America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM

Chapter 169 169. Maikou appeared in court and bombarded him indiscriminately

Today is a big day for the city of Santa Barbara, and media from all over the world have focused their cameras here.

At this time, the door of the Santa Barbara Municipal Court was already crowded. It was conservatively estimated that there were thousands of people, and the number continued to increase.

Journalists only account for a very small part of them, and the majority are fans of McQueen.

They held various support signs and slogans and came here from all over the country even though the weather was hot.

Especially since the recent incident of Tom Snyder's raid on Neverland has been so big, Mykko has gained the sympathy of countless people.

So in addition to his true fans, there are also many righteous and caring people who have joined in.

Worried about getting out of control, the Santa Barbara Police Department dispatched hundreds of police officers to maintain order, deploying police forces from almost all districts in the city, and helicopters were hovering in the sky.

But even if so many police were dispatched, it was still not enough for the huge number of people.

"Oh my God, there are so many people!"

Seeing such a big scene, little Elizabeth was extremely surprised.

Alongside Eric, in addition to Elizabeth, Gadot also flew over from home on a special plane.

It was agreed at the beginning that the three of them would attend the court hearing to cheer up McQueen.

"The number of Michael's fans is really terrifying. If the outcome of the trial goes against him, I'm afraid some fanatic fans will storm the court." Gadot also said in surprise.

Eric nodded. The battle was indeed huge, and he couldn't help but think of the scene of the followers of Zhan Bao storming the White House.

If Maikou cheers up, I'm afraid there will really be enthusiastic fans who do so.

Of course, with Maikou's kind-hearted character, this is impossible. He will only persuade fans to be rational.

"Let's go, there are more and more people, let's go in first."

Inside the courtroom, Eric took two girls, one older and one younger, to sit in the seats behind the dock and found a seat near the front row.

There were still more than ten minutes left before the trial started, and Maiqun had not arrived yet.

In the plaintiff's seat opposite, Janet Arvizo and Gavin Arvizo were whispering, and standing next to them was Larry Feldman, the lawyer in the 1993 case.

On the other side, there are twelve people's jury seats, which are now all present.

They are all Santa Barbara residents, come from all walks of life, and were selected at random.

Someone was wearing a suit and uniform and looked like a white-collar worker. There are also people wearing casual clothes who look like housewives.

This is the difference between the United States and China, the jury system.

Of course, the members selected as the jury must pass certain tests to ensure that they have certain literacy and common sense and can distinguish right from wrong.

In China, when a case is heard, it is the judge who makes the final decision. The judge decides whether he is guilty, what crime he is guilty of, and how many years he should be sentenced.

In the United States, the power of judges and juries is divided. The jury is responsible for deciding whether the defendant is guilty, and the judge is responsible for sentencing.

For ordinary criminal cases, if a jury of twelve cannot reach a consensus, a vote can be adopted.

As long as at least nine people believe he is guilty, the crime is deemed guilty.

As for the murder case, twelve people must be in complete agreement, and even one person cannot agree.

If an agreement cannot be reached after multiple rounds of discussions, a new jury will be selected for a new trial.

The process may last several years, with several juries in between, until a unanimous verdict of twelve is reached.

There is a very classic movie "12 Angry Men" that describes the jury system, and China's remake of "12 Citizens" is also good.

Therefore, for Maikou's case, as long as at least four people believe that he is innocent, he can be declared a winner.

OH

A few minutes later, a huge cheer suddenly sounded outside, and many people couldn't help but look back.

Soon, in the passage, Michael and lawyer Tom Messerio walked quickly to the dock. He was wearing a handsome new clothes today, and his face was calm without any worry.

"Maiko!"

little Elizabeth shouted, waving her hand.

Hearing the sound, Maikou looked over. Eric and Gadot waved to him, and Maikou suddenly smiled.

"quiet!"

At this time, the judge walked out, the clock fell to nine o'clock, and the trial officially began.

First, both parties take an oath to express their respect for the law, that they are responsible for their speeches, and that everything they say is true.

