AP PHoto / Aaron LambertYou know what they say, the family that stays together...makes getaways together?
Well, at least for King of Pop Michael Jackson! Or maybe not...
After telling the London Times that the musical family planned to save the artist back in 2005 if he was convicted of child molestation, brother Jermaine Jackson's rep clarifies to E! News just exactly what he meant by "plan."
After telling the paper the game plan was for Michael to flee the country via a private jet to Bahrain, which does not have an extradition treaty with the U.S., Jermaine's rep Steve Dennis explains it wasn't meant to be taken literally.
Jermaine's rep explains: "It wasn't an actual plan, because if he was convicted, he would be handcuffed and put in jail." Adding, "It was an idea Michael was unaware of. It was supposed to be demonstrative of how desperate Jermaine was. He felt the justice system was so against Michael...He was determined to get him out, he was determined to save him from persecution [if convicted]."
The family's scheme, or "plan" if you will, is further detailed in Jermaine's book, You Are Not Alone: Michael Through a Brother's Eyes (to be published this week), which includes Jermaine's explanation of what drove the family to cook up a such radical scenario: "If they were going to sit and crucify my brother for something that he didn't do, America deserves us not to come back here."
Michael, who died in June 2009 at 50 after an overdose of the anaesthetic propofol, reportedly remained unaware of the plan as the star was found not guilty of all charges in June 2005 at the end of a four-month trial.