Lindsay. Don Johnson. The “bling ring” of burglars that allegedly preyed on celebs' homes. The doctors of Anna Nicole Smith and Michael Jackson. Leif Garrett. Roman Polanski (in absentia). And more. All have been to Los Angeles County courts recently, and all have helped to stretch the resources of a court system suffering from budget cuts and layoffs for 329 employees.

Are Southern California's celebrities getting in more trouble these days, or is the feral competition over celebrity news, particularly online, digging deeper into Hollywood's bench for stories? The New York Times takes a look, and District Attorney's spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons gives her take:

A celebrity's second cousin twice removed who gets a D.U.I. now becomes a famous person.

Maybe the court system should impose a paparazzi tax.

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