Tuesday, July 27, 2004
http://www.foxnews.com/fox411
By Roger Friedman
[Jackson] D.A.: Testimony From Questionable Witness
Santa Barbara District Attorney Tom Sneddon used someone who is now being called a questionable witness to help lock down his case against Michael Jackson.
According to papers uncovered by The Smoking Gun website, Sneddon brought in Ann Gabriel to testify in front of the grand jury about Jackson's "conspiracy" against his accuser and the accuser's family.
But Stuart Backerman, Jackson's p.r. rep during the time of the alleged incident in early 2003, told me yesterday that Gabriel was fired after 10 days on the job. Her dates of employment, in fact, ended before the time Jackson is accused of anything by the district attorney.
"This is a woman scorned," said Backerman, who noted that Gabriel, who'd been hired to help out with some p.r. duties in Las Vegas following the airing of the TV special "Living with Michael Jackson," was fired for cause.
"She was going to go on 'Access Hollywood' and read a press release, without any authorization," Backerman told me. "We stopped it, and then we let her go. She was probably gone by February 18 or 19. She never met Michael Jackson or spoke to him. She knew nothing. She just wanted to be on TV." Backerman added: "She was aggressive, rude, and curt."
In papers filed with the court, Jackson's attorneys point out that Sneddon is using Gabriel "as the key witness to establish Jackson's intent to participate in a controversy."
Meanwhile, Backerman says that he still has not heard from Jackson's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, and neither have some of the other key players from Jackson's organization during that crucial time period of February and March 2003. "They're losing out by not using us," says Backerman, who added, "we know everything that happened."
http://www.foxnews.com/fox411
By Roger Friedman
[Jackson] D.A.: Testimony From Questionable Witness
Santa Barbara District Attorney Tom Sneddon used someone who is now being called a questionable witness to help lock down his case against Michael Jackson.
According to papers uncovered by The Smoking Gun website, Sneddon brought in Ann Gabriel to testify in front of the grand jury about Jackson's "conspiracy" against his accuser and the accuser's family.
But Stuart Backerman, Jackson's p.r. rep during the time of the alleged incident in early 2003, told me yesterday that Gabriel was fired after 10 days on the job. Her dates of employment, in fact, ended before the time Jackson is accused of anything by the district attorney.
"This is a woman scorned," said Backerman, who noted that Gabriel, who'd been hired to help out with some p.r. duties in Las Vegas following the airing of the TV special "Living with Michael Jackson," was fired for cause.
"She was going to go on 'Access Hollywood' and read a press release, without any authorization," Backerman told me. "We stopped it, and then we let her go. She was probably gone by February 18 or 19. She never met Michael Jackson or spoke to him. She knew nothing. She just wanted to be on TV." Backerman added: "She was aggressive, rude, and curt."
In papers filed with the court, Jackson's attorneys point out that Sneddon is using Gabriel "as the key witness to establish Jackson's intent to participate in a controversy."
Meanwhile, Backerman says that he still has not heard from Jackson's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, and neither have some of the other key players from Jackson's organization during that crucial time period of February and March 2003. "They're losing out by not using us," says Backerman, who added, "we know everything that happened."