Then we enter the case presentation stage. The entire United States knows about such a big thing, but the process still has to go through.

After the statement is over, there is the most important stage of court debate. Lawyers on both sides ask questions, look for loopholes in the other side, and invite witnesses and evidence to appear in court.

This link is also the most critical part that affects the jury's judgment.

"Your Honor, I'm done."

Gavin Arvizo finished speaking, and the judge looked at lawyer Messerio, indicating that he could ask questions.

Messerio nodded, then walked out of the dock and came directly to Gavin Arvizzo, staring at him sharply.

"Gavin Arvizo, you just said that Jackson molested you in the bedroom, but this statement is contradictory to your previous statements."

"In February this year, after Martin Baschel's documentary slandering Jackson was aired, Fox TV interviewed your family. You and your mother both said that Jackson had never done anything wrong with you. How do you explain this?"

"Well I was forced."

"Forced by whom? Her or him?"

"What?"

"Protest! Mr. Judge, Gavin is just a thirteen-year-old child. He is easily misled. I suggest that Janet should answer this question. This is a matter for them to participate in together." Opposite lawyer Larry Feldman said.

The judge nodded, and Janet hurriedly spoke: "It was Jackson who forced us to say this. If we didn't help him clarify, he would have people beat us, and threatened to keep us locked up in Neverland, and we would never be able to get out in this life. .”

"But you were not restrained. You were interviewed and could enter and leave society freely without any appearance of being coerced."

"That's because there is media and everyone is paying attention to this matter, so he doesn't dare."

"Then why didn't you say it during the interview instead of saying it today?"

"Because... because I forgot, and Jackson threatened us in private. No one else knows about it, and it may not be useful if he says it." Janet stuttered in reply.

Messerio suddenly shouted loudly: "Then what Gavin Arvizo said about the obscenity in the bedroom also did not exist from a third person, only his dictation. Why do you say it again? Isn't this something of the same nature?"

"Or is it that your goal was Jackson's money, so you deliberately used the charge of child molestation, and attorney Larry Feldman was the plaintiff's attorney in the 1993 case."

Gadot squeezed Eric's hand hard: "The lawyer McQueen found looks very powerful."

"Haha. Just watch, the big one is at the back." Eric whispered.

"Protest! The other party's lawyer is suspected of misleading. My client just forgot. It doesn't mean it didn't happen."

Messerio looked forward: "Mr. Judge, I am not saying this to mislead, I am just saying that Ms. Janet Arvizo is a woman who tells lies and there are huge problems with her character."

"She is a professional litigator with many cases against her. Even though Jackson paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical expenses for them, instead of being grateful, she focused on my client's property."

"No, this is slander, you bastard is slandering me!" Janet Arvizo shouted angrily.

Larry Feldman couldn't help but frown and hurriedly pulled her sleeve, knowing that you had never been to middle school and your quality was not high.

But this is no reason to curse, especially in front of a judge and jury, which will lower your impression score.

"Of course this is not slander. I have witnesses."

With the judge's permission, some of the people Eric sent to find who had been blackmailed by Janet Arvizo appeared in court one by one.

"Janet Arvizo sued for sexual abuse, and I ended up paying her $15,000, but she couldn't tell the exact origin of the injuries."

"It was just an accidental touch. I swear there was no intention of sexual harassment, but this woman kept harassing me, and my family and work were affected. In desperation, I could only give her $10,000."

"Yes, I remember this nasty woman. She peed in front of my store. I wanted to stop her, but she wanted to report sexual harassment to me. I didn't want to make the matter bigger and had to let her leave."

Eight witnesses took turns to appear and make accusations against Janet Arvizo. Each one of them spoke clearly and portrayed her as a villain who would do anything for money.

Janet Arvizzo's face became extremely ugly, and she kept biting her fingers, but could not refute.

Because many of them have criminal records, this thing cannot be faked.

When the judge and jury see these files, even if a few people did not call the police in the first place, even if only half of them are recorded, the jury will naturally tend to believe that all the incidents are true.

