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Michael Jackson
31/03/2005 20:59
Day 19: Possible Fingerprint Evidence Tampering and Degrading, Reliability Questioned
Created: Saturday, 26 March 2005
THURSDAY, MARCH 24, 2005
Michael Jackson and Mrs JacksonDay 19 was dominated by testimony regarding the fingerprint analysis in the Michael Jackson trial. Jurors heard Thursday that authorities did not do fingerprint analysis on adult magazines from the singer's home until many, many months after they were seized.
Defense Attorney Robert Sanger used cross-examination of the prosecution's forensic experts to try to undermine the reliability of fingerprint evidence that is expected to be shown to the jury, suggesting it could degrade over time.
One magazine allegedly has a single fingerprint from Mr. Jackson's accuser and one print from Mr. Jackson. The defense explained that the accuser handled the magazine during grand jury hearings before it was subjected to fingerprint analysis.
Witness Antonio Cantu, chief of forensics for the Secret Service, said he was not aware of the delay in the fingerprint tests and acknowledged it would have been preferable for the tests to have been done immediately.
Cantu did not test evidence in the Mr. Jackson case but was put on the stand by the prosecution to give jurors technical information about how fingerprints are analyzed by various methods.
Mr. Sanger asked Cantu if he would expect analysis to be done after the material had been presented to a grand jury.
"You would expect to do that analysis first," Cantu said.
"Were you aware that the fingerprint analysis in this case was not done until a year after the evidence was seized?" asked the attorney.
"I was not aware of that," said Cantu.
Santa Barbara County Deputy District Attorney Gordon Auchincloss sought to show that it wouldn't make much difference when the material was analyzed as long as it was properly bagged and preserved.
But the witness said that chemically, the residue from fingerprints can change over time.
Mr. Sanger raised the issue of evidence degradation and Cantu said it was possible that fingerprints could degrade.
Sheriff's technician Lisa Hemman, called by the prosecution to discuss methods of examining evidence from Neverland, offered an explanation of why fingerprint analysis was not done immediately.
"We wanted to preserve DNA evidence. Processing for fingerprints could destroy DNA. So you do the testing for DNA before you do the fingerprint testing," she said.
Michael JacksonAn attorney for Mr. Jackson grilled Hemman and three other fingerprint specialists about potential problems with the field. He noted that an Oregon lawyer was arrested as a suspect in the Madrid train bombings on the strength of a fingerprint match, only to be exonerated later when the print was shown to be a "false positive."
"So, fingerprint identification is really subjective?" lawyer Robert Mr. Sanger asked.
"Yes," Hemman said.
She later acknowledged that she and another examiner were at odds over whether a print was Mr. Jackson's and that they had changed their opinion on the brother's print from an initial finding of "inconclusive."
The jury has already heard that no DNA from the boy or his family was found.
"I think the prosecution has yet to show that this mountain of (adult material) they produced was shown to the accuser by Michael Jackson," said legal analyst Jim Moret outside the courtroom in the California town of Santa Maria.
"There has to be a connection between these materials and Michael Jackson and his accuser" in order for the prosecution argument to stand, he added.
Mr. Sanger stressed that all the raunchy literature found in Mr. Jackson's bedroom was legal in the United States, and suggested that police were overzealous in seizing the items.
But prosecutors pointed out it was illegal to show such material to children. Mr. Jackson has not been charged with showing adult materials to a minor.
Jurors who had earlier paid close attention and took copious notes during the explosive testimony offered in the first three weeks of Mr. Jackson's trial often appeared bored by the details and specialized testimony.
One alternate juror fell asleep as others fidgeted through the expert testimony.
"That is a problem for both the prosecution and the defense," Moret said, adding that "you don't want to lose jurors."
In past days jurors have been shown on a large overhead screen dozens of adult magazines and pictures, none of which involved pedophilia.
Actor George Lopez will take the stand next week, prosecutors said Thursday.
The comedian and star of the ABC sitcom "The George Lopez Show" is expected in the witness box at Mr. Jackson's child molestation trial Monday to testify about his dealings with the accuser, prosecutor Ronald Zonen told Judge Rodney Melville.
Lopez was among several celebrities, including Mr. Jackson, actor Chris Tucker and comedians Adam Sandler and Jay Leno, whom the boy met or sought to meet while he was being treated for cancer in 2000.
Mr. Jackson's defense has been demonstrating that the accuser and his family are a pack of grifters who used the boy's cancer to scam money from the rich and famous. His lawyers have highlighted Lopez in particular, eliciting testimony from several witnesses about an incident where the comedian apparently believed the family was trying to hustle him.
As Mr. Jackson walked toward his waiting vehicle at the end of the day, he greeted the waiting fans and reporters, "I'd like to say hello to the people of Santa Maria, my friends." When questioned about his health, he replied, "Still in a lot of pain."
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