In 1993, Michael Jackson was accused of abuse by Evan Chandler, on behalf of his then-13-year-old child, Jordan Chandler. Jackson and Jordan had become friends in May 1992, to the father's disapproval and concern. The friendship became well known, as the tabloid media reported that Jackson became a member of the Chandler family unit. Under the influence of a controversial sedative administered by Evan Chandler, his son said that Jackson had touched his penis. Evan Chandler was tape-recorded threatening to damage the singer's music career, and engaged Jackson in unsuccessful negotiations to resolve the issue with a financial settlement. Jordan Chandler then told a psychiatrist and later police that he and Jackson had engaged in acts of kissing, masturbation, and oral sex, as well as giving a description of what he alleges were the singer's genitals.
Subsequently, Jackson's Neverland Ranch was searched by police. Other children and family members had stated that Jackson was not a pedophile; Jackson's older sister, La Toya Jackson, accused her brother of being a pedophile, but later retracted her statement saying her abusive husband of the time, Jack Gordon, forced her into making such comments. Jackson became dependent on drugs as the stress of the allegations mounted, and canceled the remainder of his Dangerous World Tour. He went into rehabilitation overseas, and began a relationship with Lisa Marie Presley. On his return to the United States, Jackson agreed to a 25-minute strip search, which was required to see if the description of his genitals provided by Jordan Chandler was accurate. Doctors concluded that there were some strong similarities but it was not a definitive match. Jackson proclaimed his innocence, and criticized the media coverage. Jackson's friends and legal advisers took over his defense and finances, persuading him to settle the allegations out of court.
Tabloid reaction to the allegations was negative towards Jackson; they were accused of bias, accepting stories of criminal activity for money, and engaging in illegal activities themselves. Public polls at the time reported that a large majority of people believed Jackson was innocent. On January 1, 1994, Jackson settled a civil suit out of court with the Chandler family and its legal team for $22 million. After Jordan Chandler refused to testify in the criminal proceedings, the state closed its criminal investigation citing lack of evidence, and Jackson was not charged with a crime. Jackson's support amongst the public began to waver, and his public image was tarnished to a degree. Prosecution evidence from the 1993 allegations would also be used against the entertainer in the 2003 People v. Jackson child sexual abuse trial, where he was acquitted on all counts.
Friendship, tape recording, allegations and negotiations
By the summer of 1993, it was revealed that Jackson allowed children to sleep over at his Neverland ranch, a fact which came under much media scrutiny when child sexual abuse allegations were brought against him. Jackson became firm friends with Jordan Chandler and his family after a meeting in May 1992, as he was a fan of Jackson. Their friendship became so close that the National Enquirer ran a featured story with the title "Michael's New Adopted Family", which implied that Jackson had "stolen" the boy from his estranged father, Evan Chandler, who was admittedly jealous over Jackson's influence on his son. Communications between Jackson and the father broke down further when Chandler asked, "Look, are you having sex with my son?" After Jackson denied doing so, Evan Chandler's opinion of Jackson then changed, to the extent that he invited Jackson to build an extra wing on their home so that the singer could move in with them permanently. However, Chandler's concerns about the close friendship soon returned, and he tried to prevent Jackson from seeing his son, using a prior custody agreement.
On July 2, 1993, in a private telephone conversation, Chandler was tape-recorded as saying,
There was no reason why he had to stop calling me...I picked the nastiest son of a bitch I could find , all he wants to do is get this out in the public as fast as he can, as big as he can and humiliate as many people as he can. He's nasty, he's mean, he's smart and he's hungry for publicity. Everything's going to a certain plan that isn't just mine. Once I make that phone call, this guy is going to destroy everybody in sight in any devious, nasty, cruel way that he can do it. I've given him full authority to do that. Jackson is an evil guy, he is worse than that and I have the evidence to prove it. If I go through with this, I win big-time. There's no way I lose. I will get everything I want and they will be destroyed forever...Michael's career will be over.— Evan ChandlerIn the same conversation, when asked how this would affect his son, Chandler replied, "That's irrelevant to me...It will be a massacre if I don't get what I want. It's going to be bigger than all us put together...This man is going to be humiliated beyond belief...He will not sell one more record". The recorded conversation was a critical aspect of Jackson's defense against the upcoming allegation made against him. He and his supporters argue that he was the victim of a jealous father whose only goal was to extort money from the singer.
