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Date 2004/9/22 21:49:43 | Topic: MJ NewsMichael Jackson's lawyers confront his accuser's mother
Fri Sep 17, 2:30 PM ET Add U.S. National - AFP to My Yahoo!
SANTA MARIA, United States (AFP) - Michael Jackson's lawyers sought to portray the mother of the boy who has accused him of child molestation as a liar who has made similar claims against an ex-husband.
Jackson stared grim faced at the 36-year-old woman, named in court documents only as Jane Doe, as his lead attorney Thomas Mesereau launched into a combative exchange with the woman.
Mesereau highlighted contradictions in a sworn statement and documents filed with the court in a bid to portray one of the key prosecution witnesses in the case against Jackson as unreliable.
The lawyer has previously called the woman a liar in court and this time he suggested her motive for accusing the self-styled King of Pop was mercenary.
"She made statements that her children can sue Michael Jackson after they turn 18," Mesereau declared.
"She said she is not after money then she says she is after money.
"She has hired numerous lawyers and used resumes for work that show she is sophisticated in investigation and prosecution and can supervise surveillance."
The court was not told what the woman's job was. But Mesereau said the woman knew how to file lawsuits and had once accused her ex-husband of molesting one of her sons and falsely imprisoning him in Los Angeles.
Jackson faces charges 10 counts including child molestation and false imprisonment.
The woman, who wore a black suit and open neck white blouse, appeared to avoid eye contact with Jackson as he sat at the defence table staring intensely at her while occasionally mopping his brow with a white handkerchief.
The woman crossed herself before taking a seat in the witness box and was quickly involved in court combat with Mesereau, frequently challenging his line of questioning.
"What are you asking?" she challenged, as Mesereau tried to press her about whether she knew private investigator Bradley Miller was working for Jackson's former attorney, Mark Geragos.
Jackson's team claim the woman and California prosecutors knew of the relationship when investigators swooped on Miller's Los Angeles office on November 18 to search for evidence of child abuse.
"He told me he was with Michael Jackson's security team," the woman said.
"It don't matter what the transcript said," she went on, referring to an account of an interview between her and Miller in which he identifieid himself as working for Geragos.
"He said he was Michael's PI (private investigator), or (somebody) said that. I don't remember, I wasn't paying attention."
The woman has two children, including the alleged victim, by her first husband, and has just had a baby with her new husband.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040917/ts_alt_afp/us_jackson_mother_040917183022
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