Michael Jackson: Was he Innocent?

[Anonymous]

No.

I was inclined to believe that he might be, until I saw the documentary with two of the accusers giving their stories. I believed them. I'm a trial attorney, so I consider myself to be above par at sussing out lies, especially of this type. And like I said, I believed them. But with that said, none of us will ever know for sure.

[Anonymous]

My feeling is that he was inappropriate, but not grossly so. Laying in bed with kids? Totally inappropriate but he was severely emotionally stunted. Not ok, but also not criminal.

Did he molest and rape kids? I don't think so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

Pedophiles are often aware enough to not target kids with enough of a support system that they'd be easily caught.

What support system did Mac have? Dude had to emancipate himself from his parents!

He was famous, so he had handlers and agents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know. I was a kid when the trial in the early 2000s went down and my dad said the same thing, but my dad is a typical boomer male and said similarly about Woody Allen. I only remember this instance bc we were having dinner at my grandparents' house and they were convinced he did it and were absolutely gobsmacked my dad didn't agree with them.

I said in the other thread, MJ is a little before my time. When did he get weird? There are a lot of old interviews with him resurfacing bc of the movie and he seems normal through most of the 80s and then by the clips from the early 90s he's positively freakish. When did he start talking in that creepy little boy voice and decide that it was normal for little kids to be his best friends.

OMG. Sigh. Yeah, Woody Allen = a problem, lol.

Child of the 80s here. He always had a weird voice, and the addiction to plastic surgery probably began with a nose job in 1979. So it was always there. I would say he was looking and behaving bizarrely enough for his bizarreness to become a topic of conversation by the late 80s, and reached it's zenith when he dangled his infant son over a hotel balcony in 2002 scaring the hell out of everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No.

I was inclined to believe that he might be, until I saw the documentary with two of the accusers giving their stories. I believed them. I'm a trial attorney, so I consider myself to be above par at sussing out lies, especially of this type. And like I said, I believed them. But with that said, none of us will ever know for sure.

But why did they lie for him during his trial?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

Well, and it doesn't even really "say" that. It just means Macauley says he didn't. You say he "DGAF and would have no reason to lie" but you don't know that. People protect their abusers for all kinds of reasons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No.

I was inclined to believe that he might be, until I saw the documentary with two of the accusers giving their stories. I believed them. I'm a trial attorney, so I consider myself to be above par at sussing out lies, especially of this type. And like I said, I believed them. But with that said, none of us will ever know for sure.

But why did they lie for him during his trial?

They discussed that. Both because they were afraid to tell the truth and because they felt a complex love and loyalty to MJ. Not at all strange for the abused to defend their abuser and lie to protect them. Happens pretty much every day, unfortunately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

Well, and it doesn't even really "say" that. It just means Macauley says he didn't. You say he "DGAF and would have no reason to lie" but you don't know that. People protect their abusers for all kinds of reasons.

I don’t think he abused McCauley but I think that’s bc any predator with two brain cells to rub together knows not to touch the biggest child star of the time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know. I was a kid when the trial in the early 2000s went down and my dad said the same thing, but my dad is a typical boomer male and said similarly about Woody Allen. I only remember this instance bc we were having dinner at my grandparents' house and they were convinced he did it and were absolutely gobsmacked my dad didn't agree with them.

I said in the other thread, MJ is a little before my time. When did he get weird? There are a lot of old interviews with him resurfacing bc of the movie and he seems normal through most of the 80s and then by the clips from the early 90s he's positively freakish. When did he start talking in that creepy little boy voice and decide that it was normal for little kids to be his best friends.

OMG. Sigh. Yeah, Woody Allen = a problem, lol.

Child of the 80s here. He always had a weird voice, and the addiction to plastic surgery probably began with a nose job in 1979. So it was always there. I would say he was looking and behaving bizarrely enough for his bizarreness to become a topic of conversation by the late 80s, and reached it's zenith when he dangled his infant son over a hotel balcony in 2002 scaring the hell out of everyone.

Interesting. Yeah, in some of the 80s clips he has a softer voice but then ten years later it divulges into something outright creepy. I vaguely remember the incident with Blanket. I do remember watching the documentary where he went antiquing with my dad (I was up past my bedtime and went to go hang out with him in our living room) and I remember saying “This guy creeps me out” and my dad was like yeah, he’s a freak. I guess he wasn’t enough of a freak to my dad to convince him of guilt.

Funny story I also thought Michael was white for a very long time. He was an answer to a black history month trivia question at school. We had just moved to a new state and I remember saying “Mom, these people are so weird, they think Michael Jackson is Black!” She was like well…. In my defense, his skin was completely white by the time I was old enough to recognize celebrities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Haven't any of you seen Neverland and then Oprah's interviews following up on that movie? You cannot watch that and have any doubt he was guilty.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't any of you seen Neverland and then Oprah's interviews following up on that movie? You cannot watch that and have any doubt he was guilty.

This.

Unfortunately, Americans and Canadians cannot watch Neverland since the family blocked HBO from showing it there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

He also had a very close friendship w/eightie’s icon Corey Feldman who also says Michael never abused him.

Perhaps Michael only abused boys that were not so famous……?

The current men that are trying to sue Michael’s estate come off to me as money-hungry snakes.

Just a weird vibe I get…….

Just because he had platonic friendships with Culkin and Feldman does not mean he was not predatory. Of course he wouldn't act on his impulses with those two - they were famous, had people protecting them and lent him a veneer of legitimacy.
It is the starstruck boys and their families who did not have media power behind them that were vulnerable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

Well, and it doesn't even really "say" that. It just means Macauley says he didn't. You say he "DGAF and would have no reason to lie" but you don't know that. People protect their abusers for all kinds of reasons.

I obviously didn’t say that and was responding to the pp who did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

Pedophiles are often aware enough to not target kids with enough of a support system that they'd be easily caught.

What support system did Mac have? Dude had to emancipate himself from his parents!

He had easy access to other kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people I know seem utterly convinced of his guilt but I have to say I’m persuaded otherwise by Macauley Culkin’s defense of him. Macauley DGAF and would have no reason to lie.

All that says is that he didn't abuse Macauley. Doesn't mean it didn't happen to someone else. He can only speak to his experience. I found the accusers believable.

+1 It’s very believable that he wouldn’t molest Culkin, who was famous, but he would molest other kids.