Arrest warrant issued for Michael Jackson
Posted: Wed Nov 19, 2003 11:25 am
Authorities to Discuss Jackson Ranch Raid
Wednesday, November 19, 2003
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Santa Barbara County law-enforcement authorities were expected to provide more information on the search of pop superstar Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch at a press conference Wednesday.
Jackson's own public-relations machine was still recovering from reports that the search the day before was related to abuse allegations made by a boy.
"The warrant stated that it was in response to a complaint of a male child, 12 years old, who claims that there was sexual molestation that took place at Neverland Ranch (search)," attorney Brian Oxman, who said he had represented the Jackson family for 14 years, told a morning television news show Wednesday.
Court TV reported that an arrest warrant had been issued for Jackson.
The press conference was scheduled to take place at 2 p.m. EST (11 a.m. PST) on Wednesday.
Sixty to 70 personnel from the Santa Barbara County sheriff's and district attorney's offices served a warrant about 8:30 a.m. PST Tuesday as part of an "ongoing criminal investigation," Sgt. Chris Pappas said.
Pappas said no warrant had been issued for Jackson's arrest and no arrests were made during the search, which lasted through the night.
• For more on the possible allegations, see Foxnews.com's 411.
Oxman himself was not representing Michael Jackson, though he said he had spoken with members of Jackson's family.
"It is very upsetting to them," he said on another morning news show Wednesday. "They are just really very shocked by this entire incident and they go, 'Here we go again. Michael is just a sitting target for people to take potshots at him.'"
Jackson's own spokesman, Stuart Backerman, released a statement to the media Tuesday night that read in part, "I've seen lawyers who don't represent me and spokespeople who do not know me speaking for me."
Backerman refused to comment on any allegations and said neither he nor Jackson knew the details of the investigation. He added that the 45-year-old singer and his three young children had spent the last three weeks in Las Vegas for the production of a music video.
Numerous sources told Fox News and other media outlets that the search indeed did stem from a child-molestation allegation.
The search came on the same day Epic Records released "Number Ones," a greatest hits collection featuring Jackson's new single, "One More Chance." On Nov. 26, CBS is scheduled to air a Jackson special consisting mainly of old concert footage.
The $12.3 million Santa Ynez Valley (search) property, which has a mansion, its own zoo and amusement park with bumper cars, a merry-go-round and Ferris wheel, has often been the site of children's parties. Investigators searched only select locations on the property, said sheriff's Cmdr. Bill Byrne.
A source told Michael Bryant, a correspondent for the syndicated "Extra" television show, that the boy said to be behind the alleged accusations recently approached a Los Angeles law firm and claimed inappropriate conduct by the pop superstar.
A rival TV show, "Celebrity Justice," reported that it was the 12-year-old boy's revelations during a therapy session that were behind Tuesday's search warrant, the show's producers said to Foxnews.com.
The boy, who had spent time at Neverland Ranch, entered therapy several months ago and disclosed information the therapist felt compelled to report to authorities, according to "Celebrity Justice" sources.
Under California law, if a health-care practitioner "knows or reasonably suspects" a child to be a victim of abuse, the practitioner must report the abuse to law enforcement authorities "as soon as practically possible."
News of the raid came as a "complete surprise" to Jackson, a source close to the pop star told Foxnews.com's Roger Friedman.
After word of the search spread, a motley array of Jackson supporters hastily arranged a press conference in Las Vegas Tuesday afternoon.
One woman, Donna Green, said she was a big Jackson fan who had gotten the chance to meet and speak with the singer several times over the years. She was simply there to show her support, she said, and wore a button calling for an end to the "child-abuse circus."
"We love him very much," she said. "He's the nicest man I've ever met. He's not this weird person they make him out to be." She said the timing of the raid struck her as "convenient" since it coincides with the release of his latest album, "Number Ones."
If the reports of child-molestation allegations are true, it would be the second time the pop singer has faced such an accusation. In 1994, he reportedly paid about $20 million to a 14-year-old boy to settle a case in which criminal charges were never filed.
In the criminal complaint filed in that case, the boy claimed Jackson kissed and molested him on several occasions while the two were in bed together and said he once took a bath with the pop singer. He said the situation got "out of hand."
Jackson's had international hits with the albums "Thriller" (1982), "Bad" (1987) and "Dangerous" (1991) saw his career begin to collapse after the 1993 allegations.
The pop singer's sometime spiritual advisor, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach (search), told Fox News he had tried to counsel him about being more responsible.
"I have sent him many messages," the rabbi said on Fox News. "We're not just talking about the fall of a business. We're talking about the fall of a human being."
Added Boteach: "He's not a child, he's an adult, and he has to accept" the consequences of his actions.
Uri Geller (search), a controversial self-styled psychic and paranormalist who said he was a longtime friend of Jackson's, told Fox News that if the allegations were of a sexual nature, he would not be able to believe they were true.
"I'm a father myself and I would never associate myself with anyone who would do anything with a child," said Geller, describing Jackson as "gullible, innocent, maybe a little confused ... but I would never believe he would sexually abuse a child."
