The World According to Oatney

Michael Jackson verdict

By now, you'd have to be on another planet not to know the Michael Jackson trial verdict. The self-styled "King of Pop" was found not guilty of charges of child molestation, lewd contact with a minor, and serving alcohol to a minor, among other charges. For the record, I personally believe Jackson is guilty as sin...anyone who sleeps with young boys (usually a different one each night) 365 nights a year has a problem deserving the attention of the justice system.

However, based on all the information I have been able to obtain about this case, I don't know if, when sitting on a jury, I could have justified voting that Jackson was guilty in this case. There were too many holes in the prosecution's case, and frankly, there were just as many defense witnesses who could be seen as reliable that were able to contradict the prosecution's story. Being able to convict a person of a crime means being able to prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt...I don't think this could be done in the case of California v. Jackson, and so even though I believe Jackson is guilty, I doubt I could have voted with good conscience to convict him. Convictions are not merely about what the jury believes, but about what the prosecution can prove. In this sense, "the system" functioned exactly as it was supposed to yesterday.



MJ: Probably guilty, but prosecution made a very poor legal case.

posted by Deacon David Oatney @ 8:56 AM