Things continue to heat up in the Michael Jackson child-molestation case--and it doesn't sound like the prosecution will stop till they get enough.
The case against Jackson seems to be gaining momentum, as the Santa Barbara District Attorney's office announced Friday that they are pursuing more than 100 new leads in their investigation into the pop star's potentially sordid past.
Should any of the new angles turn up another victim of abuse at the hands of the Gloved One, the prosecutors can use the allegations as evidence against Jackson at trial, whether or not they decide to pursue additional charges against him.
The evidence is allowable thanks to a 1996 shift in California policy that changed the way "propensity evidence" is handled in the courts. Establishing a pattern of behavior can be crucial in cases that involve juvenile sexual abuse, like Jackson's.
"Prior victims could be devastating to Michael Jackson. He can call the first victim's credibility into question, but once you put three or four cases next to it that look pretty much the same, that turns the case," former San Diego District Attorney Paul Pfingst told CourtTV.com. "It would be catastrophic for Jackson. Then what could he do? Argue an epidemic of incredibility? Group hysteria fed by newspaper accounts and suggestive interview techniques?"
Of the 100-plus new leads, the seemingly most promising for the prosecution concerns a second child who reportedly claimed Jackson molested him back in 1993. Former Santa Barbara Sheriff Jim Thomas discussed the existence of an audiotape of the child's accusations against Jackson but said that the case never took off because the boy, aged nine or 10 at the time, decided he was too "ashamed" to point fingers at Jackson.
"The child did not want to testify, and we can't force a child to testify, so that never went forward," Thomas told CNN.
This second child is not to be confused with the first child that accused Jackson of taking way too many liberties back in 1993--but that child's family reportedly accepted a multimillion-dollar payoff from the self-proclaimed King of Pop in exchange for remaining mum on the subject. Criminal charges were never filed in that case, and the child's civil case was dropped after the out-of-court deal.
The pop star was formally booked on November 20 in Santa Barbara on suspicions of multiple acts of child molestation. He was released on $3 million bail.
In mid December, District Attorney Tom Sneddon has said he plans to file charges against Jackson for the recent allegations.
Sneddon, who has taken some heat for his somewhat jovial approach to Jackson media briefings, apologized this week for "unprofessional" and "inappropriate" remarks--he had called the singer "Jacko Wacko."
But the district attorney scoffed at the theory that he hasn't filed charges yet because the case against Jackson is too weak.
"Everything will become clear when the charges are filed," Sneddon said in a somewhat cryptic statement to CNN.
Jackson's arraignment is scheduled on January 9 in Santa Barbara Superior Court. One count of child molestation can carry a prison sentence of up to eight years.
Should Jackson be sent away to prison, the singer would be segregated from the other inmates due to his celebrity status. However, there's a chance they wouldn't even recognize him.
Eric Nishimoto, a public information officer for the sheriff's department in Ventura, California, told Us Weekly that Jackson would not be permitted to wear makeup, should he find himself in the slammer.
"It's not considered a basic right for male inmates," Nishimoto explained. "He won't be able to wear a glove either."