Last year there was a public outcry after Jackson, a former child star, stunned fans by dangling his baby, whom he reportedly calls "Blanket," from a hotel window in Germany. The child's face was covered with a towel.
Jackson called the incident a "terrible mistake," and Berlin authorities said the actions were not punishable.
Not much is known about Prince Michael II, whose mother has not been identified. The singer's 6-year-old son, Prince Michael I, and 5-year-old daughter, Paris, were born during his marriage to Debbie Rowe, his plastic surgeon's nurse, which ended in 1999.
He was also married to Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis Presley's daughter, between 1994 and 1996.
Jackson routinely keeps the children's heads covered with cloth while escorting them in public — and he usually sports a surgical mask himself when out and about. He has said he wants to protect them from the public eye.
As of December 2002, when Jackson interacted with young fans outside a lawsuit hearing in Santa Maria, Calif., he was still inviting children to his home for parties.
Jackson is also connected to Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano (search), who began serving federal prison time Monday for possessing illegal explosives. Pellicano is being investigated about whether he secretly taped conversations of celebrities and their lawyers, but has refused to name his clients.
Pellicano, 59, worked for Jackson as a spokesman and security consultant during the abuse investigation.
The "King of Pop" amassed a half-billion-dollar fortune over the past 20 years, but his former financial advisers have said, in a lawsuit last spring, that he is saddled with debt and teetering near bankruptcy. Current financial advisers have denied that claim.
Jackson has appeared weak and ghostly pale at many of his recent public appearances, and his own attorneys have said has been involved in nearly 1,000 lawsuits.
In June, he suffered a suspected anxiety attack during a visit to Indianapolis to deliver a deposition in a lawsuit and his doctor said the singer was weak, dizzy and dehydrated.
In a separate Santa Maria lawsuit hearing earlier this year, the singer hobbled into court on crutches with his left foot wrapped in bandages because of swelling from what he described as a spider bite and delayed testimony because he said he was too ill to appear in court.
When he did finally testify, he giggled during questioning and made comical faces at people in the courtroom.
In a television documentary broadcast earlier this year, Jackson said he had slept in a bed with many children. "When you say bed, you're thinking sexual," the singer said during the interview. "It's not sexual — we're going to sleep. I tuck them in. ... It's very charming, it's very sweet."
Fox News' Marla Lehner, Catherine Donaldson-Evans, Trace Gallagher, Jennifer D'Angelo, Paul Wagenseil and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Wednesday, November 19, 2003
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Santa Barbara County law-enforcement authorities were expected to provide more information on the search of pop superstar Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch at a press conference Wednesday.
Jackson's own public-relations machine was still recovering from reports that the search the day before was related to abuse allegations made by a boy.
"The warrant stated that it was in response to a complaint of a male child, 12 years old, who claims that there was sexual molestation that took place at Neverland Ranch (search)," attorney Brian Oxman, who said he had represented the Jackson family for 14 years, told a morning television news show Wednesday.
Court TV reported that an arrest warrant had been issued for Jackson.
The press conference was scheduled to take place at 2 p.m. EST (11 a.m. PST) on Wednesday.
Sixty to 70 personnel from the Santa Barbara County sheriff's and district attorney's offices served a warrant about 8:30 a.m. PST Tuesday as part of an "ongoing criminal investigation," Sgt. Chris Pappas said.
Pappas said no warrant had been issued for Jackson's arrest and no arrests were made during the search, which lasted through the night.
• For more on the possible allegations, see Foxnews.com's 411.
Oxman himself was not representing Michael Jackson, though he said he had spoken with members of Jackson's family.
"It is very upsetting to them," he said on another morning news show Wednesday. "They are just really very shocked by this entire incident and they go, 'Here we go again. Michael is just a sitting target for people to take potshots at him.'"
Jackson's own spokesman, Stuart Backerman, released a statement to the media Tuesday night that read in part, "I've seen lawyers who don't represent me and spokespeople who do not know me speaking for me."
Backerman refused to comment on any allegations and said neither he nor Jackson knew the details of the investigation. He added that the 45-year-old singer and his three young children had spent the last three weeks in Las Vegas for the production of a music video.
Numerous sources told Fox News and other media outlets that the search indeed did stem from a child-molestation allegation.
The search came on the same day Epic Records released "Number Ones," a greatest hits collection featuring Jackson's new single, "One More Chance." On Nov. 26, CBS is scheduled to air a Jackson special consisting mainly of old concert footage.
The $12.3 million Santa Ynez Valley (search) property, which has a mansion, its own zoo and amusement park with bumper cars, a merry-go-round and Ferris wheel, has often been the site of children's parties. Investigators searched only select locations on the property, said sheriff's Cmdr. Bill Byrne.
A source told Michael Bryant, a correspondent for the syndicated "Extra" television show, that the boy said to be behind the alleged accusations recently approached a Los Angeles law firm and claimed inappropriate conduct by the pop superstar.
A rival TV show, "Celebrity Justice," reported that it was the 12-year-old boy's revelations during a therapy session that were behind Tuesday's search warrant, the show's producers said to Foxnews.com.
