Jackson: First witness called

2005-03-01 22:42

Santa Maria - The journalist whose explosive documentary led to child-molestation charges against Michael Jackson on Tuesday became the first witness to testify at the superstar's trial.

British reporter Martin Bashir's 2003 fly-on-the-wall film Living with Michael Jackson triggered the investigation into the star's relationship with a 13-year-old cancer patient who later accused him of abuse.

Jackson, apparently facing the man blamed by his lawyers for stirring up what they say are false allegations for the first time since his arrest, pointed at Bashir as he entered the courtroom, smiled and mouthed "It's Martin, It's Martin."

After nervous prosecution witness Bashir was sworn in, the film was screened for the jury after a warning by Judge Rodney Melville that only extracts of it would be treated as evidence.

A 'sweet' practice

In the film the 46-year-old "King of Pop" is seen holding hands with his future accuser and admits that he often sleeps in the same bed as children, a practice he described as "sweet".

During the screening, Jackson laughed with his lawyers at some of the footage, notably when he was seen teaching Bashir to do his signature moonwalk.

He also giggled when he heard himself say "scumbag" in reference to the paparazzi photographers who chased his children.

Some of his fans in the public gallery became tearful when Jackson told of childhood beatings by his father.

The superstar's mother, Katherine, was in court in the California town of Santa Maria to see the film, in which the star talked about his sex life and whether or not he had undergone plastic surgery.

Bashir is expected to set the mood for the evidence that prosecutor Tom Sneddon has promised will prove Jackson is a sexual predator who molested the teenager at his Neverland Ranch on two occasions in early 2003.

But Jackson lawyer Thomas Mesereau told the court as he wrapped up his opening remarks that the singer had never abused the boy, held him and his family prisoner or conspired to kidnap them.

No genetic evidence of abuse

"This is going to be a long trial, but when it is over, you are going to find Michael Jackson absolutely not guilty of any of this," he told the panel.

Hitting back at Sneddon's claims that Jackson had masturbated with the boy and showed him pornographic magazines and websites, Mesereau said two massive police searches of Neverland had failed to turn up any genetic evidence of abuse.

"The ... children's DNA was never found in Michael Jackson's bedroom after searching and testing," Mesereau said.

"The DNA isn't there, because the molestation claims are fiction."

- AFP