While Michael Jackson should be celebrating his newly released greatest hits album, the pop legend will be preparing to stand before a California jury early next year as he faces multiple charges of child molestation.
Reuters News Service said while Jackson was in Las Vegas filming a music video, California police swarmed his Neverland Ranch Nov. 18 armed with a search warrant. Later that night police searched the entire Jackson estate.
Coincidentally, the search warrant was served on the same day that Jackson’s greatest hits album “Number Ones” hit stores.
Many news agencies reported the following day that California police had issued a warrant for Jackson’s arrest for multiple felony charges of child molestation.
On Nov. 20, Jackson reported to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department where he issued his surrender and posted a $3 million bail.
The uproar was a result of allegations from a 12-year-old child who claimed Jackson sexually molested him at a sleepover at Jackson’s ranch.
It was the second time in 10 years since such allegations had been brought against the 45-year-old entertainer. A similar case was brought against Jackson in 1993 involving a young boy, but criminal charges were dropped because of a multi-million dollar settlement outside of court.
Since then, there has been a media frenzy where news agencies have scrutinized his public and private life.
Earlier this year, Jackson acknowledged in an ABC television documentary that he shared his bed “with many children.” In the program hosted by British journalist Martin Bashir, Jackson openly held hands with a 12-year-old boy who was an overnight guest at the Neverland Ranch.
In the documentary, which originally aired last February, Jackson insisted there was nothing sexual about such sleepovers, which he viewed as an innocent form of affection.
Reuters reported on Nov. 20 that Jackson responded to the recent allegations in a brief statement issued by his spokesperson, saying, “Lies run sprints, but truth runs marathons. The truth will win this marathon in court.”
Mark Geragos, Jackson’s attorney, told reporters Jackson was “greatly outraged by the bringing of these charges” and “considers this to be a big lie.”
He also said Jackson looks forward to getting into a courtroom and confronting the allegations head-on. Jackson will have that chance Jan. 9 when he is arraigned in Santa Barbara County court for the molestation charges.
The recent allegations against the “King of Pop” have left LSU students with mixed reactions. Some were shocked at the news of Jackson’s charges, but some expected such behavior.
Jamila Gray, an ISDS senior, believes fortune is not on Jackson’s side. “People would like to think that he’s not guilty, but he has a lot of things against him,” she said.
Katie Singleton, an elementary education freshman, says that Jackson is a victim of public scrutiny.
“I felt sorry for him whether he did it or not,” Singleton said. “I think it has a lot to do with the way the public antagonizes and makes fun of him.”
For some students, Jackson’s connection to suspicion of possible child molestation is no surprise.
“I think everyone was expecting it of him,” said Michael Russo, an electrical engineering sophomore. “He already admitted to sleeping in the same bed with the kids, just let imagination take it from there.”
Kyle Vanhoven, a kinesiology sophomore, agreed and acknowledged this sort of behavior is not out of the ordinary considering Jackson’s bizarre past.
“I just thought ‘He done did it again,'” Vanhoven said. “He’s always been involved with things like that, he’s just a weird guy.”
Additional reporting by Mark F. Bonner.