hawaii in 1999. The allegations are substantially similar to Egan's lawsuit against Singer, which accuses the director of abusing him between the ages of 15 and 17 in Los Angeles and Hawaii.

Monday's lawsuits were filed in federal court in Hawaii against former Fox television executive Garth Ancier, theater producer Gary Wayne Goddard, and David A. Neuman, a former television executive with Current TV and Disney. Ancier and Goddard did not respond to phone and email messages seeking comment.

Neuman could not be reached for comment. Phone numbers associated with him have been disconnected, and he did not immediately respond to a message sent through the social networking site LinkedIn.

Singer's attorney, Marty Singer has denied the director abused Egan, calling the allegations defamatory. He has said the director was not in Hawaii when Egan says he was abused but rather was working on production for the first "X-Men" film. None of the men have been criminally charged and the statute of limitations for any such charges has passed.

Ancier is the most high-profile executive sued by Egan on Monday. He was the founding programmer at the Fox network, later going to create programming for The WB and was a top executive at NBC Entertainment. The lawsuits were filed in Hawaii under a law that temporarily suspends the statute of limitations in sex abuse cases.

Egan, 31, appeared at a press conference Monday alongside his mother, who tearfully described her efforts to report alleged abuses by the men to the FBI in 1999 and 2000. Bonnie Mound said she wrote several letters to FBI agents in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., urging them to take action. She questioned why those letters and information her son provided in interviews with an agent did not result in criminal charges.

The FBI has said it could not discuss specifically what Egan told them, however denied last week that they had ignored any information about Singer.

"The suggestion that the FBI ignored a minor victim, or evidence involving the sexual victimization of a child, is ludicrous," FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said in a statement. She reiterated the statement after Egan's press conference Monday.

Mound denied her son's series of lawsuits were motivated by anything other than holding the alleged abusers accountable.

"It's not about money," Mound said, breaking down in tears.

Egan's attorney, Jeff Herman, said he had spent six months investigating the cases before filing them, but acknowledged he didn't have all the investigative files or Singer's records that might show the director wasn't in Hawaii during the time frame of the alleged abuse. Herman said he has asked Singer's lawyers for those records.

Egan claims he was lured into a sex ring run by a former digital entertainment company executive, Marc Collins-Rector, with promises of auditions for acting, modeling and commercial jobs. He was put on the company's payroll as an actor, but forced to have sex with adult men at parties within Hollywood's entertainment industry, the lawsuit said.

Collins-Rector pleaded guilty in 2004 to transporting five minors across state lines to have sex with them.

Phone numbers listed for Collins-Rector have been disconnected and attempts to reach him for comment last week were unsuccessful. Records maintained in Florida, where Collins-Rector is required to register as a sex offender, show that in 2008 his last known address was in the Dominican Republic.

Egan said he spent several years masking his pain by drinking. He stopped drinking within the last year, entered therapy and sought out a lawyer who would pursue a case against the director.

AP Entertainment

Los Angeles, 21 April 2014

1. Wide attorney Jeff Herman, plaintiff Michael Egan III, Egan's mother Bonnie Mound at press conference

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Herman/Attorney: "Well I'm not going to be bullied. I am not intimidated by those kinds of statements. And I will continue to file cases on behalf of victims of sexual abuse and particularly exposing this Hollywood sex ring."

3. Wide Egan, Herman, Mound at press conference

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Herman/Attorney: "Mr. Ancier was a participant in these parties at the M&C estate, where he participated in giving Mike drugs and alcohol, coerced him into engaging in sex. And Mr. Ancier also sexually assaulted Mike in Hawaii."

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Bonnie Mound/Mother of Michael Egan III: "Do you think Mike and I sitting here -- do you think we like it? No. Do I want to have it so not one other parent or child sits here and has to go through this? Yes. It's not about money. It's about disarming these pedophiles who use their wealth and power to escape justice. That's what it's about."

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Bonnie Mound/Mother of Michael Egan III: "They seemed really nice. They were really kind. I saw them on several occasions, talked to them on the phone. People were asking why I let my son go anywhere. Scott was my son's best friend. I spoke with his older brother. He asked if I could let Mike go along, so the younger brother would have someone to do something with on the trips. Never once, never once did I know anyone would be on these private planes. Never once. (Sobs, son hugs her.)

