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Michael Jackson a no-show in Louisiana court

Posted on: Wednesday, 20 July 2005, 21:21 CDT

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - Michael Jackson failed to show up in court on Wednesday for a hearing on a lawsuit by a man who says the pop singer held him against his will and sexually assaulted him in 1984.

Jackson or a lawyer had been ordered to appear before U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon to discuss who would defend the singer in the lawsuit, but no one came, a court clerk said.

Fallon set Aug. 17 for a hearing in which Jackson must show why he should not be held in contempt of court and a default judgment issued against him, according to a court order.

Plaintiff Joseph Bartucci claims he was lured into Jackson's limousine during a trip to the 1984 World's Fair and sexually assaulted and battered while held against his will for several days.

Bartucci, 18 at the time of the alleged assault, has said his memories of the events were suppressed until two years ago, when news coverage of child molestation charges against Jackson in California revived them.

Jackson, 46, was acquitted last month of child sex abuse charges in a sensational trial in Santa Maria, California, near his Neverland Ranch.

Jackson spokesman Brian Oxman said Wednesday's no-show was the result of "an administrative problem that occurs in a big organization." He also rejected Bartucci's claims.

"Michael Jackson has had many such lawsuits and each one has resulted in him being exonerated or the case being dismissed," he said. "This is part of the magic and burden of being Michael Jackson."

Source: REUTERS

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