Paul Sakajian was holding his video camera and jumping up and down. ”Oh my God, he is in that car. Damn that tree,” he said as his view was blocked at the crucial moment.
Shortly before 9am, the defendant in the People of California v Michael Joseph Jackson emerged from a black 4×4 to walk into the courthouse of this California town to face the first day of his trial on charges of child molestation.
Sheltered from the morning sun by a black umbrella and greeted by Thomas Mesereau, his lawyer, Jackson loped into the court wearing a white suit. The crowd of about 150 whooped and cheered as the singer turned to wave and flash a V for victory sign.
Inside the courtroom, Jackson faced the first group of 150 potential jurors. After more than 10 minutes of a process designed to allow the jurors to see the defendant, he turned to face Judge Rodney Melville and jury selection got under way.
Race could be an issue in formation of the jury. Just 3% of the population of Santa Maria is African-American, although the jury is drawn from the wider Santa Barbara county. Jackson’s father has already labelled the trial ”racist”. Just two of the jurors seen in the first session were black. One said: ”I’m a long-distance truck driver. This doesn’t suit me at all.”
The man was told to reappear for the afternoon session.
The second African-American juror was excused. Afterwards he said: ”I’m glad to be out of there. No one’s ever going to convict Michael Jackson. Not here, not anywhere.”
About 750 jurors have been summoned, with the court due to question 150 each day. Observers predict that the trial proper will not start until the end of this month, and expected to last until July.
The supporters outside the court were outnumbered by the media. More than 1 000 journalists have applied for accreditation to cover the trial. Just seven were allowed into the courtroom on Monday.
Behind the chain-link fences erected to keep the crowd at bay, Manish Pandya from Hounslow, West London, said: ”We believe he’s totally innocent so we came here to support him. Some of our friends think we’re totally crazy but they’re very supportive.”
Not everyone was as convinced. ”You want to know what I think, what I really think?” asked Terrie H, selling pictures of Jackson emblazoned with the word innocent for $5 each. ”I think he’s guilty. He’s always with kids. A 46-year-old man? I’m just helping my cousin out selling these. We’ve sold six today. I don’t believe he’s innocent. I just don’t.”
But his fans think differently. ”Michael is 100% innocent,” said Roberta Clarin from California. ”I’m sad. It should never have come to this. This isn’t a man who hurts children. This is a man who is for the children. I don’t think he’s going to get a fair trial.”
That view was echoed by Jackson’s parents, who claimed on TV that their son’s accuser was after his money. Joe Jackson said his son was beloved around the world but had trouble in the United States because of racism. – Guardian Unlimited Â