By Lisa Sweetingham Court TV
SANTA MARIA, Calif. Michael Jackson's 12-year-old cousin testified Wednesday that he once saw Jackson's accuser and the boy's brother watching porn and masturbating in a guest suite at Neverland. "I saw them go to the TV and turn to a channel that had, like, naked girls on there, and doing other stuff, like nasty stuff," said Rijo Jackson, who was 10 years old at the time and had been sharing the room with Jackson's 13-year-old accuser and the boy's 11-year-old brother. "What nasty stuff?" defense attorney Thomas Mesereau asked Rijo. "They were, like, jacking off and everything," the witness said in a small, husky voice.
"OK. Did they do that in front of you?" Rijo nodded yes. "Was Michael Jackson anywhere near that room?" Mesereau continued. "No." Rijo said he ran out of the bedroom and spent the night in Jackson's bed. He was too scared, he said, to tell Jackson about the boys masturbating, but he did reveal that they were watching porn. "He didn't believe it. He thought they were good and they wouldn't do it," Rijo said of Jackson. "Did [the brothers] say anything to you when they did the nasty stuff?" Mesereau asked. "The other day they did. They said, 'Why don't you do that with me?'" Rijo testified. "I said I didn't want to because it was nasty, and it's wrong." The defense called the boy to the stand in an attempt to impeach the character and testimony of Jackson's now-15-year-old accuser, who told jurors that Jackson got him drunk, showed him pornography and then taught him how to masturbate by fondling him over several nights in February or March 2003. Jackson claims he is innocent of the 10 counts in the indictment, which alleges the singer conspired to falsely imprison the child and his family, gave the boy alcohol to weaken his defenses, and repeatedly committed lewd acts on the boy. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. Missing wine Jackson's cousin also told jurors Wednesday that he saw the brothers stealing money and plastic crystal beads from the desk of the ranch manager, as well as cash in kitchen drawers, which belonged to a Neverland chef. Jackson's accuser, a cancer survivor with one kidney, has testified that he had only tasted wine during church services before the singer gave it to him night after night at Neverland. Several witnesses have testified about seeing the accuser and his brother getting into Jackson's wine, stealing it from the kitchen and secret wine cellar. Rijo added his own vague tale Monday, only partially lending support to the defense. Late one evening at Neverland, Rijo said, he and the brothers were with Jackson in his two-floor bedroom suite when the singer ordered up a bottle of white wine from the kitchen. Minutes later, a corked bottle of wine and one glass was delivered, but Jackson was in his first-floor bathroom. The brothers brought the bottle to the second floor of the suite, Rijo said. When Jackson emerged from the bathroom and went upstairs with him, Rijo testified, they found the bottle uncorked. "Some wine was missing," the witness said, implying that the two boys had opened it and taken sips before leaving. The prosecution effectively pointed out, however, that Jackson was openly drinking while alone with children, and that the singer did not seem upset, nor did he question the missing alcohol. "And did he say something to you about, 'Boy, those rascals, they just get into the wine whenever they can'?" asked prosecutor Ronald Zonen. "No," Rijo said. 'I didn't trust her' Ten days into the defense case, Jackson's lawyers have attempted to portray the King of Pop as the real victim in his child-molestation trial — taken advantage of by his aides and alleged co-conspirators, and targeted by a litigious family who had their sights set on his millions. Actress Verneé Watson Johnson testified Wednesday that her suspicions about the accuser's mother led her to suspend fundraising efforts for the boy's cancer recovery. Johnson said that the children were in her acting class at the Los Angeles Academy of Fine Arts in 1997. Many years later, when the accuser was in the hospital suffering from a rare form of virulent cancer, the mother called the academy to ask Johnson to visit him. Johnson said she made trips to see the boy, brought the family food and gave them money. But when she asked the mother to open a separate account for the child for a proposed fundraiser, the mother allegedly told Johnson, "Don't worry about it. You can put it in my account." "I didn't trust her," Johnson said, and she put the kibosh on any fundraising plans. The mother has testified that she never had discussions about raising money for her son, whose medical bills were covered by insurance. While she did not directly ask for money, the mother engaged in "heavy hinting" about her dire circumstances, according to Johnson. The witness also recalled the accuser's brother calling her at home, asking if his siblings could spend the night at her home, while the mother prompted him in the background about what to say, prodding the brother to "Tell her you love her, tell her you love her." After court Wednesday, Jackson's spokesperson Ryamone Bain said that media reports that the defense could rest as early as next Wednesday were "laughable." She confirmed, however, that the defense has pared down its witness list, but would not say how much longer the case would last. Bain confirmed that Chris Tucker and his ex-fiancee, Azja Pryor, who spent a great deal of time with the accuser's family, would testify for Jackson. |