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Herman/Attorney: "So she let him go, not knowing what had happened. When she was finally told about this sexual abuse, the first thing she did was contact the authorities. The FBI came to their home."

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Bonnie Mound/Mother of Michael Egan III: "I wrote every news channel, I wrote every magazine, every talk show host, everybody from Oprah to '20/20' to '60 Minutes' -- I can't tell you the hundreds of letters to attorneys. Nobody wanted to do anything because of the high-profile people involved."

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Bonnie Mound/Mother of Michael Egan III: "Mr. Robert Mueller III, director of FBI, J. Edgar Hoover building, Washington, DC, why did you ignore my certified return receipt letters?"

10. Cutaway cameraman

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael Egan III/Plaintiff: "I can sit here as a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, yet people want to rip into this or they want to spin different situations and so forth. It doesn't make it a very pleasant thing to stand up to. But I'll tell you this. You stand up for what's right. I wouldn't wish it on any of my worst enemies to go through what I went through when I was a child."

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Jeff Herman/Attorney: "Kids are being sexually exploitated (sic) in the same way adults are in Hollywood. They're very vulnerable. Kids come here, they want to be in the business. And they're told - the way to make it in this business is you've got to play this game. You've got to do this. And if you don't want the part, somebody else will do this."

13. Wide Egan III with mother Mound exit press conference followed by Herman

SHOTLIST

FOOTAGE CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY

AP Entertainment

++FILE: Tokyo, Japan, 23 June 2011

1. Various of Lady Gaga posing for photographers and holding up arm wearing Japan aid band on wrist

AP Entertainment

++FILE: Makuhari Messe - Chiba, Japan - 25 June

2. Wide shot of Lady Gaga in a news conference at the MTV Music Video Aid Award and posing for the photographers

3. Close up of shoes, panning up to Lady Gaga throwing a kiss

4. Close up of Lady Gaga eyes

5. Cutaway of reporters

6. Lady Gaga wearing sunglass and waving at cameras as she gets stopped by a Japanese reporter asking "Why are doing so much for Japan?" and she answers "Why not?" and walks out

STORYLINE

LADY GAGA SUED OVER FUNDRAISING EFFORT FOR JAPAN

A lawsuit filed in Detroit claims music star Lady Gaga is misleading her fans with an online pitch for donations for victims of the Japan earthquake.

Lady Gaga's website is selling $5 (US dollars) wristbands that say, "We Pray For Japan."

The website also allows people to make additional donations and says "all proceeds go directly to Japan relief efforts."

But the lawsuit notes that sales tax and a $3.99 shipping charge are added.

Detroit-area attorney Alyson Oliver believes not all money is going to help the Japanese. She wants an accounting.

An email seeking comment was left Monday with a spokesman for Lady Gaga.

The lawsuit was filed Friday in federal court in Detroit.

It seeks class-action status and possible refunds for people who bought wristbands.

FORMER WAHLBURGERS EMPLOYEES SUE OVER DENIES WAGES, TIPS

Five former employees of the burger chain founded by celebrity brothers Mark and Donnie Wahlberg are suing the company over what they call "rampant" violations of labor laws.

The ex-employees who filed the class-action suit in New York federal court Thursday (18 AUG. 2016) previously worked at a Wahlburgers location in Brooklyn. They claim Wahlburgers failed to pay them the proper minimum wage and regularly kept tips designated for servers.

The lawsuit claims employees at one time didn't receive a $3,000 tip left for them following a private party for the cast of "Blue Bloods," the CBS series starring Donnie Wahlberg.

The suit names Wahlburgers and the owners of its Brooklyn franchise. The Wahlbergs aren't named.

Wahlburgers didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.

FILE: New York, 13 Dec. 2015

1. Various shots Mark Wahlberg at "Daddy's Home" premiere

FILE: New York, 24 June 2015

2. Various shots Mark Wahlberg at "Ted 2" premiere

FILE: New York, 14 May 2014

3. Various shots Jenny McCarthy and Donnie Wahlberg arriving at a cocktail party for Barbara Walters

WOMAN FILES DEFAMATION LAWSUIT AGAINST BILL COSBY

A woman who has accused Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting her in the 1970s filed a defamation lawsuit Wednesday (10 DEC. 2014) against the comedian, alleging he "publicly branded" her a liar through statements made by his lawyer and publicist.

