On Wednesday,November 19th 2008, Musician John Mayer’s bodyguard crossed a line. Mayer was enjoying a night out on the town in Hollywood, dining at The Steakhouse, one of Wolfgang Puck’s Beverly Hills eateries, when he decided to leave from the front entrance of the restaurant,rather than the planned exit out of the back of the establishment. Mayer and his bodyguard walked into a throng of paparazzi, all eager to snap pictures. Just as Mayer was ducking into his BMW, one photog was over-eager and Mayer’s bodyguard pushed him to the ground, grabbing him by the throat according to onlookers. The photographer went to the Tarzana hospital to be checked for injuries, and is reportedly planning to contact his lawyers.

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Here’s another story to file under: What Were They Thinking?!

First of all, both Mayer and the bodyguard need to be held accountable.

Physical contact and altercations like this should not be happening, and a well-trained bodyguard knows better than to shove, and then worse, to grab an individual by the throat, once he’s down!? These moves are aggressive and out of control. Why anybody would think this physical maneuver was acceptable is beyond me–and to make such an error in judgment in front of a crowd of paparazzi and fans? It just make Mayer look bad, and most certainly opens him up to a lawsuit.

Secondly, my guess is Mayer’s bodyguard was not prepared for Mayer’s sudden change in plans to leave The Steakhouse via the front entrance.

Surely, Mayer had to have known that leaving from the most public access point was fool-hardy and maybe just a little self-involved…or perhaps he was in some way impaired in his decision-making ability. It begs the question, “Did he WANT the attention?” Surely, his bodyguard advised him against exiting from the front of the restaurant. Well, if there is indeed a lawsuit, then I suspect the cost of that “attention” will be significantly more than he intended to pay.

 

Khalid Shahenshah, 45, a longtime loyalist of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), was killed on Tuesday when unidentified gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on his vehicle in Karachi. Shahenshah was former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto’s Chief of Security, and was with her when she was assassinated December 27, 2007.

Police believe it was a targeted killing, and have opened an investigation into his death. Although they don’t yet know the motive of the attack on Shahenshah, rumors are widespread in the southern port city as to the mysterious forces behind his murder, which occurred outside his home.

Shahenshah has been providing security for Bhutto’s widower, Asif Ali Zardari. Zardari took over her party following her death. Zardari and is a prominent leader in Pakistan’s present coalition government.

There has been some speculation that Shahenshah may have been involved in Benazir Bhutto’s assassination. In video footage of the event, which aired on Pakistani television on Tuesday, Shahenshah was shown

READ MORE: Times Online

The former bodyguard of Louis Antonelli, a jeweler who was shot on April 29^, was himself shot to death Tuesday morning by law enforcement. The deceased, Jason Aiello –36, was a retired police sergeant and one-time protector to Antonelli.

Police officers were dispatched after two 911 calls from the Aillo home.

The first call was for shots fired and 5 minutes later a second call was made for a domestic dispute between the couple.

Aiello was at Bayley Seton Hospital, where his family had checked him into the psychiatric ward at 10:00 p.m. the night before. Aiello had been under extreme pressure to answer questions from detectives and the FBI regarding Antonelli’s shooting, and had become “delusional.” Sometime between 3 and 4 a.m., after becoming agitated, Aiello escaped, according to the family’s attorney Peter Antioco.

Law enforcement claims that Aiello brandished two guns and fired at officers seven times. The police returned fire–a total of19 rounds–three of which hit Aiello. Officers claim they repeatedly asked Aillo to drop his weapon, but he refused and then fired at him. Law enforcement sources believe Aiello was seeking to commit “suicide by cop,” but family members and their attorney are denying Aiello was suicidal.

Antioco reported that when the police arrived, one of Aiello’s family members had taken away one of the two 9mm guns Aiello had in his possession. Aiello’s wife took away the second 9mm gun and threw it out of the car window, and screamed to the police “I have the gun, stop shooting!” But officers continued shoot. According to Antioco, “There is a serious question whether or not he fired his gun, at all.”

The family is claiming that 20 to 25 shots were fired at Aiello, as he sat in his cousin’s car. His wife was in the passenger seat with him, but was not shot. The couple’s three children, aged 2, 5, and 6 were in the vicinity and were quickly removed from the scene.

Police detectives and the FBI had been questioing Aiello repeatedly regarding the circumstances of his employer’s shooting death. He was never charged, but there was some suspicion as to what role, if any, he may have played in Antonelli’s death. To all appearances, Aiello was one of the only people who knew he and Antonelli would be at the El Sabor Tropical Restaurant the night Antonelli was shot, and the usually armed Aiello was without his fire arm that night. Antonelli had also walked out of the restaurant alone.

Aiello claimed he had nothing to do with the shooting. He also claimed that he didn’t know any of the suspects arrested in connection with the crime.

His family called him “a family man” with a 15-year history in the Brooklyn police department. He’d been retired from the police force for the past two years.

 

The neighbors in Amy Winehouse’s upscale London neighborhood are tiring of the endless nights of parties, ever-present paparazzi and late-night shenanigans. She has been involved in two brawls in only two weeks.

Allegedly, she struck a man whom she claimed pinched her behind, and struck out at a fan who touched her hair. Now, a third brawl has been reported. In recent photos taken of the 24-year-old singer, it appears she is smacking her personal bodyguard.

Can’t a bodyguard get some respect?

This story illustrates–once again–that in this line of work you’re not only protecting the client from strangers, but protecting your client from themselves! (And to take it a step further, protecting yourself from yourclient!?)

Some celebrities will act out in the most inappropriate ways, and at the end of the day–you must decide for yourself if it’s worth the paycheck or damage to your own reputation.

I’ve seen celebrities behave in ways that have been appalling, and I’m not talking about individuals who were under my protection. I personally witnessed one mega-star (who wanted to show off to another celebrity) stand on stage and tell the male dancers in the show to drop their pants, in order to see the size of their genitalia!?! It was one of the most classless, tasteless things I’ve ever witnessed in this line of work.

It is important to agree ahead of time that when you are “protecting” your client, that it is not just keeping him or her from physical harm. It is also preventing them from acting in ways that will get them in trouble, or compromise their reputation. This could include drinking to excess, abuse of power, any behavior that is inappropriate–particularly in public. I’d say punching people falls into that category.

If you don’t have this understanding with your client, well, you’d best ready yourself for that mean right hook!

LOS ANGELES - Woody Harrelson has been sued for $2.5 million by a paparazzo who accused the actor of assaulting him and breaking his video camera two years ago.

Josh Levine was working for the celebrity news site TMZ.com, when he was filming Harrelson in Hollywood late one night in June 2006, according to the lawsuit filed in Superior Court on Friday.

Levine alleges that the Academy Award-nominated actor broke his video camera, choked him and ordered his bodyguard to attack the paparazzo.
Levine’s suit says he still has mental, physical and emotional pain from the incident. He is also suing the unidentified bodyguard.
Harrelson’s publicist could not immediately be reached for comment.

FIND THIS STORY AT: http://www.mjtimes.sk.ca/index.cfm?pid=58&cpcat=entertainment&stry=69002036