Paparazzo shot near Spears party

LOS ANGELES — Normally a man injured by a shot from a pellet gun would not warrant much attention from sheriffs in America's largest county. A victim's name taken down. A report filed. Maybe, in a few weeks, someone would look into it — if things were slow.

But when the man shot is a paparazzo staking out Britney Spears at her baby shower in Malibu, that all changes.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office assigned a detective yesterday to investigate the Saturday night shooting of Brad Diaz, who was treated at a hospital and released.

"Because of the media attention, we'll probably put this on the front burner ... ," said Sgt. Robert Knudson of the Lost Hills sheriff's station. His office had received calls from almost two dozen media outlets, though, he noted, "This doesn't even rise to the level of assault with a deadly weapon."

Spears, 23, whose first baby is due in October, has remained as much a subject of tabloid fascination since her marriage to dancer Kevin Federline and her pregnancy as in her days as a teen pop phenomenon.

Diaz, who could not be reached for comment, told authorities the shot came from the direction of the hilltop property he was watching with more than a dozen other photographers and at least two helicopters, Knudson said. Spears' security team told authorities that the pop star was attending a baby shower thrown for her and that they were not involved.

"Britney didn't know anything about it. She had nothing to do with it," said Spears' publicist, Nicole King.

Though the shooter has yet to be identified, some on both sides of the paparazzi confrontations are suggesting that the incident is another sign of the increasingly dangerous cat-and-mouse game between the celebrity A-List and those who sell their images for big bucks.

"There's a lot more tension and a lot more aggression on both parts," said Howard Bragman, a longtime Hollywood public-relations consultant.

In May, the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office announced new measures to crack down on overzealous paparazzi, including the possible use of felony conspiracy charges. The move came after a photographer was arrested for allegedly ramming his minivan into the car of teen star Lindsay Lohan.

Driving the change is the plethora of publications willing to pay dollar amounts that "look a lot like telephone numbers" for celebrity photos, said Frank Griffin, co-founder of a U.S. paparazzi agency.