Tamara Green said in the lawsuit filed in federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts, that Cosby drugged and assaulted her when she was an aspiring model and singer. Green first spoke publicly about the alleged attack in 2005.

Green said that after she did media interviews, Cosby's lawyer and publicist made statements intended to expose her to public contempt and ridicule.

"Over the past several weeks and several months we've heard many women come out publicly and claim Bill Cosby sexually assaulted them," said Green's attorney Joseph Cammarata. "These were horrific allegations that were made by scores of women that were answered by Bill Cosby's agents, namely his lawyer and publicist, that these women were in effect no truthful, not telling the truth as to their relationship and what it might have been with Mr. Cosby."

Cosby, who is 77 and has a home in Shelburne Falls in western Massachusetts, has never been charged in connection with any sexual assault allegations.

In 2005, he settled a civil case filed by Andrea Constand, a former employee at Temple University in Philadelphia. Green was one of a dozen women who were prepared to testify in Constand's lawsuit that Cosby sexually assaulted them.

Through his representatives, Cosby has denied renewed allegations by women alleging decades-old sexual assaults.

Cammarata, a Washington, D.C., attorney who represents Green in her defamation lawsuit, said the criminal statute of limitations has expired for the women who have accused Cosby.

"This lawsuit provides an opportunity for Ms. Green and Mr. Cosby to litigate the truth or falsity of the comments," Cammarata said.

Los Angeles attorney Martin Singer, who has represented Cosby in the recent round of allegations, did not immediately return calls seeking comment on Green's lawsuit.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

Green appeared at a news conference with Cammarata Wednesday via video conference.

"I want to say that what I want to establish is the truth of the matter. I want it put to a jury. I want it to be a verdict. I want it be handled, finally," she said. "And I want my name restored for my friends, for my family, for my profession, for my community. All of this time there's always been a slight doubt in everyone's mind as to the veracity of any of the allegation that have been made against Bill Cosby because he's a rich and powerful and famous man. So this will give me and other women if they take advantage of this opportunity that Mr. Cammarata has created for them, this will give us to go to a forum where we speak our stories and tell our truths. And the most important thing is that Bill Cosby will be required to appear in court and he will speak and he will finally be heard. And that's what I hope to accomplish."

Green's lawsuit says that after she met Cosby through a mutual friend in 1969 or 1970, he asked for her to raise money from investors for a new club he wanted to open.

She said she called Cosby on an unspecified date in the early 1970s to tell him that she was not feeling well. Cosby then invited Green to meet him for lunch at a Los Angeles restaurant, according to the lawsuit.

Green said that during lunch, Cosby offered her some red and grey pills, telling her they were over-the-counter cold medicine. Green took the pills and soon began feeling weak and dizzy, according to the lawsuit.

"Defendant Cosby intentionally drugged Plaintiff Green into this altered state, in order to facilitate his later sexual assault," the lawsuit states.

Green said Cosby drove her home, and once inside her apartment, he undressed both of them, then "digitally penetrated her," the lawsuit states.

Green said she repeatedly told Cosby, "you're going to have to kill me" in an attempt to stop him. Cosby didn't stop until Green upending a table lamp, the lawsuit states. Cosby put two $100 bills on a coffee table when he left her apartment, she said.

Green's lawsuit alleges that after she appeared on NBC's "Today" show and did an interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer in 2005, Cosby, through Phillips, responded by saying that Cosby did not know Green, that her allegations were "absolutely false" and that the alleged attack "did not happen in any way, shape, or form."

"Thus by innuendo and effect, Defendant Cosby publicly branded Plaintiff Green a liar," the lawsuit states.

AP Entertainment

Washington, D.C., 10 Dec. 2014

1. Wide of attorney Joseph Cammarata entering room

++Shot starts on close-up of video monitor, pulls out to medium

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Joseph Cammarata/Attorney:

"Over the past several weeks and several months we've heard many women come out publicly and claim Bill Cosby sexually assaulted them. These were horrific allegations that were made by scores of women that were answered by Bill Cosby's agents, namely his lawyer and publicist, that these women were in effect no truthful, not telling the truth as to their relationship and what it might have been with Mr. Cosby."