The boy, who had spent time at Neverland Ranch, entered therapy several months ago and disclosed information the therapist felt compelled to report to authorities, according to "Celebrity Justice" sources.
Under California law, if a health-care practitioner "knows or reasonably suspects" a child to be a victim of abuse, the practitioner must report the abuse to law enforcement authorities "as soon as practically possible."
News of the raid came as a "complete surprise" to Jackson, a source close to the pop star told Foxnews.com's Roger Friedman.
After word of the search spread, a motley array of Jackson supporters hastily arranged a press conference in Las Vegas Tuesday afternoon.
One woman, Donna Green, said she was a big Jackson fan who had gotten the chance to meet and speak with the singer several times over the years. She was simply there to show her support, she said, and wore a button calling for an end to the "child-abuse circus."
"We love him very much," she said. "He's the nicest man I've ever met. He's not this weird person they make him out to be." She said the timing of the raid struck her as "convenient" since it coincides with the release of his latest album, "Number Ones."
If the reports of child-molestation allegations are true, it would be the second time the pop singer has faced such an accusation. In 1994, he reportedly paid about $20 million to a 14-year-old boy to settle a case in which criminal charges were never filed.
In the criminal complaint filed in that case, the boy claimed Jackson kissed and molested him on several occasions while the two were in bed together and said he once took a bath with the pop singer. He said the situation got "out of hand."
Jackson's had international hits with the albums "Thriller" (1982), "Bad" (1987) and "Dangerous" (1991) saw his career begin to collapse after the 1993 allegations.
The pop singer's sometime spiritual advisor, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach (search), told Fox News he had tried to counsel him about being more responsible.
"I have sent him many messages," the rabbi said on Fox News. "We're not just talking about the fall of a business. We're talking about the fall of a human being."
Added Boteach: "He's not a child, he's an adult, and he has to accept" the consequences of his actions.
Uri Geller (search), a controversial self-styled psychic and paranormalist who said he was a longtime friend of Jackson's, told Fox News that if the allegations were of a sexual nature, he would not be able to believe they were true.
"I'm a father myself and I would never associate myself with anyone who would do anything with a child," said Geller, describing Jackson as "gullible, innocent, maybe a little confused ... but I would never believe he would sexually abuse a child."
Last year there was a public outcry after Jackson, a former child star, stunned fans by dangling his baby, whom he reportedly calls "Blanket," from a hotel window in Germany. The child's face was covered with a towel.
Jackson called the incident a "terrible mistake," and Berlin authorities said the actions were not punishable.
Not much is known about Prince Michael II, whose mother has not been identified. The singer's 6-year-old son, Prince Michael I, and 5-year-old daughter, Paris, were born during his marriage to Debbie Rowe, his plastic surgeon's nurse, which ended in 1999.
He was also married to Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis Presley's daughter, between 1994 and 1996.
Jackson routinely keeps the children's heads covered with cloth while escorting them in public — and he usually sports a surgical mask himself when out and about. He has said he wants to protect them from the public eye.
As of December 2002, when Jackson interacted with young fans outside a lawsuit hearing in Santa Maria, Calif., he was still inviting children to his home for parties.
Jackson is also connected to Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano (search), who began serving federal prison time Monday for possessing illegal explosives. Pellicano is being investigated about whether he secretly taped conversations of celebrities and their lawyers, but has refused to name his clients.
Pellicano, 59, worked for Jackson as a spokesman and security consultant during the abuse investigation.
The "King of Pop" amassed a half-billion-dollar fortune over the past 20 years, but his former financial advisers have said, in a lawsuit last spring, that he is saddled with debt and teetering near bankruptcy. Current financial advisers have denied that claim.
Jackson has appeared weak and ghostly pale at many of his recent public appearances, and his own attorneys have said has been involved in nearly 1,000 lawsuits.
In June, he suffered a suspected anxiety attack during a visit to Indianapolis to deliver a deposition in a lawsuit and his doctor said the singer was weak, dizzy and dehydrated.
In a separate Santa Maria lawsuit hearing earlier this year, the singer hobbled into court on crutches with his left foot wrapped in bandages because of swelling from what he described as a spider bite and delayed testimony because he said he was too ill to appear in court.
When he did finally testify, he giggled during questioning and made comical faces at people in the courtroom.
In a television documentary broadcast earlier this year, Jackson said he had slept in a bed with many children. "When you say bed, you're thinking sexual," the singer said during the interview. "It's not sexual — we're going to sleep. I tuck them in. ... It's very charming, it's very sweet."
Fox News' Marla Lehner, Catherine Donaldson-Evans, Trace Gallagher, Jennifer D'Angelo, Paul Wagenseil and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Search sources include Google, Ask Jeeves, WebCrawler
Advertise on FOXNews.com
Jobs at FOX News Channel. Internships at FOX News Channel.
Terms of use. Privacy Statement. For FOXNews.com comments write to
foxnewsonline@foxnews.com; For FOX News Channel comments write to
comments@foxnews.com
© Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2003 ComStock, Inc.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Copyright 2003 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved.
All market data delayed 20 minutes.
I am not a parent but that just pissed me off 