Another Michael Jackson lawsuit has been relegated to the HIStory books.
Last Thursday, a federal judge in New Orleans threw out a case brought in 2004 against the pop star by a man claiming he was molested by Jackson in 1984.
U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon's ruling was posted on the court's Website Monday. According to the judge, Jackson proved that he was in California at the same time the man said he was abused by the singer in New Orleans.
"The evidence conclusively demonstrates that Mr. Jackson was in California from May 19 to May 27, 1984, and could not have been in New Orleans to participate in the events alleged," Fallon wrote.
The judge included in his reasoning sworn statements by Wayne Nagin, who kept Jackson's appointment calendar that year, and Charilette Sweeney of Encino, Calif., who said that she spoke to Jackson on May 13, 17 and 20 in 1984.
The man was alleging that the abuse by Jackson and his bodyguards began May 19.
"I'm basically shocked," Louis Koerner, the plaintiff's lawyer, told reporters.
The plaintiff, who was 18 in 1984, alleged that he was lured into Jackson's limousine during the World's Fair in New Orleans and was held against his will for nine days. During that time, the lawsuit said, the young man was sexually and physically assaulted.
According to Louisiana state law, the statute of limitations in a case of abuse where the victim is an adult is one year, but the plaintiff argued that his timeframe didn't begin until 2003, when he first remembered what happened to him.
Koerner argued in court that this client had repressed the memory, that he was so traumatized from the abuse he blocked it all out. According to the lawsuit, the young man was held at gunpoint, cut with razor blades by Jackson's bodyguards and had his head slammed against the ground. Only when he watched a TV show about the recent molestation criminal case against Jackson did he remember what happened to him, the attorney said.
"We're pleased with the results," Jackson lawyer Brian Oxman told reporters Monday. "It's time to get on to new and better things."
One better thing, for instance, is that it looks like the legally beleaguered Jackson won't be going broke anytime soon, despite rampant speculation to the contrary. Last week the onetime King of Pop refinanced his loans and offered Sony the option to buy half of his remaining share of the Sony/ATV Music Catalog, which includes tunes by the Beatles, Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. Jackson purchased the entire catalog in 1985 and sold 50 percent of it to Sony in 1998 for $100 million.
Jackson has since used his Sony stake as collateral for $270 million in loans issued to him over the years. If Sony exercises its new option to buy another 25 percent of the Sony/ATV catalog, the singer should have enough to stave off his creditors.
When Notorious B.I.G. rapped about "Mo Money Mo Problems," he may as well have dedicated the tune to Jackson. The platinum-selling pop artist, once called the richest entertainer in the world, closed the main house of his fantastical Neverland Ranch last month after narrowly avoiding a lawsuit for failing to pay back wages and workers compensation insurance for 69 employees.
Since he was acquitted of child molestation charges in June 2005, Jackson has dealt with both good news and bad mainly from the island of Bahrain, where he purchased 14 acres of Persian Gulf-side property.