3. Medium of Cammarata and his client, Tamara Green, on video monitor

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Joseph Cammarata/Attorney:

"and so why are we here? Ms. Green, and you have a copy of the complaint, has alleged that she was a victim of Mr. Cosby's unwanted sexual advances, and as a matter of fact he, according to her, sexually abused her and that she suffered harm as a result. Her claim, for sexual assault, has expired. The statute of limitations has expired. But just as Mr. Cosby did through his agents with the other women, Mr. Cosby's agents took to the airwaves, took to the press, and according to Ms. Green, branded her a liar. As a result of that public branding as a liar, Ms. Green has an opportunity to have her day in court. She claims that she is telling the truth. She claims that as a result of being called a liar she suffered her good name and reputation has been damaged. And as a result she has filed a lawsuit attempting to restore her good name and reputation."

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tamara Green/Plaintiff -- via video conference:

"I want to introduce myself as Tamara Green and I have filed an action for defamation against Bill Cosby. Because of my attorney Mr. Cammarata, I have been allowed, I have finally been able to seek a cause of action and have my day in court, due to Mr. Cammarata's expertise."

6. Wide of room

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Tamara Green/Plaintiff -- via video conference:

"I want to say that what I want to establish is the truth of the matter. I want it put to a jury. I want it to be a verdict. I want it be handled, finally. And I want my name restored for my friends, for my family, for my profession, for my community. All of this time there's always been a slight doubt in everyone's mind as to the veracity of any of the allegation that have been made against Bill Cosby because he's a rich and powerful and famous man. So this will give me and other women if they take advantage of this opportunity that Mr. Cammarata has created for them, this will give us to go to a forum where we speak our stories and tell our truths. And the most important thing is that Bill Cosby will be required to appear in court and he will speak and he will finally be heard. And that's what I hope to accomplish."

8. Wide of room as attorney thanks audience, push in to Green on video

SEAN PENN FILES $10 MILLION SUIT AGAINST 'EMPIRE' CO-CREATOR LEE DANIELS

Sean Penn on Tuesday (22SEPT.2015) filed a $10 million defamation lawsuit against "Empire" co-creator Lee Daniels over comments Daniels made comparing him to the show's star Terrence Howard, who's been repeatedly accused of domestic violence.

Daniels' comments appeared online about a week ago in the entertainment publication The Hollywood Reporter in a story about the upcoming season of the popular Fox television show.

"That poor boy (Terrence) ain't done nothing different than Marlon Brando or Sean Penn, and all of a sudden he's some ... demon," Daniels said in the article. "That's a sign of time, of race, of where we are right now in America."

Penn's lawsuit, filed in Manhattan civil court, says Daniels' statements were egregious and injured Penn's credibility and reputation personally, professionally and in his philanthropic activities.

Penn has won two best actor Oscars, for "Mystic River" and "Milk." He has made a major humanitarian push in Haiti after it was devastated by an earthquake, co-founding the Jenkins-Penn Haiti Relief Organization.

But he also has a reputation for angry behavior. In 2010, he pleaded no contest to vandalism after he kicked a celebrity photographer, but the case later was dismissed.

In the 1980s, he was in court in connection with fisticuffs and spitting. He beat a man he thought was trying to kiss Madonna in a nightclub, and he admitted driving recklessly and punching an extra on the set of the movie "colors."

His attorney Mathew Rosengart said the lawsuit isn't just about Daniels' comments.

"Sean has been the subject of numerous baseless attacks over the years, as the complaint provides, and this is only the most recent example," he said.

Daniels is the Oscar-nominated filmmaker of "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' by Sapphire," "The Paperboy" and "The Butler." The new season of "Empire," which he created with Danny Strong, starts Wednesday.

A telephone call to Daniels' publicist on Tuesday, seeking comment on the lawsuit, wasn't immediately returned.

Howard has been forced to publicly address domestic violence allegations, including during testimony in a Los Angeles courtroom in August, when he acknowledged he struck his first wife in 2001 but denied abusing another ex-wife, Michelle Ghent.

Howard testified about the 2001 incident in Pennsylvania and said he drove to his ex-wife's house after an argument and "kicked down the door and smacked her." He said it was the "only time I've struck a woman" when it wasn't self-defense.

Ghent accused Howard of abusing her on a trip to Costa Rica in 2013 and has a restraining order against him. Howard denied abusing her.

A judge in August overturned a Howard-Ghent divorce settlement that entitled her to a portion of his "Empire" earnings after finding she had coerced him into signing it or facing leaks of embarrassing information about him. In making the finding, the judge said Howard's claims of self-defense during his fights with Ghent were "not credible."

