United States : Nude photos of Michael Jackson at the center of a legal battle
Fifteen years after his death, Michael Jackson is once again making headlines in a legal case. Ten years after the first accusations of sexual abuse against minors by Wade Robson and James Safechuck against the King of Pop, the two men are seeking access to sealed documents containing nude photos of the singer. This request is being opposed by the teams of the deceased artist who passed away in June 2009.
Now aged 41 and 46 respectively, Wade Robson and James Safechuck filed a request last March to access sealed documents containing nude photos of the singer. In response to this request, Michael Jackson’s production companies, MJJ, asked the Los Angeles Superior Court to reject this request.
« In this case, there is no legitimate justification for the plaintiffs’ gross attempt to violate the privacy of a man who has been deceased for nearly ten years and to disrupt the ‘peace of mind and tranquility’ of his family with this ‘sensationalist culture », noted Page Six, citing MJJ Production’s attorneys. According to these lawyers, California law recognizes « the right to privacy for images of deceased persons ».
It is worth noting that in 1993, following allegations of sexual abuse against a 13-year-old boy involving Michael Jackson, the artist was compelled to take photos in the nude. According to the singer’s legal team, these were included in a sealed document by the Santa Barbara Superior Court in California.
« The photographs requested by the plaintiffs were not taken voluntarily by Mr. Jackson; they are the result of a court-ordered search based on a false statement in what became a discredited criminal investigation », added the lawyers.
They justify their refusal by arguing that these documents would not bring any « relevance » to the case. « Allowing the plaintiffs to exploit this series of circumstances to their advantage by obtaining these photographs would add a second stain to the first », they asserted.
As a reminder, Wade Robson and James Safechuck filed lawsuits against the interpreter of « Beat It » in 2013 and 2014, accusing him of sexually abusing them when they were minors. The two men also accused the star’s companies of enabling such acts to occur. They detailed their accusations in the documentary « Leaving Neverland, » released in 2019.
