NEWS MAKERS

NEWS MAKERS

Man pleads not guilty in Selena Gomez stalking

LOS ANGELES

A man with a history of mental illness has pleaded not guilty in Los Angeles to stalking actress and singer Selena Gomez.

Forty-six-year-old Thomas Brodnicki entered his plea Thursday in Superior Court to one count of stalking. Bail was set at $150,000. If Brodnicki is convicted, he faces up to three years in prison.

Brodnicki is accused of stalking the “Wizards of Waverly Place” star between July and October. Police were notified by mental-health workers that he also threatened to harm or kill Gomez while he was on a psychiatric hold.

Gomez was granted a temporary restraining order last month that has been extended to three years.

Brodnicki is scheduled to return to court Nov. 16.

s Chaka to honor Aretha at Cleveland rock hall

NEW YORK

Singing an Aretha Franklin song is a formidable task for anyone — even for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominee Chaka Khan. Khan says she’s struggling to find the right song to pay tribute to Franklin at a concert at the Rock Hall in Cleveland. Saturday’s concert, featuring Khan, Lauryn Hill, Ronald Isley and others, will cap a week of festivities honoring Franklin as part of the museum’s American Music Masters series. “It’s very special. I really don’t know what songs I’m going to sing. I just know one of them won’t be ‘Respect,”’ she said with a laugh.

ASSOCIATED PRESS