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THE JACKSON TRIAL: Culkin expected on stand today
Conspiracy claim contradicted by ranch manager
By DAWN HOBBS
NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
"Home Alone" star Macaulay Culkin is expected to take the stand today to rebut prosecution testimony that Michael Jackson molested him as a child in the early 1990s.
Mr. Culkin, 24, who is godfather to Mr. Jackson's first child, has been close friends with the entertainer for years and frequently visited him at his Los Olivos ranch.
A former chef from Neverland Valley Ranch recently testified that he was delivering french fries to Mr. Jackson when he saw the entertainer holding the child actor so he could reach the controls of a video game.
Phillip LeMarque said he nearly dropped the french fries when he saw Mr. Jackson's hand up the boy's shorts.
During a 1993 investigation, former Neverland employees identified at least five boys -- including Mr. Culkin -- who spent the night in Mr. Jackson's bedroom, according to depositions obtained by the News-Press. Those employees recently testified for the prosecution that they witnessed alleged incidents of molestation. Three of the boys, Mr. Culkin, Brett Barnes and Wade Robson, said then that Mr. Jackson did not molest them.
The "Home Alone" star's testimony comes in the fifth day of the defense case in the 11th week of the trial. Mr. Robson, 22, and Mr. Barnes, 23, who took the stand last week, each acknowledged they shared a bed with the entertainer numerous times but insisted no wrongdoing occurred.
When a defense investigator spoke with Mr. Culkin earlier this year, he indicated he would be willing to testify on behalf of Mr. Jackson, the News-Press reported in January.
Prosecutors used witnesses from the earlier investigation to attempt to show that Mr. Jackson has a pattern of molesting adolescent boys. Their intent was to lend weight to the testimony of the current accuser, who alleges Mr. Jackson molested him in spring 2003.
Mr. Jackson has pleaded not guilty to child molestation, administering alcohol to a minor to commit a felony and conspiracy.
The earlier investigation ended when that accuser's family accepted a multimillion-dollar civil settlement from Mr. Jackson. The defense contends the former employees who testified for the prosecution have an ax to grind because they lost a wrongful termination civil suit against Mr. Jackson and were ordered to pay him $1.5 million.
Ranch manager Joe Marcus continued his testimony on Tuesday. Under cross-examination by Senior Deputy District Attorney Gordon Auchincloss, Mr. Marcus admitted he lied to law enforcement authorities during the Nov. 18, 2003, raid on Neverland when he told them he did not know anything about children sleeping in the entertainer's room.
However, when questioned by defense co-counsel Robert Sanger, Mr. Marcus said he was nervous and distracted that day by the dozens of law enforcement officers who had descended on the ranch.
Mr. Marcus also rebutted a key portion of the prosecution's conspiracy theory. The prosecution contended Mr. Jackson directed Mr. Marcus to keep the boy and his brother on the ranch against their will until the family agreed to participate in a video.
But the longtime Jackson employee testified he is the one who instructed security guards on Feb. 19, 2003, not to let the accuser and his brother off the property.
Mr. Marcus said he knew they were scheduled to be filmed for a rebuttal designed to combat the public relations crisis that a controversial British documentary had created. Mr. Marcus said the boys had also been caught joy riding in ranch vehicles, and he did not want them to drive off the property.
Dawn Hobbs is also a news analyst for NBC and MSNBC. You may e-mail her at dhobbs@newspress.com.
CASE FILE
MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS: Joe Marcus, manager of Neverland Valley Ranch, tells jurors he was the one who ordered ranch employees in early 2003 not to let the boy who later accused Michael Jackson of molestation leave the ranch.
WHAT'S NEXT: Actor Macaulay Culkin is expected to testify as a defense witness today. He is expected to say Mr. Jackson never molested him.
QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I'm drawing a blank on a few of the names." -- Mr. Marcus, when pressed for the names of Mr. Jackson's female friends
-- STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
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