Reversed Verdict Rekindles Controversy Over Late Michael Jackson's 'Child Sexual Abuse'... "Lawsuit Resumes"

Appellate Court Overturns First Trial Verdict
Jackson's Side Claims "Innocent of the Charges"

There is a possibility that the trial regarding the late "King of Pop" Michael Jackson's child sexual abuse allegations may be resumed.

The King of Pop, the late Michael Jackson.
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

On the 19th (local time), according to major foreign media including the US CNN, the California Second District Court of Appeal announced the day before that a lawsuit, which had been dismissed after claims of sexual abuse by Jackson during childhood, could be reopened.

Previously, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, both currently in their 40s, claimed that they were subjected to continuous sexual abuse by Jackson for several years during their childhood.

Robson stated that he first met Jackson at the age of 5, appeared in three of Jackson's music videos, and was sexually abused by Jackson for seven years. Safechuck said he first met Jackson while filming a Pepsi commercial at age 9 and was sexually abused between the ages of 10 and 14.

Their stories were also made into a documentary by HBO in the US in 2019.

After Jackson's death in 2009, they filed a lawsuit in 2013-2014 against Jackson's foundation subsidiary "MJJ Productions," claiming it was a company created to facilitate Jackson's child sexual abuse. However, in 2020-2021, the California trial court dismissed their lawsuit, explaining that "MJJ Productions and other companies had no legal duty to protect Robson and Safechuck at that time."

However, in an opinion released yesterday, the California Second District Court of Appeal overturned the previous ruling, stating, "A company that enabled child sexual abuse by an employee cannot be exempt from an active duty to protect the child simply because the abuser solely owned the company."

Foreign media reported that due to this appellate court decision, the case will undergo trial again.

Jonathan Steinsapir, the attorney handling Michael Jackson's estate, expressed disappointment with the court's decision, stating, "We are confident that Michael is innocent of these allegations."

Meanwhile, in June 2005, a jury at the Santa Barbara County Superior Court in California acquitted Michael Jackson of all 10 charges brought by the prosecution, including child molestation, unlawful imprisonment, coercion of false testimony, and providing alcohol to a 13-year-old boy, after a 20-month investigation.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.