Court Session 1: Trial Begins

At 8:00 a.m. on Monday, February 28, Michael Jackson entered the Santa Maria courthouse amid the watchful eyes of many reporters and photographers. This session is the first round in the series of the trial’s main hearings, which will be held after the jury selection ends on February 25. These hearings are expected to last five months. More than a thousand reporters from around the world are covering the trial extensively.

But what happened in court…? Prosecutor Tom Sneddon called Michael Jackson a sexual abuser, but his defense attorney described him to the jury as a victim who was sacrificed to the greed of a woman who claims that her son was sexually abused by Michael.

Tom Sneddon presented a complicated—and at times strange—story. He accused Jackson of showing the complainant obscene photos and that his accomplices threatened the complainant, saying that if she told anyone, they would kill her mother. Sneddon said the complainant would describe her sexual acts with Jackson to the jury, and that “Jackson’s secret world will show that instead of reading ‘Peter Pan’ stories to the children, he shows them obscene photos—and instead of candy and milk, he entertains them with alcoholic drinks.”

As Tom Sneddon was explaining the allegations to the jury, Michael Jackson—according to descriptions provided by the Associated Press—listened to the prosecutor like a statue, with one hand placed on his cheek. In the front row sat Michael’s mother and brother, Katherine and Jermaine Jackson. Among Michael’s family members, only these two were present in court.

After the prosecutor’s remarks, which lasted nearly three hours, Michael Jackson’s lead attorney, Thomas Mesereau, began his defense. He said the complainant’s mother repeatedly tried to deceive different people and scam them, claiming she needed help and that her son was suffering from cancer. Meanwhile, the complainant’s father was a member of an organization that covered the hospital expenses for the boy.

Mesereau stated that the complainant’s mother also went to “Jay Leno” to obtain financial assistance. But Leno became suspicious to some extent and informed the police. The complainant’s mother also approached “George Lopez” and a television host from Los Angeles. The host agreed to encourage people to help this woman on a television program. However, after some time, he also realized that the entire story told by the complainant’s mother was false. The defense attorney said the complainant’s mother had influenced her son to make these kinds of allegations so that she could extort money from Michael.

He also said that the complainant’s mother had previously tried to extort money from “Jay Leno, Mike Tyson, and Jim Carrey” through her son, but only Jackson fell for their scheme.

The complainant, who is currently 15 years old, said two years ago in the 2002 documentary “Living with Michael Jackson” that she spent a night in Michael’s room. However, she denied any improper acts by Michael Jackson. Tom Sneddon claimed that Michael Jackson had pressured this boy into saying these statements.

The indictment states that after the documentary aired and after a search of his home, Michael Jackson sexually abused the boy. Of course, Tom Sneddon did not specify the exact dates of these events in court and only said that he believes these crimes may have occurred between March 2 and March 5, 2003.

In his defense, Mesereau argued that it is impossible for Jackson to have sexually abused the complainant after the documentary “Living with Michael Jackson” aired and after the Los Angeles police searched his home:

“Can you imagine a less likely time for these acts?”

“I’m here to tell you these allegations are fabricated. They’re lies, and they never happened.”

“The mother and her children were looking for a famous person to attach themselves to as a job. Unfortunately, Michael Jackson fell into their trap.”

Sneddon also claimed that during the first visits by the complainant’s family to Neverland, Michael Jackson showed the complainant and his own son, Prince, unethical websites. He admitted that during the search of Neverland, magazines were found on which Michael Jackson’s and the complainant’s fingerprints were seen.

At the beginning of the session, Judge Rodney Melville read the names of the individuals whom the prosecutor alleged were accomplices to Jackson. These people are accused of imprisoning the complainant’s family at Neverland and of intending to send them to Brazil. Sneddon claimed that one of them, named Frank Tyson, threatened the complainant, saying that “Michael could make it so this family disappears,” and that “I could have killed your mother.” Of course, these individuals were never legally pursued.

Tom Sneddon said that the complainant’s mother spent more than $3,300 of Michael Jackson’s money while, according to her own account, she was imprisoned at Neverland—on herself and her family.

The defense attorney then raised the story of the complainant’s mother’s lawsuit against the Tower Records store and its guard, J.C. Penny, regarding an alleged sexual abuse in 2003. The complainant’s family was being pursued for shoplifting by the store guards and was arrested along with the stolen clothes. Later, the complainant’s mother claimed that one of the guards, “Penny,” sexually abused her during the scuffle. Following this claim, the store officials paid $152,000 to the complainant’s mother and stopped her from continuing the lawsuit. This allegation was never proven in court.

The continuation of the court session was postponed until tomorrow morning.

Source: eMJey.com / Yahoo News, CNN, NBC, Associated Press