Post by MJSUNIFC on Jun 25, 2004 13:47:23 GMT -5
Lawyers set for pitched court battle over secrecy in Michael Jackson case
SANTA MARIA, California (AFP) - Prosecutors and defence lawyers were set do battle over whether to release explosive details of the child molestation charges against superstar Michael Jackson (news).
Lawyers for the pop icon and prosecution attorneys arrived at court in the town of Santa Maria, near Jackson's Neverland ranch, for the latest hearing in the celebrity case. The singer was not expected to attend.
But fans of Jackson were intent on showing support for their hero, with around 15 turning out in front of the courtroom to show their affection for the superstar and to scold prosecutors.
"I know what child molesters are, and I know that Michael Jackson is not one," said Nancy Balcorta, who sat in front of the courthouse with her seven-year-old son, brandishing two placards proclaiming his innocence.
"He wants to help the world. I think that is what he was brought to Earth to do," she said.
Inside the courtroom, lawyers will spar before Judge Rodney Melville over legal attempts by media to unseal critical documents, including the indictment accusing Jackson of abusing a 12-year-old boy last year.
Prosecutors have insisted that the 10-count document, handed down by a grand jury in April, remain secret to protect the witnesses and the integrity of the case, while news media are ravenous for details.
Even members of Jackson's family have called for certain documents -- but not all -- to be made public, believing they could back his case that his accusers are attempting to extort money from him.
Other items at the centre of the secrecy argument include the details of search warrants executed on Neverland and other homes and details of pieces of evidence in the case.
Two fans drove 250 kilometers (170 miles) from Los Angeles, dressed in full Michael Jackson regalia, to scream support for the singer, who has pleaded innocent to the charges.
"We take time to get to know him as a person," said 19-year-old Diana Enola, dressed in Jackson's signature black fedora, dark glasses, military jacket and black trousers -- all topped off with a black umbrella.
"We know him through what he said and through his songs. We know he would never do this," Enola said as she and pal Casey Underwood decried prosecutor Thomas Sneddon as "a very disturbed man."
news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040625/en_afp/us_jackson_040625163709
SANTA MARIA, California (AFP) - Prosecutors and defence lawyers were set do battle over whether to release explosive details of the child molestation charges against superstar Michael Jackson (news).
Lawyers for the pop icon and prosecution attorneys arrived at court in the town of Santa Maria, near Jackson's Neverland ranch, for the latest hearing in the celebrity case. The singer was not expected to attend.
But fans of Jackson were intent on showing support for their hero, with around 15 turning out in front of the courtroom to show their affection for the superstar and to scold prosecutors.
"I know what child molesters are, and I know that Michael Jackson is not one," said Nancy Balcorta, who sat in front of the courthouse with her seven-year-old son, brandishing two placards proclaiming his innocence.
"He wants to help the world. I think that is what he was brought to Earth to do," she said.
Inside the courtroom, lawyers will spar before Judge Rodney Melville over legal attempts by media to unseal critical documents, including the indictment accusing Jackson of abusing a 12-year-old boy last year.
Prosecutors have insisted that the 10-count document, handed down by a grand jury in April, remain secret to protect the witnesses and the integrity of the case, while news media are ravenous for details.
Even members of Jackson's family have called for certain documents -- but not all -- to be made public, believing they could back his case that his accusers are attempting to extort money from him.
Other items at the centre of the secrecy argument include the details of search warrants executed on Neverland and other homes and details of pieces of evidence in the case.
Two fans drove 250 kilometers (170 miles) from Los Angeles, dressed in full Michael Jackson regalia, to scream support for the singer, who has pleaded innocent to the charges.
"We take time to get to know him as a person," said 19-year-old Diana Enola, dressed in Jackson's signature black fedora, dark glasses, military jacket and black trousers -- all topped off with a black umbrella.
"We know him through what he said and through his songs. We know he would never do this," Enola said as she and pal Casey Underwood decried prosecutor Thomas Sneddon as "a very disturbed man."
news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040625/en_afp/us_jackson_040625163709