Busta Rhymes has been busted for many things, and often gets of scott free. But not today! The NY Post reports that a Brooklyn judge ordered the rapper to pay $75,000 to a fan, Alex Duncan, that he assaulted at a 2003 concert. Allegedly Duncan wasn't a fan of the rapper at all, but was there to see Fabolous, who canceled. Allegedly when he stood up at the show and Rhymes took notice, Duncan told him he wasn't there to see him, and yadda yadda yadda Busta doused him with water, pelted with water bottles, and had his bodyguard punch him. more ›

David Paterson turns 55 years young today. PolitickerNY gives a rundown of the festivities up in Albany, which including Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith surprising the governor with an exquisite-looking birthday cake. When asked why there were no candles, a Paterson staff member said, "We didn't want to burn down the Red Room." more ›

Having "Bodyguard for Busta Rhymes" on one's resume may be more than a career killer. One of the rapper's former body guards was found dead in the back of a Lincoln Navigator in Queens Wednesday. 35-year-old Jermaine Williams of the Bronx had been shot multiple times--at least once in the head--and wrapped in a blanket before being placed in the SUV. more ›

In exchange for guilty pleas on a number of charges including assault of a fan, assault of his chauffer, driving with a suspended license and DUI, rap star Busta Rhymes avoided jail time and was sentenced yesterday to 10 days of community service. Sadly, we’ll be denied the publicity circus that swirled around Boy George and Naomi Campbell during their very public community services; Rhymes will have the privilege of choosing his own method of service at a “private, court-approved location.” (Will there be an after-party?) He’ll also pay fines and court costs amounting to – yes this figure you're about to read is correct – $1,510. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: an unconscious baby on Ralph Ave. in Brooklyn, a construction accident on Bedford Ave. and Crown St. in Brooklyn, and a found grenade at 54th Ave. and Junction Blvd. in Queens.
• Dave Chappelle made an unannounced appearance at a comedy club, where Radar learned he "took the stage at approximately 12:30 a.m. and didn't leave until club management turned off the lights at 4:20 a.m."
• Busta Rhymes got three years probation, 10 days of community service, $1,250 in fines and will have to cover court costs in relation to assorted offenses related to DWI and assault.

Through some strange stroke of Manhattan Supreme Court scheduling, Ja Rule, Remy Ma, Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes all appeared in court yesterday (at different times) to face various charges. Ja Rule and Lil Wayne faced gun possession charges from separate incidents on July 22. The pair, who collaborated on a song "Uh Oh," also shared the same attorney, Stacey Richman. Richman said that Lil Wayne couldn't be guilty, because when his tour bus... more ›

Lawmakers are looking to toughen laws around tinted windows on automobiles. Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum pointed out that police officer Russel Timoshenko was fatally shot when he approached a stolen SUV with tinted windows. And current State Senator Eric Adams (a retired police captain and a founder of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care) summed it up, "The criminal element does not use tinted windows to protect themselves from dangerous UV rays. They use them to protect their illegal activity." more ›

Just when we thought we couldn't possibly hear about more troubles for Busta Rhymes, he's now facing four separate trials in New York for past incidents. E Online recaps the rapper's rap sheet: "The first assault complaint was filed last summer by a 19-year-old man, who claims he was roughed up by the entertainer after spitting on Rhymes' SUV. The second complaint came from a 39-year-old man, reportedly Busta's former driver, who says he was beaten up by Rhymes last Christmas in a beef over money." The third and fourth charges are for driving drunk and driving with a suspended license. more ›

Yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg traveled back to his Massachusetts roots and gave the commencement speech at Tufts University. Bloomberg, who grew up in Medford, name checked various haunts in the hood, tried to seem with it by mentioning Busta Rhymes, Ali G, and Salma Hayek, and reminded kids to call their mother. He also discussed free speech, in what the Sun called a nod to the Minutemen incident at Columbia:

The fourth lesson is, in the words of Ali G, 'Respect.' Don't worry, I'm not going to start quoting Borat. Respect is so important - especially in times of conflict. You all know what I'm talking about. In December, The Primary Source printed some things that much of this community ardently disagreed with - that many considered quite offensive. But instead of suppressing the publication - and despite the emotion of the moment - you respected their right to express themselves. more ›

