New molestation charges against Michael Jackson

[Whitneyskates]

http://www.tmz.com/2013/05/07/michae...robson-estate/
Choreographer Wade Robson has filed molestation charges against MJ's estate. If you followed his last trial, you'll remember that Robson actually testified on behalf of Michael.

[GarrAarghHrumph]

Oh, wow. Wade has defended Michael for years. I wonder what changed for him?

[taf2002]

Ugh - this gives me a bad taste. This guy had plenty of opportunity to make his claim while Michael was alive. If he's telling the truth now then he must have been lying before. The question would be why would he lie? Was he getting paid to lie and now that the money is no longer forthcoming he's trying for a new payday? Michael has been dead for a couple of years so what took him so long?

I have never been sure if all the allegations against MJ were true or if some of it was just people jumping on the gravy train. This seems like the latter.

[agalisgv]

I wonder what changed for him?

Late mortgage payment?

[GarrAarghHrumph]

It could be money, yes. But the TMZ article (TMZ is, of course, not a reputable news source) says that Wade has been working with a psychologist, so I wonder if maybe something else is going on here.

[Simone411]

It could be a number of things. Perhaps he's in debt up to his ears. The article doesn't state how long Wade had been seeing a psychologist or when he had seen a psychologist.

[BigB08822]

I think TMZ is quite reputable. It looks and acts like a tabloid but they are usually spot on. Besides, they are reporting on the accusations and are not responsible for the accusations being true or not.

[FunnyBut]

It says in the article that Michael's maid had testified seeing Wade in the shower with Michael in 2005. I would think that and the recent psychiatrist session revelations will both be used in the case.

[Whitneyskates]

During the 2005 trial, he testified that nothing ever happened between him and Michael; could he face perjury charges now that he's basically admitting that he lied?

[Jenny]

I think TMZ is quite reputable. It looks and acts like a tabloid but they are usually spot on. Besides, they are reporting on the accusations and are not responsible for the accusations being true or not.

Agree - they may have started out as just another gossip site, and they still look and write like a tabloid as you noted, but they also have a good network of sources, often being the first with news or new details, and often the first with the facts - actual footage, court documents etc.

I don't visit the site often (too much crap about misbehaving rappers and teen moms to scroll through!), but if there's breaking celebrity news that interests me, it's the first place I look.

[zaphyre14]

What would be the point of such an accusation, besides money? It's not like Jackson can defend himself from the grave.

[made_in_canada]

What would be the point of such an accusation, besides money? It's not like Jackson can defend himself from the grave.

Maybe just a need to get the truth out there?

[Kasey]

Just to be devil's advocate, there are also cases of suppressed memories of traumatic childhood events, including sexual abuse, not coming back for many years. I believe it's not as common as people thought it was 20 years ago when sudden remembering of the past created some witch hunts....but it does legitimately happen at times.

[genevieve]

Wow...Wade Robson is not just some random anonymous person, he's got more to lose than to gain by doing this now. Money makes people do odd things, but I can't imagine that he'd want to put his reputation through the mill just to make a buck.

I am not opening the TMZ link - I agree their news is often reputable, but I've gotten a computer virus from their site. Does anyone who's read it know if Robson is specifying monetary damages in the claim?

Honestly, I'm only surprised this suit didn't come from Macaulay Culkin.

[Vash01]

Oh, wow. Wade has defended Michael for years. I wonder what changed for him?

Money

[Vash01]

Maybe just a need to get the truth out there?

If it's just to get the truth out, he had many opportunities before. He is suing MJ's estate- that's not just about getting the truth out.

[BigB08822]

I posted about TMZ but did not make a remark about these accusations. I find them to be too late. He had so many chances to come forth and say something and he chose, time and again, not to. If he was being paid off to keep quiet then he made his decision then. I think Michael was an odd guy who may or may not have molested young children but he is not here to defend himself. How can Robson possibly prove these accusations without something like video or audio proof? I don't see how anyone can believe him when his side of the story is the only one to be told.

[just tuned in]

If Robson is 30 now, and the maid saw him in 2005, then he would have been 22 at the time. How is that child molestation?

[VIETgrlTerifa]

If Robson is 30 now, and the maid saw him in 2005, then he would have been 22 at the time. How is that child molestation?

According to TMZ...

Interestingly ... in the 2005 molestation trial, Jackson's former housekeeper,

Blanca Francia

, testified she witnessed Jackson in the shower with Wade when the boy was 8 or 9 years old.

Read more: http://www.tmz.com/2013/05/07/michae...#ixzz2SkLwlWxH
Visit the TMZ Store: http://tmzstore.com

[bmcg]

If Robson is 30 now, and the maid saw him in 2005, then he would have been 22 at the time. How is that child molestation?

From the article:

Interestingly ... in the 2005 molestation trial, Jackson's former housekeeper, Blanca Francia, testified she witnessed Jackson in the shower with Wade when the boy was 8 or 9 years old.

Fwiw...I can totally understand why a 22 year old man would deny the testimony by the housekeeper and why he might want to do different at the age of 30. It was a very public trial and that reveal wouldn't have been under his terms. The article says he had sleepovers from the age of 7-14. If it's true he was molested he likely wasn't ready to deal with that reality so publicly at 22.