Names and faces

— Halle Berry’s ex-boyfriend Gabriel Aubry was arrested on investigation of battery Thursday after he and the Oscar-winning actress’s current boyfriend got into a fight at her Hollywood Hills home, police said. Aubry, 37, was booked on investigation of a battery, a misdemeanor, and released on a $20,000 bond, according to online jail records. He is to appear in court Dec. 13. Aubry went to Berry’s house Thanksgiving morning, and police responded to areport of an assault, said Los Angeles police officer Julie Boyer. Aubry was injured in the altercation and was taken to a hospital where he was treated and released. E-mails sent to Berry’s publicist, Meredith O’Sullivan, and Aubry’s family-law attorney, Gary Fishbein, were not immediately returned. Berry and Aubry have been involved in a custody dispute regarding their 4-year-old daughter, Nahla. The proceedings were sealed because the former couple are not married. Both appeared in the case as recently as Nov. 9, but neither side commented on the outcome of the hearing. Berry has been dating French actor Olivier Martinez, and he said earlier this year that they are engaged.

A Russian court Thursday dismissed a lawsuit that sought damages from Madonna over allegations thatshe traumatized youths by speaking up for gay rights during a concert in St. Petersburg. The ruling came after a one-day hearing. During it, plaintiffs claimed that Madonna’s “propaganda of perversion” would negatively affect Russia’s birthrate and erode the nation’s defense capability by depriving the country of future soldiers. At one point, the judge threatened to expel journalists from the courtroom if they laughed too much. In the end, theMoskovsky district court in St. Petersburg threw out the Trade Union of Russian Citizens’ lawsuit against the singer. Madonna did not attend the trial, and her publicist Liz Rosenberg said Thursday that the star wouldn’t comment about it. St. Petersburg legislators passed a law in February that made it illegal to promote homosexuality to youths. Six months later, Madonna criticized the law on Facebook, then stood up for gay rights during a concert in St. Petersburg that drew fans as young as 12.

Front Section, Pages 2 on 11/24/2012

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