Yesterday WNBC.com's Josh Einiger was covering Busta Rhymes Manhattan criminal court appearance and ended up becoming a news story himself. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: falling debris this afternoon on West 46th St. and 8th Ave. in Manhattan, an unstable building on Troutman St. in Brooklyn, and a dead body in the water off Manhattan's Battery.
• Reasoning it's not far and not hard to reach by water, Mayor Bloomberg thinks commuters will be happy to hitch a ride to Rockaway Beach on a ferry service from downtown Manhattan.
• A report from the Times Square Alliance claims that the area around the "crossroads of the world" contributes $55 billion annually to the city's economy and points out that this is more than the entire national economies of Panama and Bolivia combined.
• Not to be outdone by bored kids stuck in the suburbs with nothing better to do, more and more overstimulated city kids are reporting that what they like to do on the weekend is get "very drunk."
• Streetsblog went on a bike tour of the proposed Brooklyn Greenway and there's a link to video footage of the ride.
• A coalition of parents, bat manufacturers, and national high school sports associations are filing a class action suit to prevent the City Council's metal bat ban from going into effect this September.
• Advice to aspiring tv reporters, or current ones for that matter: when Busta Rhymes is being ushered into a courthouse for a hearing, do not whack him in the face with your microphone (with video).
• The New Yorker talks to the graffiti artist known as Banksy, who reveals that it's difficult to remain anonymous when Brad Pitt name drops you to the press.

It's a tabloid Saturday jackpot as a Los Angeles County judge sentenced "celebrity" Paris Hilton to 45 days in jail. Superior Court Judge Michael Sauer agreed with prosecutors who felt that Hilton's driving with a suspended license (she was busted for DUI on September 7, 2006, ordered to go to alcohol education this past February, and then was pulled over yet again in late February) deserved jail and sentenced the infamous sometimes New Yorker to 45 days in jail. Both the Post and Daily News put her on their covers and detailed yesterday's hearing. From the News:

When a prosecutor asked if she read the license suspension notice that was mailed to her from the DMV, she replied, "I have people do that for me." more ›

Earlier this morning police pulled over one Trevor Smith (aka Busta Rhymes) on 51st Street and 11th Avenue for driving while impaired. We stopped carving notches on his rap sheet a few misdemeanors ago, but you can check out this backlog of posts for a guide to his run-ins with the law. more ›

After previews of the segment last week, The Rap Up shares video of Anderson Cooper's chat with Cam'ron on 60 Minutes to discuss the "no snitching" rule prevalent in the rap community. Tupac, Notorious B.I.G. and Jam Master Jay are all examples of murders that have gone unsolved. More recently, Busta Rhymes bodyguard, Israel Ramirez, was shot and killed at a video shoot; out of the 25 people believed to be present during the crime - no one has come forward. more ›

Get ready for this Sundays 60 Minutes, because there's an intriguing segment: Anderson Cooper interview rapper Cam'ron about the hip-hop community's code of silence when it comes to crimes. In fact, here's an excerpt of their exchange from CBS News:

"If I knew the serial killer was living next door to me?" Giles responds to a hypothetical question posed by Cooper. "I wouldn't call and tell anybody on him — but I'd probably move. But I'm not going to call and be like, 'The serial killer's in 4E.' " more ›

Ronald "Tinard" Washington has been named as a suspect in the killing of Jason Mizell (aka Jam Master Jay). Though an arrest in the case isn't expected anytime soon, this is the first publicly announced suspect to be made in this case - something Jay's family members are happy about. more ›

The Reverend Al Sharpton held a press conference criticizing violence in the hip-hop community. The press conference was prompted by the alleged assault on the 14-year-old child of a rap music management company headed by G-Unit rapper Tony Yayo; apparently seeing the child wear a Czar Entertainment shirt on 25th Street sent him over the edge. more ›

Wingbridge, by Schveckle. Send your pix to photos (at) gothamist if you want us to use them. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: An unusual odor in the Bronx, two pedestrians struck (one in Manhattan, a fatal one in the Bronx), and three alarm fire at a tire yard in Brooklyn
• The Department of Education will reinstate 17 bus routes, finally realizing that giving 5-year-olds MetroCards is a very mean lesson
• We're so with East Village Idiot on this one:
• Weird: In a story about the doctor who police believe was attacked in his Upper East Side triplex, a neighbor tells the Daily News, "There was a suspicious guy who came a few times in the last six months. I told the police about him. They told me not to speak about it."
• New and expecting parents: ModernTots in Dumbo is having a sample sale this weekend!
• Busta Rhymes was busted for driving without his license in TriBeCa; he told the cops, "You hide behind the shield. This is bulls---." Then he told the judge he thought the cops were robbers in disguise.
• Representative Anthony Weiner may run for Mayor in 2009; so far, other suspects include City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and City Comptroller William Thompson
• And if you're planning ahead, this Sunday is Chinatown's Chinese New Year Parade
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Busta Rhymes has been busted plenty of times recently. Now he's considering a plea deal for his latest offenses, attacking his driver and assaulting a fan in Gramercy Park last summer. more ›