In early August, Chandler, a registered dentist, extracted a tooth from his son's mouth, and was later forced to admit that he used the controversial sedative sodium Amytal during the procedure. Under the influence of the drug, Jordan alleged that Jackson had touched his penis. Experts state that the drug sodium Amytal "makes patients extremely susceptible to suggestions". Dr Lewis Strong, a Los Angeles psychiatrist stated, "You can't trust it, I never use it in my practice. I have found it to be unreliable. It's certainly not a truth serum". Dr Kenneth Gottlieb, a San Francisco psychiatrist who has used the drug, stated, "I would never want to use a drug that tampers with a person's unconscious unless there was no other drug available, and I would not use it without resuscitation equipment in case of allergic reaction".
Over the next couple of months both parties engaged in unsuccessful (out of court) financial negotiations, with Chandler and his legal team asking for $20 million, or the issue would be taken to criminal court. Jackson declined the offer, saying, "No way in Hell". A few weeks later, Jackson's legal team gave a counter-offer to the value of $1 million, which was declined by Chandler. The father then lowered his request to $15 million; Jackson rejected this and lowered his original counter-offer to $350,000. With both sides unable to reach an agreement, Chandler decided he would take it to court. Chandler then took his son to see a psychiatrist called Dr. Mathis Abrams, and during the three-hour session with the doctor, Jordan Chandler said he had had a sexual relationship with Jackson that included incidents of kissing, masturbation and oral sex that went on for months. He then repeated these allegations to police and gave a detailed description of what he alleged was Jackson's penis.
Allegations made public, investigation and La Toya Jackson
On August 18, the Los Angeles Police Department's Sexually Exploited Child Unit began a criminal investigation into Jackson. The same day, Jordan Chandler's mother told police that she did not believe Jackson had molested her son. On August 21, a search warrant was issued, allowing police to search Jackson's Neverland Ranch. Police questioned 30 children who were friends of Jackson, with all denying that the singer was a child molester. A police officer involved in the investigation told The Los Angeles Times that no evidence (medical, photographic or video) could be found that would support a criminal filing. The same day the allegations were made public, Jackson began the second leg of his Dangerous World Tour in Bangkok. On August 24, Jackson's investigator held a press conference accusing Chandler of trying to extort $20 million from the singer, although the investigator failed to mention that Jackson had given several counter-offers. On August 25, Jackson's young friends Brett Barnes and Wade Robson held a press conference where they stated that they had slept in the same bed as Jackson, but nothing sexual in nature had occurred. Jackson's family soon held a press conference of their own to show support, saying it was their "unequivocal belief" that Michael has been made a victim of a cruel and obvious attempt to take advantage of his fame and wealth." The police then began an investigation into Evan Chandlers's prior actions and found that he was $68,400 behind in his child support payments, even though he was well-paid as a dentist. On November 8, police searched the Jackson family home, Hayvenhurst, but found nothing of importance to add to their investigation.
In the winter of 1993, despite not seeing or speaking to Jackson for a number of years, La Toya Jackson claimed that her brother was a pedophile and that she had proof, which she was prepared to disclose for a fee of $500,000. A bidding war between US and UK tabloids began, but fell through when they realized that her revelations were not what she had claimed them to be. Then in Israel, she stated, "I cannot and will not be a silent collaborator in his crimes against young children... Forget about the superstar, forget about the icon. If he was any other 35-year-old man who was sleeping with little boys, you wouldn't like this guy". She also claimed that check
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