It’s too late to keep the Michael Jackson case from becoming a media circus, but the size and scale of the circus could depend on the outcomes of two separate court filings Thursday.
Prosecutors in the Jackson case are calling for a gag order that would prohibit virtually everyone connected to the case from talking to the media. The gag order would be similar to one in effect at the Scott Peterson murder trial. Jackson attorney Mark Geragos, who is also defending Peterson, said he would file an answer opposing it by next week.
Meanwhile, six news organizations asked Superior Court Judge Clifford Anderson to unseal records related to the search of Jackson’s Neverland Ranch. The documents include the search warrant, an affidavit in which authorities explained their reasons for seeking the warrant, and a list of items seized. The records were initially sealed for 45 days on Nov. 17, the day before authorities searched the estate for evidence involving the boy Jackson is accused of molesting. Jackson has denied the allegations.
The records were to become public Dec. 31, but Santa Barbara County District Atty. Thomas Sneddon and Geragos requested before then that they remain sealed.
In other Jackson news, people.com reported that the pop star has moved out of Neverland and into a rented Beverly Hills mansion. According to the report, the mansion is valued at $20 million and was rented for Jackson by Leonard Muhammad, chief of staff for Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.
Representatives for Jackson and the Nation of Islam have denied published reports that Muhammad is handling Jackson’s affairs in the wake of the child molestation charges.
