Photographer says he feared arrest for interfering in Nigella Lawson 'choking'

The paparazzo who took pictures of Nigella Lawson being choked by her husband has defended having done nothing while he filmed "27 minutes of madness."

 



Photographer Jean-Paul has said he didn't intervene because he feared being arrested himself, the Australian Associated Press reported.

Photographs of Lawson's husband, Charles Saatchi, with his hands around his wife's throat while she appeared terrified and distressed surfaced a week ago and have been widely debated in the media since.
Jean-Paul wrote in the British tabloid Sunday People that the abuse was "most definitely not a fleeting moment," however:

    "I'm paparazzi so everyone hates you to begin with. The best thing I could do was carry on taking the pictures because now everyone can see that Charles Saatchi is an abuser."

Meanwhile, a British tabloid has reported that Lawson wants a divorce from Saatchi, 70, an art collector who runs an iconic London gallery in his own name.

The TV chef and author has reportedly left the family home with her children after the incident.

According to Sunday People, which first published the photos, a well placed aide has told how Nigella, 53, feels "broken and ­desolate" since the attack as the two lunched at the ­exclusive restaurant Scott’s.
Saatchi has since called the incident a "playful tiff," although he received a police caution.

UK government minister Alistair Burt reportedly said on Saturday said he would have intervened had he witnessed the assault, and that there should be "no toleration" of violence against women.

However, Jean-Paul said said knowing his pictures had been seen all over the world was "so special".

    "I am proud because as a photographer you want to be in the paper but you also want to take pictures that mean something. This will be talked about for years."

Halle Berry to testify on paparazzi limits

SACRAMENTO -- The Capitol will get a touch of star power on Tuesday morning when actress Halle Berry testifies in favor of legislation that would limit paparazzi's ability to photograph the children of celebrities.

The bill, SB 606, would modify the definition of harassment -- meaning activity that "seriously alarms, annoys, torments, or terrorizes" a person -- to include photographing or recording a child without the permission of a legal guardian.

The legislation specifically mentions photography that involves "following the child's activities or lying in wait" and targeting a child because of a parent's line of work.

Sen. Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), the bill's author, also wants to protect the children of public officials, including judges and law enforcement, from harassment, said spokesman Greg Hayes.

A first conviction could land offenders in jail for between 10 days and a year.

Berry, who won an Academy Award for her role in "Monster's Ball" and has been a mainstay of the X-Men series, has clashed with the paparazzi before.

In April, she shouted and cursed at photographers who swarmed her, her fiancee and her young daughter at Los Angeles International Airport.

"Get away from the child, Jesus, what ... is wrong with you people ... that's a child here," Berry said.

The Motion Picture Assn. of America opposes the legislation, saying it infringes upon free speech protections. Jim Ewert, general counsel for the California Newspaper Publishers Assn., said there are already enough laws preventing harassment and he fears the measure could criminalize legitimate news gathering.

“It’s what journalists do," he said. "They take pictures.”

Justin Bieber Involved In Hollywood Traffic Accident, Paparazzo Injured

Pop singer Justin Bieber was reportedly involved in a collision that left a paparazzo injured just before midnight Monday.

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, a traffic collision occurred outside of the Laugh Factory at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Crescent Heights in Hollywood.

The incident was caught on tape, which was viewed by CBS2′s Amber Lee.

According to Lee, the footage shows Bieber behind the wheel of his white Ferrari, surrounded by paparazzi, as he tries to leave the comedy club.

The singer then motions for photographers to move so he can leave and he reportedly pins a paparazzo between his Ferrari and a parked car, TMZ reported.

Bieber then left the scene, a paparazzo told Lee.

The photographer involved in the crash was treated at a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries to his left leg.

Bieber was questioned by police and cleared around 5 a.m., TMZ’s Mike Walters told KNX 1070.
“He didn’t know he hit anybody, and once when cops were able to see the video . . . you can clearly see that this wasn’t one of the ones where a photographer is clearly hit,” Walters said.

The singer later tweeted about the incident at 9 a.m.:
sometimes u just wanna go to a comedy club and have a laugh. no trouble. just want to laugh.—
Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) June 18, 2013

Bieber is also under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for allegedly driving his Ferrari recklessly through his exclusive Calabasas community over Memorial Day weekend.

According to authorities, Bieber was driving at freeway speeds in a community with a 25 mph speed limit.
No injuries were reported in the incident, but the singer was allegedly confronted by fellow Oaks resident Keyshawn Johnson, who was driving with his child in a Prius, TMZ reported.

A paparazzo was fatally struck by a car after taking photos of Bieber’s same white Ferrari during a traffic stop in Los Angeles on Jan. 1 of this year.

