Court Revives Michael Jackson Sexual Abuse Lawsuits

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Facts

  • On Friday, California's Second District Court of Appeal ruled that lawsuits by Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who allege they were sexually abused as boys by Michael Jackson, can be revived against Jackson-owned corporations.1
  • Robson, now 40, claims the singer molested him from age 7 to 14. Safechuck, now 45, claims Jackson sexually assaulted him from age 10 to 14. Both allege his corporations helped coordinate his visits and ensured Jackson could be alone with the children.2
  • Furthermore, Robson and Safechuck allege Jackson abused them in the late 1980s and early 1990s while staying at his Neverland ranch. However, the singer's lawyers maintain Jackson's innocence, saying the allegations were "contrary to all credible evidence and independent corroboration."3
  • Robson and Safechuck filed their cases against MJJ Productions Inc. and MJJ Ventures Inc. in 2013 and 2014, respectively. However, both cases were dismissed in 2017 as they had exceeded California's statute of limitations.4
  • Following a new state law giving plaintiffs in child sex abuse cases more time to file lawsuits, their cases were reopened in 2020 but were again dismissed when a judge ruled that the corporations "could not be expected to function like the Boy Scouts or a church."5
  • However, California's three-judge panel observed that the lower court shouldn't have dismissed the lawsuits and that the men could pursue their cases as a corporation had a responsibility to protect the children "merely because it's solely owned by the perpetrator of the abuse."6

Sources: 1NBC, 2The Guardian, 3BBC News, 4FOX News, 5ABC News, and 6Billboard.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by Time. As Jackson was the sole owner and only shareholder in the corporations, they had no legal ability to control him or protect the children. Moreover, their parents were neither interested in seeking Jackson's employees to act as monitors or "protect" them from Jackson. The singer, who died in 2009, is being targeted for his name and money by Robson and Safechuck — who have already made millions by detailing false allegations of sexual abuse against an innocent celebrity in the 2019 HBO documentary "Leaving Neverland."
  • Narrative B, as provided by The New York Times. Jackson's employees left both Robson and Safechuck alone in a dangerous situation and the deceased singer's wholly-owned corporations can't be treated differently from Jackson's. His lawyers' attempt to dismiss the lawsuits calling Jackson innocent — when he reached an estimated $20M settlement to drop allegations of sexual abuse by an underage boy in 1994 — will set a dangerous precedent.