The prosecution's notion of bringing up past accusations to gain ground is not working. While the tabloids have enjoyed printing every detail of every accusation, money appears to be a huge factor in this case and it's crippled the prosecution's effort to convince the jury that Jackson is a child molester.
The Jackson defense has said that $20 million was paid out to the 1993 accuser to make the case go away because Jackson didn't want his name dragged through the mud back then. He did not admit that he abused the kid; he just wanted the accusations to go away.
Jackson's accuser's mom has a reputation for suing people for everything in sight. The accuser himself has a lengthy juvenile record. So many prosecution witnesses have credibility issues that it's downright shocking that the prosecution put them on the stand, knowing full well that an experienced defense attorney would zero in on those weaknesses. Here's one story. Many have tried to sue Jackson; some succeeded, most failed.
The defense case is about to begin, and a star-studded celebrity circus seems likely. The prosecution will have to attack the credibility of the defense witnesses.
One person could make or break the entire case: former child-star Macaulay Culkin. The prosecution seems unwilling to call Culkin as a witness but the Jackson defense might since two or three prosecution witnesses have testified seeing Jackson abusing Culkin. He has released statements saying that nothing happened. His testimony could turn the tide in either direction.
There's no doubt that Jackson is odd. There's almost universal agreement on that point. Lapses in judgment...definitely. Having someone else's kid sleep in his bed with him was not a brainstorm on Jackson's part. And Jackson himself is his own worst enemy. He will lose the case if he takes the stand. Most of his press conferences on these cases have been unbelievable disasters.
If the prosecution wants to win this case, it needs to stop the parade of unreliable witnesses, and focus on presenting facts in the current case. The strategy of presenting past accusations has distracted attention from the "here and now" and the prosecution must do a better job of communicating what it feels Jackson may have done to the twelve jurors. That's a huge job. And they need to prosecute Jackson in court, not in the media.
The defense has to keep Jackson in his seat and continue doing what it's been doing. They need to settle the Culkin question by getting him on the stand and take him out of the equation. Here's another story.
No matter which way this thing goes, it's doubtful that the truth will emerge from the garbage in this case and real closure will not happen. Celebrity justice is like that. Remember OJ?
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