Brett Gelman's favorite jam back in the day was Eric B. for President. It's okay for me to make that reference Gelman, along with comedian Jon Daly , makes up the hip-hop duo Cracked Out. He also performs improv as part of Death by Roo Roo , is a member of the sketch group The The Brighter Side , and appears at venues ranging from Rififi to Comix. He's busy, is what I'm trying to say! more ›

Busta Rhymes surrendered to police last night for for beating his ex-driver. He was charged with assault in the third degree (a misdemeanor). He was expected to be held over night, but was only at the 1st Precinct station house from 7:30 to 11:30 pm. more ›

City 17 by Bastian. more ›

broadway-nassau by joe holmes. more ›

Foxy Brown was sentenced to three years probation for attacking employees of Bloomie Nails back in 2005. You may recall that in August Brown pleaded guilty to the assault, but then tried to take it back. Brown continued to plead her innocence, claiming her original lawyer had "rushed" and "coerced" her. The NY Times had a funny exchange between Brown (real name: Inga Marchand) and the judge:

Ms. Marchand, 27, said she pleaded guilty only because her lawyer at the time, Robert Kalina, told her that if she did not, she might have to spend a night in jail. (In the small-world category, Mr. Kalina was Mr. Smith’s [Busta Rhymes's] lawyer yesterday.) more ›

Busta Rhymes, also known as Trevor Smith, is in trouble with the law again. Since Rhymes refused to cooperate with the police regarding the shooting death of his bodyguard on the set of his music video for the song "Touch It {Remix}" earlier in the year the NYPD has been looking for an excuse to bring him in for questioning. They found that reason last week when a concert-goer was allegedly assaulted after spitting on Rhyme's car. Cops arrested Rhymes last night around 8 P.M. and questioned him for over three hours. more ›

Breaking Beverage News: Rap star, entrepreneur and Beyonce's boyfriend Jay-Z is boycotting Cristal champagne after some remarks Cristal management made about the rap world. Jay-Z is going to stop drinking Cristal in his personal life (note to all musicians about to appear on Cribs - get the Cristal out of the fridge!) and remove it from the bars of all 40/40 club locations. Here's a summary of what caused the boycott from the AP:

In a special summer issue of The Economist magazine, Frederic Rouzaud, managing director of Louis Roederer, said the company viewed the affection for his company's champagne from rappers and their fans with "curiosity and serenity." more ›

That's what the NYPD is complaining about - the complete lack of cooperation from Busta Rhymes in the investigation of his bodyguard's murder during a video shoot two weeks ago. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly implied that Rhymes (aka Trevor Smith) was withholding information about the shooting of Israel Ramirez. There have been conflicting accounts as to where Rhymes was during the incident - he told detectives he was on set, but he reportedly told others that he was outside when it seems that Ramirez got caught in an argument between other rappers. The NY Times looked at the habit of those in the rap world to keep quiet during police investigations, lest they look like a snitch:

Busta Rhymes, 33, whose given name is Trevor Smith, faces a dilemma that is has a particular resonance to the hip-hop world. By remaining silent, he is angering the family of Mr. Ramirez and a good number of his fans. But if he speaks to the authorities, he risks harming his so-called street credibility, which is cultivated by many rap artists and demanded by millions of their fans. Yet even on some urban radio talk shows and Internet chat rooms, a growing number of fans have called his silence cowardly and amoral, and in New York, a group of ministers and anti-violence advocates have called for a boycott of his music.

The latest news in the fatal shooting during a rap video shoot in Brooklyn is that Busta Rhymes may have witnessed his bodyguard's death. Police Commissioner Kelly announced as much yesterday, and other police sources are saying that Rhymes (born Trevor Smith) may have been playing "peacemaker" between some other rappers. Rhymes had been shooting a video for his song, "Touch It {Remix)," and there were a number of music stars on hand to do cameos - Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige, 50 Cent and DMX; he originally told police that he was on set during the shooting, but the widow of Israel Ramirez says that Rhymes called her and said he saw it all. Most of the attention is being put on Tony Yayo (part of 50 Cent's crew) and Swizz Beatz (who has produced for Jay-Z and DMX) respectively, who may have had an argument. The Post has a who's who of some of the characters and a timeline of events while the Daily News's Errol Louis says Rhymes and other hip-hop artists should create a fund for Ramirez's chlidren, citing the "criminal irresponsibility of so many of the people who make money creating and marketing hip-hop music." more ›

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