As for Janet’s lawyer Larry Feldman, he had no idea there was so much going on behind the scenes, and he didn’t know where to start even if he wanted to interrupt.

Messerio continued to output: "In addition, we also investigated that Janet Arvizo is currently engaged in charity fraud."

"Gavin Arvizo's disease has obviously been cured with the help of Jackson, but she still claims that it is not cured and has opened a donation account."

"Her card number is XXXXXX, and she has spoken out on live TV and online many times, asking for public donations."

"No, my illness has not been cured yet." Gavin Arvizo hurriedly wanted to explain.

Messerio immediately threw out the medical record: "Then how do you explain this medical record?"

Gavin Arvizo suddenly lowered his head and said nothing. Disease is also objective. If you say it is not cured, just check it out.

After a series of evidence came down, not only did the spectators shake their heads, but the jury also looked solemnly.

Seeing the collapse of Janet's good mother persona, Larry Feldman hurriedly said: "Mr. Judge, regardless of whether the other party's witness and physical evidence are true or false, Janet's character has nothing to do with whether Michael Jackson assaulted Gavin. It’s irrelevant, these are two different things.”

The judge nodded: "That's right. The worst criminals also have human rights. We cannot always judge a person wrong because of his poor character."

"Whether Janet Arvizo's crime is true or false, there will naturally be public and civil prosecutions waiting for her, but they are beyond the scope of this court's discussion, continue!"

Subsequently, both sides continued to invite their respective witnesses to appear in court, and Gavin Arvizo’s side were all his family members and relatives.

Although they always said that Gavin had been violated, they still couldn't produce even a shred of physical evidence. They just incited emotions and begged for mercy.

As for Mykou, they invited the bodyguards and servants of Neverland Ranch, Gavin Arvizzo’s friends and teachers, etc.

"Gavin is not a good boy. He doesn't do his homework and likes to quarrel with his classmates."

"I asked Gavin why he didn't try to escape from Neverland, and he said he loved it there, it was just as fun as Disneyland."

"Gavin always told me he was going to be rich, he was going to be a multi-millionaire and Michael Jackson was going to pay him a lot of money."

"I have always been responsible for the safety of the Arvizo family at Neverland. Mycolle was never alone with this child, and he never slept in the same bed with each other. Only once did he sleep on the floor. I swear to myself It’s true.”

Even "Home Alone" child star Macaulay Culkin was in court.

"I went to Neverland many times when I was a kid, but Michael never touched me. He always played with me when my parents were there."

After some debate, although Gavin Arvizzo also won some sympathy, his character was more clearly seen.

Especially the evaluation of him by his classmates, friends and teachers made him a typical bad boy.

Seeing that the situation was getting more and more unfavorable for his side, Larry Feldman had no choice but to resort to the ultimate trick and ask for the summons of psychiatrist Mathis.

Mathis submitted the psychiatric report to the judge and jury, which revealed depression.

He said in a deep tone: "This incident has a great impact on Gavin's mental state. You must know that in his heart, he has always regarded Michael Jackson as his father."

"But the man he considered his father turned out to be a devil and did the most vile and disgusting things to him."

"Gavin has been sexually assaulted many times. Maybe he will say the wrong number of times, or maybe he will behave unfriendly and unsociable. This is all because of the mental trauma."

"So please don't look at him strangely. He is only a twelve-year-old child. What evil intentions can such a young child have?"

"Even if there is, it's the sequelae of mental trauma. It's not his original intention. He is kind."

"Now he is suffering from depression. I have seen him crying silently many times. Michael Jackson, this devil, you must be responsible for this!"

Mathis's righteous and impassioned speech directly reversed Gavin Arvizzo's character with a mental trauma that could not be accurately identified.

His meaning is very clear. The child is kind, and the reason why he behaves badly is all because of depression. The culprit is Maiqun.

Many people at the scene couldn't help but change their views on Gavin Arvizo. They thought that he was a child after all, so what could he have bad intentions?

Seeing that the key people had finally arrived, Messerio smiled imperceptibly, and then took out an audio tape from his bag.