Photographer suing Bieber, bodyguard

A Miami photographer who claims Justin Bieber ordered his bodyguards to beat him up - with one allegedly pulling a gun - is suing the singer, TMZ reports.

Photographer Jeffrey Binion also claims Bieber told his musclemen to grab the camera's memory card during the altercation June 5 outside a Miami recording studio.

Binion claims Bieber was behind the attack in which bodyguard Hugo Hesny threw him against a wall, clutched his throat and flashed the gun, holstered under his coat, while he and the other bodyguard took the memory card.

The photographer says he endured bodily injury, pain, suffering and mental anguish and incurred medical expenses.

His lawyer, Russell S. Adler told TMZ: "No amount of fame or fortune justifies Bieber's shameful and outrageous conduct. To send him that message and deter his misbehaviour in the future, we will seek punitive damages against him as allowed by Florida law."

Justin Bieber takes memory card out of photographers camera

Justin Bieber took a page out of Rob Kardashian’s book when he took a photog’s memory card Wednesday night.

The 19-year-old singer was reportedly exiting The Hit Factory recording studio in Miami around 4 a.m. when he ordered his security guards to snag a paparazzo’s camera, reports TMZ.

The incident was caught on tape as Bieber screamed, “Get that f---ing camera out of here!”

As the photographer pleaded with the “Beauty and the Beat” singer to get his property back JB responded, “Alright, alright. I’m gonna give you your camera back. I’m gonna take your SIM [sic] card though.”

Kardashian allegedly did the same thing recently when he spotted a photog take snapshots of him exiting a gym shirtless. The pap later sued him and the reality star pleaded not guilty to the charges of misdemeanor battery and petty theft.

But Bieber’s entourage supposedly had a practice round as just hours before they allegedly choked another photographer and tried to steal his camera equipment as well.

While the second alleged victim asked for his memory card back and even promised to delete Bieber’s pics the pop star, unforgivingly ignored the request.

Now he’s under investigation by authorities but only for the second go round as police indicate they have no record of the earlier choking incident as it was never reported.

The Biebs reps have not commented on either matter.

Sandra Bullock: My Son Louis Hates Paparazzi

Sandra Bullock adopted her son Louis in 2010, and in a new interview, she said that she decided to raise him in Los Angeles so that he could grow up in a environment where he’d “see every color under the sun.” But, she admitted, there are downsides too.

“He doesn’t like [the paparazzi],” she told Parade magazine for its latest issue.
“He gives them the stink-eye and they’re like, ‘That’s such an angry kid,’ but I look at them and say, ‘Only when you guys are around!’”

In fact, when Bullock, 48, sees photographers coming, she hurries to shield the three-year-old: “I instinctively throw things over Louis’s head,” she said.

Ashton Kutcher Flips Off Paparazzi, Mila Kunis Cowers in Backseat

The Two and a Half Men star had no patience for the flashing lights as he and Mila drove away from dinner in London on Wednesday, and he let that be known with a wave of his middle finger.

Nicole Richie posts photo of paparazzi who dropped kid to snap picture

Sometimes the paparazzi will go to extreme lengths to get the photo they truly want. Nicole Richie saw a perfect example of that and documented it with a series of photos she posted on Instagram.

To go along with the photo collage, Richie posted the following descriptions of the events, "This paparazzi dragged his poor, sweet little girl on my plane from NYC to LA. As he ran her off the plane, he dropped her ON THE FLOOR of LAX as she laid there, crying her eyes out ... Just to get his shot."

Richie also posted the picture on her Twitter account with the message, "Guess what homie, I have a camera too." That little bit of celebrity payback is thanks to the advent of smartphones.

You can see Richie's photo of the paparazzi below:

Justin Bieber Bodyguards Accused Of Battery Against Photographer In Miami

The singer's bodyguards have been accused of assaulting a photographer Wednesday outside The Hit Factory studios in Miami.

Paparazzo Jeffery Binion was taking photos of Bieber outside the studios when four bodyguards charged over. One of them allegedly roughed Binion up while another removed the memory card from his camera.

"Suddenly the victim was grabbed by the throat and pushed backwards away from the property while being instructed he was tresspassing," according to the incident report from Miami-Dade Police. The report alleges that while bodyguard Hugo A. Hesny pushed Binion, one of the other three took his camera and kept it away until Bieber had gone back inside.

When his camera was handed back to him, Binion told police, the memory card was missing.

Miami-Dade Police spokesperson Detective Robin Pinkard told The Hufffington Post that officers wrote the incident up as a simple battery and theft. Police are still investigating to determine any charges, according to a release.