AP ENTERTAINMENT

Cannes, France, 14 May 2015 - on the red carpet for 'Mad Max' premiere at Cannes

1. Mid of Charlize Theron and Sean Penn arriving

2. Cutaway photographer, pan to Theron and Penn

AP ENTERTAINMENT

New York, 12 September 2015 - New York premiere of Season 2 of the Fox hit show 'Empire'

3. Wide of 'Empire' bus

4. CU of 'Empire' bus

5. Medium of Taraji P. Henson and Lee Daniels arriving on red carpet

6. Medium of Taraji P. Henson posing for photos on red carpet

7. Medium of Lee Daniels posing for photos on red carpet

8. Medium of Terrence Howard talking to reporter

9. Medium of Terrence Howard walking on red carpet

10. Medium of Lee Daniels being interviewed by reporter

AP ENTERTAINMENT

Los Angeles, 7 May 2015 - at 'Mad Max' premiere

11. Wide shot cast posing for photographers

12. Medium shot Charlize Theron posing for photographers, tilt up and down of Theron, Theron joined by Sean Penn

COSTNER, BALDWIN SQUARE OFF IN COURT

Jury selection began Monday (04 JUNE 2012) in a legal fight between two Hollywood stars over investments in a device used to try to clean up BP's 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

nIn his lawsuit, actor Stephen Baldwin claims Kevin Costner and a business partner duped Baldwin and a friend out of their shares of an $18 million deal for BP to buy oil-separating centrifuges after the April 2010 spill.

U.S. District Judge Martin L.C. Feldman told prospective jurors they could not be influenced by the celebrity status of Baldwin and Costner. Both actors were in court. Costner wore a blazer and khakis, while Baldwin wore an olive suit.

"Celebrity has no place in this courtroom or in any of the issues that need to be resolved by the jury in this trial," Feldman said.

Feldman asked the potential jurors whether the entertainers' on-screen portrayals compromised the ability to deliver an objective verdict. No one in the pool said they would feel influenced.

Among Baldwin's roles was caveman Barney Rubble in "The Flintstones: Viva Rock Vegas." Costner's films include "Dancing with Wolves," "Field of Dreams," and "JFK," Oliver Stone's film with New Orleans connections to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Baldwin and Costner did not interact before the proceedings started. Baldwin told The Associated Press his attorneys had advised him not to comment.

Baldwin and his friend, Spyridon Contogouris, said they didn't know about the deal when they agreed to sell their shares of Ocean Therapy Solutions, a company that marketed the centrifuges to BP, for $1.4 million and $500,000, respectively.

BP ordered 32 of the centrifuges and deployed a few of the devices on a barge in June 2010. BP capped its blown-out Macondo well the following month and kept more oil from leaking until the well was permanently sealed in September 2010.

Baldwin and Contogouris claim they were deliberately excluded from a June 8 meeting between Costner, his business partner Patrick Smith and BP executive Doug Suttles, who agreed to make an $18 million deposit on a $52 million order for the 32 devices, according to the lawsuit.

Later that month, Costner and Suttles visited Port Fourchon, La., to talk about the plan to use the centrifuges.

"It was designed to give us a fighting chance, to fight back the oil before it got us by the throat," Costner said at the time.

Baldwin and Contogouris say they were entitled to shares of BP's deposit. Their lawsuit claims Costner and Smith schemed to use BP's deposit buy their shares in Ocean Therapy Solutions.

Costner said he didn't attend a June 6, 2010, meeting at which Contogouris agreed to sell his OTS interests.

"Not only did Costner not know that Plaintiffs were negotiating to sell their OTS interests, he was surprised and offended by the idea that Contogouris and Baldwin would walk away from OTS with almost $2 million in cash despite having invested no money in the company, and at a time when a contract with BP was uncertain to materialize," says a court filing summarizing Costner's version of events.

Baldwin and Contogouris are seeking more than $21 million in damages. Costner and other defendants also are seeking damages in counterclaims.

AP Entertainment

New Orleans, 4 June 2012

1. Medium of Kevin Costner walking past media and up court steps

2. Wide of Kevin Costner walking to court

3. Medium of Kevin Costner entering courthouse

4. Medium of entrance to courthouse

5. Close up of Court House sign

6. Medium of Stephen Baldwin walking to court and up the steps

7. Wide of Kevin Costner