Man Testifies Jackson Fondled Him as Young Boy

Michael Jackson is wanded by a sheriff's deputy as he arrives at court Monday. (Pool Photo)

SANTA MARIA, Calif., April 4 -- A 24-year-old man told the jury in Michael Jackson's sexual molestation trial Monday that the famous pop star molested him three times under the guise of tickling games. The man is the first of a series of witnesses the prosecution hopes will show that Jackson engaged in a pattern of inappropriate activity with five boys.

"He was tickling me and I was laughing," the man said of the alleged third incident, which he claimed took place when he was 10 at Jackson's Neverland ranch. His mother worked there as a maid, and he said he was in a loft above Jackson's arcade, playing Sega Genesis, when the alleged touching began.

"This is much harder than I thought," the man said, his voice breaking, in a show of emotion that made his testimony powerful. He asked for a break, put a tissue to his nose and eyes, and then resumed.

"He reached on my leg and I'm still laughing and he reached up and to my -- privates," the man said.

Testimony of alleged past abuse could prove pivotal, legal analysts have said. The man's account could cause jurors to conclude Jackson has a pattern of molestation, which might make them more likely to believe he molested the teenage accuser at the center of this trial. Judge Rodney S. Melville ruled last week that under a controversial 1995 state law, he would allow the prosecution to present witnesses concerning Jackson's contacts with five boys, including former child actor Macaulay Culkin, who is not expected to testify and who has denied that anything inappropriate happened with Jackson.

Monday's proceedings were also key because the young man -- a married auto parts salesman who runs a mentoring program for troubled kids and has worked as a youth pastor -- is the only one of the five past alleged victims expected to testify. Many of the people slated to be called to the stand for this "trial within a trial" are their family members and others who claim to have knowledge of the alleged abuse.

Defense attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr. questioned the witness about a 1993 interview he had with two law enforcement officers, in which he initially denied that Jackson had molested him.

"I was scared. . . . I was fighting them with everything I had," the man said. He later added that he "didn't want to be embarrassed at school" and recalled thinking, "No, I'm not gay." Mesereau -- who has attempted to paint the family of the young accuser at the center of the trial as out for money, and may attempt to do the same with the 24-year-old -- also questioned the man about a settlement he reached with Jackson after the alleged incidents. Prosecutors have said the man received $2.4 million. Jackson made a separate settlement, reportedly for $20 million, with a boy who in 1993 claimed that the pop star abused him.

The 24-year-old man, the boy from the '93 case and Jackson's teenage accuser bear a certain resemblance to each other; all are slender and dark-haired with olive skin. But the man's personality on the stand Monday was in contrast to that of the 15-year-old accuser, who last month mumbled and contradicted himself.

The man was chatty and engaging, volunteering with a smile that he was "nervous" while being questioned by a prosecutor.

Asked to identify Jackson, Monday's witness looked toward the defense table and indicated the "light-complected gentleman." He spoke proudly of his mother, having done a "kickin' job" as Jackson's maid.

He spoke of one of the earlier incidents of alleged sexual molestation, which took place at an apartment kept by Jackson in the Los Angeles area, and said it began with the two watching cartoons and "spooning," a cuddling position that he described as "something that you do with your wife."

Eventually, he said, Jackson's hand went to his private parts over his clothes.

How long did Jackson's hand stay there? the prosecutor asked.

"Two cartoons' worth," the man said.

The man said that after the first two incidents, Jackson gave him money -- at least once giving him a $100 bill.

There was tension in the courtroom when Mesereau began cross-examination. On several occasions, when Mesereau attempted to ask the man questions, the witness stated he'd already answered them. Eventually, the judge told him he was obliged to answer Mesereau's questions unless prosecution attorneys objected.

At another point, Jackson fans -- who wore white in solidarity with the pop star and who held a morning vigil outside the courthouse -- laughed at a pointed question Mesereau asked the man. Melville told those in the courtroom if such a reaction happened again, he would kick people out.

During Monday's proceedings, Jackson wore a dark suit and occasionally readjusted a back cushion. He has said he has been having back problems. His parents sat behind him in the gallery.