SANTA MARIA, Calif. (Reuters):
MICHAEL JACKSON was due back in a California courtroom yesterday for a second day of jury selection in his child molestation case, a process that has been complicated by the expected length of the trial and the pop star's fame.
Though Jackson has so far only sat silently at the defense table as Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Rodney Melville questioned prospective jurors, legal experts say the influence of his celebrity has already been felt.
Of the 314 people summoned to Melville's courtroom on Monday, 176 said they were willing to set aside jobs and
amilies to hear a trial that could last six months.
Another 138 people asked to be excused, citing work or school commitments, financial hardship, health problems or other issues.
A grand jury handed down a 10-count indictment against Jackson in April, charging him with lewd acts on a child under the age of 14 and conspiring to commit the crimes of abduction, false imprisonment and extortion.
The indictment stems from accusations made by a recovering cancer patient, now aged 15, seen holding hands with Jackson at his Neverland Valley Ranch in a controversial documentary that aired on ABC and British television in February 2003.
INNOCENT PLEA
Jackson has pleaded innocent to the charges and vowed to be acquitted and vindicated at trial.
Former San Francisco prosecutor Jim Hammer said it was remarkable to find more than half of those called willing to sit on such a long trial.
"It wouldn't have surprised me if (under ordinary circumstances) three-fourths of them had said they didn't want to serve," said Hammer, who is following the trial as a media analyst.
"(The fact that more than 50 per cent have agreed to participate) suggests that people want to be on this jury," he said.
"That's something that both sides will have to look out for - perhaps that one stealth juror who wants to be on the jury with an agenda."
Yesterday Melville planned to call another 300 would-be jurors to his courtroom to question them about their ability to serve on the trial. Those not excused will be given a seven-page questionnaire and told to return on February 7.
Those who return will be grilled by Melville, prosecutors and Jackson's attorneys until 12 jurors and eight alternates are chosen to sit in judgement of the 46-year-old performer.
Finding a panel to hear the case is expected to take up to a month.
