Let’s be blunt: if this guy wasn’t a celebrity named Michael Jackson and was on trial for child molestation and demonstrated this kind of behavior — repeatedly showing up late and making a side-show of himself, distracting the vital issue at hand — he’d be in the SLAMMER by now:
Michael Jackson appeared to fall apart in court on Monday arriving late to his child-molestation trial for the second time in two weeks.
The singer’s entrance was less dramatic than the incident in which he ran to the hospital and showed up to court in pajamas on March 10, but it caused speculation that the judge would possibly issue another bench warrant or otherwise sanction the singer for delaying proceedings once again.
However, Judge Rodney Melville made no mention of the delay in open court. Arriving just a few minutes past the usual court deadline, a fully dressed Jackson limped slowly inside the Santa Maria, California, courthouse, flanked by his brother Jackie and a bodyguard. Jackson was also accompanied by a doctor from a nearby hospital who was still in his scrubs, suggesting that the singer’s late arrival was once again due to his problems with his back.
Once inside, according to observers, Jackson grabbed a wad of tissue and started sobbing. He was then excused and went to a restroom with Dr. Bert Weiner, while lawyers met with Melville in chambers. That conversation is sealed, and Melville gave no explanation of what was discussed. After the 45-minute delay, the trial got under way with Jackson back in his seat.
If we upset any readers we’re about to say, sorry, but we firmly believe it:
There is a double standard of justice in this country. Jackson is being treated with kid gloves — no matter how tough the judge is on other matters. It’s irrelevant what his lawyers told the judge in the backroom on this. He’s being coddled where someone who wasn’t famous who was up on these charges would be in big trouble if he/she arrived late repeatedly. Justice SHOULD be the same for the rich and poor, famous and not-famous. It isn’t — and this case is a prime example of a double-standard.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.