Jury in Jackson case a diverse group

Mon., June 6, 2005

Tim Molloy Associated Press

Star taken to hospital

SOLVANG, Calif. – Michael Jackson was taken to an emergency room Sunday for treatment of a back problem that has plagued him throughout his molestation trial.

Jackson, accompanied by a bodyguard, arrived at Santa Ynez Valley Cottage Hospital about five miles from his Neverland ranch at about 2:30 p.m., spokeswoman Raymone K. Bain said.

Jackson left the hospital shortly after 8 p.m. His aides erected white scaffolding outside the emergency room entrance to block the view of photographers gathered outside.

Bain said stress contributed to the entertainer's back problem.

It was unclear late Sunday if Jackson was admitted to the hospital.

Jackson's health has been an issue throughout the trial. The 46-year-old pop star appeared gaunt in recent days. Officials at the hospital disclosed that he'd visited the emergency room overnight Thursday.

Before last week, Jackson's case was interrupted twice by hospital visits, once for treatment of flu symptoms. He first reported a back problem in early March, when he went to an emergency room on one of the days his accuser took the stand.

Associated Press

SANTA MARIA, Calif. – The jurors deciding Michael Jackson’s fate include eight parents, a man who visited the singer’s Neverland ranch, and a woman whose grandson has been convicted of a sex crime.

The panel, whittled down from a pool of 250 prospective jurors, has a retired computer programmer, a horse trainer and a student. Six said they are fans of Jackson’s music. The man who said he has been to Jackson’s ranch is a 21-year-old who uses a wheelchair and visited with a cerebral palsy group.

The eight men and four women now sit in judgment of a man who could hardly be less like them – a world-traveling entertainer for most of his life who lives on a sprawling estate that has its own amusement park.

For three months, the jurors listened silently to testimony and were barred from discussing the case until they received it Friday. Their deliberations resume today. When attorneys on both sides interviewed prospective panelists in February, they listened for anything that might hint at what possible jurors might ultimately decide about Jackson. The 46-year-old singer is charged with molesting a 13-year-old boy in February or March 2003. Jackson is also accused of plying him with wine and conspiring to hold his family captive.

During jury selection, prosecutors sought parents, especially those with young children. Legal analysts say such parents are particularly offended by allegations of child molestation.

Defense attorneys asked potential panelists about their interest in the arts, trying to find people who might have grown up with Jackson’s music and be able to relate to him.

All the jurors have now seen Jackson’s property via videotape and been shown detailed layouts of his bedroom, where the molestations are alleged to have occurred.

They all have at least one thing in common. During the selection process, they said they would be willing to look at graphic sexual material. It turned out the lawyers were referring to dozens of adult magazines seized from Jackson’s home.

The jurors range in age from 20 to 79. The oldest is a woman whose grandson is a sex offender.

Jury in Jackson case a diverse group

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