Created: Saturday, 26 March 2005
On Day 16 Michael Jackson arrived at court to begin another week of his trial, two minutes after eight-thirty in the morning and clearly in excruciating pain. A doctor, dressed in his scrubs directly from the hospital, accompanied him into the courtroom. The judge delayed court for 45 minutes to confer with the attorneys and then began the day’s proceedings without additional explanation.
“I’m very much hurt. I’m in pain. I’m in pain,” Michael Jackson commented as he left court at the end of the day, his brother Jackie, and his mother and father at his side. Several fans, who fill the back of the courtroom each day during the trial, wept openly as Mr. Jackson left.
Monday’s session followed three weeks of often explosive testimony, in which Mr. Jackson’s now 15-year-old accuser admitted giving contradictory stories about the alleged abuse.
Under direct questioning by the prosecution, Psychologist Anthony Urquiza said on Monday child abuse victims often contradict their own stories. The testimony of the University of California, Davis psychologist was intended by prosecutors to help explain why Mr. Jackson’s young accuser denied the abuse to a school official and gave sometimes inconsistent accounts to police.
But in a tough cross-examination by Mr. Mesereau, the psychologist admitted children sometimes made false abuse claims, and they absolutely could be manipulated by their parents.
“It is possible for kids to be supported in false allegations by parents,” Urquiza said.
Mr. Jackson’s legal team claims and promises to prove with testimony and evidence that the accuser is a liar who is being used as a pawn in his mother’s schemes to extort money from celebrities.
The jurors also heard testimony from a flight attendant, Lauren Wallace, who admitted Mr. Jackson liked to have wine served out of soda cans when he traveled by chartered jet, but said she had never seen him serve any alcohol to a minor. Wallace said she would empty out three of the cans before each flight, fill them about half-way with white wine and serve them to Mr. Jackson. She also admitted that Mr. Jackson did not request that she provide any other alcoholic beverages on the flights.
On cross-examination by Mr. Jackson’s lead attorney Tom Mesereau, Wallace said she never saw children drunk on the flights. She also stated that the reason Mr. Jackson requested that the wine be served in soda cans was so that he could be discreet about drinking alcohol in front of his own two kids.
She left the courtroom smiling and waving discreetly at Mr. Jackson.
Recent Comments