1994
January : During a TV interview in which she once again accuses Michael, LaToya leaves the studio upset and angry after the journalist claimed she is being told what to say in her earphone by Jack Gordon…
January 5 : Michael gives a moving speech to claim his innocence at the NAACP Image Awards Ceremony at Pasadena Civic Auditorium. He also presents the award for Best Choreographer to Debbie Allen.
January 6 : Michael writes a letter to “Bravo” magazine, thanking them for their love and support during his fight for his innocence.
January 24 : Los Angeles prosecutors announce that they do not have enough evidence to charge Evan Chandler with extorsion…
January 25 : Michael & Chandler’s lawyers reach an agreement to settle the civil case. The Chandlers agree to withdraw their complaint against a confidential financial compensation and the civil trial is cancelled. “The actual amount of the settlement has never been revealed, although speculation has placed the sum around $20 million. One source says Chandler and June Chandler Schwartz received up to $2 million each, while attorney Feldman might have gotten up to 25 percent in contingency fees. The rest of the money is being held in trust for the boy and will be paid out under the supervision of a court-appointed trustee. “Remember, this case was always about money,” Pellicano says, “and Evan Chandler wound up getting what he wanted.” Since Chandler still has custody of his son, sources contend that logically this means the father has access to any money his son gets.
January 27 : Reuters reports that a source said the pictures did not match Jordan’s description of Michael’s penis. Jordan claimed that Jackson was circumcised; however, Jackson’s autopsy report showed that he had not been circumcised. In March 1994, Jackson’s mother, Katherine, was called to testify in front of the LA County Grand Jury. Investigators asked whether her son changed his appearance so that it does not match the accuser’s description.
February 9 : Santa Barbara ‘s District Attorney, Thomas Sneddon Jr & Los Angeles ‘ District Attorney Gill Garcetty both set up a Grand Jury to determine if there is enough evidence to indict Michael and put him through a criminal trial. Miko Brando is among the first to testify.
February 18 : LaToya tapes an interview with Geraldo regarding the Jackson Family Honors. LaToya says that Johnnie Cochran threatened her career and says that Michael settled to silence Jordy. Jackson family friend Florence Anthony defends Michael on the same show.
February 21 : LaToya is a guest on “La Toya Jackson strikes back”, a special episode of Geraldo. She once again accuses Michael : “When he says that he is innocent. I know that he isn’t. I believe something has been going on”.
May 02 : The Santa Barbara County grand jury disbands without indicting Jackson, while a Los Angeles County grand jury continues to investigate the sexual abuse allegations.
June : “In June 1994, still determined to find even one corroborating witness, three prosecutors and two police detectives flew to Australia to again question Wade Robson, the boy who had acknowledged that he’d slept in the same bed with Jackson. Once again, the boy said that nothing bad had happened.)”
August : In what may turn out to be the never-ending case, this past August, both Barry Rothman and Dave Schwartz (two principal players left out of the settlement) filed civil suits against Jackson. Schwartz maintains that the singer broke up his family. Rothman’s lawsuit claims defamation and slander on the part of Jackson, as well as his original defense team — Fields, Pellicano and Weitzman — for the allegations of extortion. “The charge of [extortion],” says Rothman attorney Aitken, “is totally untrue. Mr. Rothman has been held up for public ridicule, was the subject of a criminal investigation and suffered loss of income.” (Presumably, some of Rothman’s lost income is the hefty fee he would have received had he been able to continue as Chandler’s attorney through the settlement phase.
September 22 : Jackson Not Charged but Not Absolved : “Ending months of speculation, prosecutors announced Wednesday that they have closed their child molestation investigation of entertainer Michael Jackson, but said the inquiry uncovered two more possible victims and stressed that authorities are prepared to reopen the case if any of the children decide they are willing to testify. They conceded that the chances of that appear remote, however, and said their efforts to prosecute Jackson ultimately were stymied when the boy who made the initial complaint against the singer decided he did not want to testify. “We have concluded that because the young boy who was the catalyst for this investigation has recently informed us that he does not wish to participate in any criminal proceeding where he is named as a victim, that we must decline prosecution (of) Mr. Jackson,” Gil Garcetti, the Los Angeles County district attorney, said. The announcement Wednesday effectively ended the criminal investigation of the world-renowned entertainer, who weathered a storm of negative publicity and battled drug addiction in the wake of allegations that he sexually molested a 13-year-old boy over a period of several months in 1993. Jackson faced simultaneous criminal investigation and civil action because of those allegations; he settled the civil case for millions of dollars earlier this year but only Wednesday saw the criminal case finally come to a close. In a statement, Jackson said: “I am thankful that the investigation has reached a conclusion. I’ve continually maintained my innocence.” Joining Garcetti at the morning news conference were Santa Barbara Dist. Atty. Thomas Sneddon and Los Angeles Deputy Dist. Atty. Lauren Weiss, the lead prosecutor in the case.
Even as they announced that no charges would be filed, however, prosecutors pointedly declined to clear Jackson of any wrongdoing. They stressed that their decision to end the investigation did not reflect any lack of faith in the credibility of the alleged victims, and they said they could revisit the charging decision anytime during the next five years, when the statute of limitations expires. In addition, they said their investigation–an enormous undertaking that took 13 months, involved two grand juries and relied upon interviews with more than 400 people–had turned up two more children who said Jackson had molested them, but they too were unwilling to take the stand. One of those alleged victims is outside the country and thus outside of court jurisdiction, Sneddon said. In addition, Sneddon said, that child had previously made comments generally denying any wrongdoing by Jackson, which would have complicated a prosecution based on his statements even if he had been willing to testify. The other child said he was molested three times by Jackson and has been in therapy since last fall, Sneddon said. “After conversations with the counselor, conversations with the child and conversations with the child’s attorney, they have expressed their reluctance to go forward and be a participant in a situation where charges were filed and the child was the sole witness against Mr. Jackson,” Sneddon said. “I am honoring that request on the part of that particular child victim.”
Under California law, victims of sexual abuse cannot be jailed for contempt of court for refusing to testify against their alleged attackers. That means that even if prosecutors wanted to proceed without the consent of the alleged victims, they could not force them to testify. Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., one of Jackson’s attorneys, said he was disappointed that prosecutors did not definitively clear his client of all wrongdoing, but added that the action Wednesday effectively ends the case and that Jackson was relieved finally to have the matter behind him. Jackson has always maintained his innocence and has said he was the victim of a failed extortion attempt by the father of the boy who made the initial allegations. “He’s extremely elated,” said Cochran, who spoke to reporters during a break in the O.J. Simpson case, where he also is a lead lawyer. “He’s very, very thankful and grateful that this investigation is over. He wants to get on with his life. He plans to do that.”
October : Michael is on the cover of GQ Magazine : Was Michael Jackson Framed? The Untold Story By Mary A. Fisher : “Neither Michael Jackson nor his current defense attorneys agreed to be interviewed for this article. Had they decided to fight the civil charges and go to trial, what follows might have served as the core of Jackson’s defense — as well as the basis to further the extortion charges against his own accusers, which could well have exonerated the singer.”
Jackson Dynasty 