So, Michael Jackson is
likening his acquittal yesterday the same historical significance as things like the birth of Martin Luther King, Jr. To quote Ace Ventura, "Alriiiiiiiiighty then!"
Far be it from me to argue with the King of Pop, but I have to think that some of these historical events he compares his verdict to are bit more, well, important to the history of the world as a whole. I can fully understand that he must be feeling like he is King of the World at this point, having dodged a bullet with the outcome of this trial. (Not like he'd've gone to jail for a while as we'd be having appeals drag out for years to come.)
But as I think about the Jackson trial and its outcome, some thoughts come to my mind.
- One is that I feel sympathy for the alleged victim in this case. I feel for him in that he got up on the stand and talked about something that might have happened that was deeply shameful and then he was ripped apart in the court and the media for it. I can't say if what the victim alleges did or did not happen and apparnetly there wasn't enough evidence to get a conviction of Jackson, but it took courage for a kid to get up there and re-live this awful incident on the stand in front of the whole world. I also have to wonder if this verdict of "not guilty" will discourage others who might have been abused in a fashion simliar to what the victim alleges fro mcoming forward. They may think--well, I can't handle the scrutiny and it's not like the person who did this to me will be brought to justice.
- I also have to wonder about the prosecution's tactics. I find myself wondering if they should have taken a bit more time to gather all the evidence they could to convict Michael Jackson on these crimes instead of trying to paint him as a serial child molestor with a pattern of such behavoir. I can't help but wonder if they rushed to trial because it was Michael Jackson. Had it been just Herman NoName, would they have taken longer and built a stronger case? Or did they feel that with the intense media scrutiny they had to hurry up and deliver some type of results?
- Every time I hear the jurors talking about how they didn't like the mother of the victim and her comments on the stand, I can't help but wonder--yes, but what did you think about the evidence presented? What happened to the concept of juries deciding cases on the evidence presented and not on how the witnesses presented themselves on the stand? It seems as if there is a lot being made of the mother's attitude and demenor on the stand than in whether or not what she presented as testimony was valid or truthful. Sad to say that in our culture of today, it's not whether or not you say what is the truth, but it's how you say it and present it that seems to get noticed more.
- Watching the coverage of the verdict and seeing all the fans gathered there gave me pause. Now, as some of you know, I am a big fan of William Shatner. I enjoy watching his work as Captain Kirk. (Not a huge T.J. Hooker fan, I will admit). But as much as I like Shatner and his body of work, I can't imagine that if he were on trial for something being blindly loyal to him. Not even to the point of thinking--you know, he might have done so and so. I'd take a chance and weigh the evidence for and against him and make a decision. But it seems as if in this case there was a huge following that was blindly loyal and saw this as a conspiracy to destory Jackson for whatever reason. And then, these people have time off in the middle of the work day to run down and hold up signs in a vigil for Jackson. I just don't quite get being that big a fan of anyone or anything.
- Finally, I hear an interesting point about all this on Steve Gill's show this morning. Michael Jackson is free and can go on a world-wide concert tour to celebrate and make money. The jurors and lawyers involved can write books, be media darlings and make money off the case. We, the tax payers, who funded this circus are left footing the bill for this. And I think I'd be irritated by that fact no matter how the trial turned out.
posted by Michael Hickerson at 6/14/2005 12:42:00 PM |
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