Jackson Acquittal No Surprise

A few weeks ago, I made a bold prediction in the newsroom.

I said if Michael Jackson was convicted of anything, I would buy lunch for the staff.

This is not necessarily because I believed he was innocent, just that he would be acquitted.

There is a difference between acquitted and innocent - especially in California.

(Remember O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake?)

I knew - I just knew - there was no way Santa Barbara County District Attorney Tom Sneddon could measure up against Jackson's defense team.

Sneddon just seemed, well, mean. I suppose that's not a bad attribute for a prosecutor, but he just came across as vindictive.

I think jurors felt like Sneddon was out to get Jackson or something.

That, coupled with the fact that the victim's mom was a bit of a freak, was a recipe for the King of Pop's not guilty verdicts.

Toward the end, I thought the jury, as a sort of slap on the wrist, might actually convict Jackson of providing alcohol to a minor.

I was worried about having to pick up the tab at the Pizza Hut buffet.

But in the end, the jury couldn't even in good conscience convict him of that. I suppose if they couldn't believe the testimony regarding molesting, they couldn't believe any other testimony, either.

I am sure Michael Jackson was duly relieved by the verdict. I don't think he would have made a very good prison inmate.

But you know, the big loser in this whole mess is the alleged victim.

Either way, the kid loses.

If Michael Jackson is guilty, the child is the victim of a molester.

If Michael Jackson is innocent, the child is the victim of sexual exploitation by his own mother.

I feel pretty bad for that kid.

What kind of parent lets their kid sleep in the same bed with a 40-something guy?

What kind of parent uses their kid's illness - in this case, cancer - to wrangle money out of celebrities?

It really is a sad commentary on how driven for wealth some people can become.

And if this unmitigated greed was the determining factor in swaying the jury away from a conviction, that is the saddest commentary of all.

Sneddon, in a press conference this past Wednesday, said that the alleged victim wasn't doing too well after the verdict.

"He's gone through a lot in his life. He's survived cancer, a very serious bout of cancer," Sneddon said. "He didn't necessarily want to get involved in this case. ... It was very painful for him to tell people what had happened to him.

"He's very down. He's having a difficult time understanding why people didn't believe him," Sneddon said.

They didn't believe him because his mom was such a headcase. And one must wonder why in the world Sneddon put her on the stand.

She was the one who turned jurors off by staring at them, snapping her fingers during testimony and winking at the jury foreman.

Again, I can only feel bad for the kid.

One thing the trial did is illuminate the twisted fascination we have with celebrities in this country.

But really, where else in the world could you see such a spectacle as the Michael Jackson trial?

From the moon dancing on the roof of the black SUV at the outset of the case, to the entourage with the designated umbrella carrier, to the photo-hungry mobs assembled outside, it was quite a freaky show.

There was Jackson's late arrivals, his frequent trips to the hospital, his garish clothing, his pancake makeup and lipstick, his gaunt, gray appearance and his apparently deteriorating health.

Jackson's lawyer, Thomas Mesereau Jr., intimated that his client would alter his behavior going forward.

He said the singer will no longer share his bed with young boys - not that there's anything wrong with that, of course - but because "he's not going to make himself vulnerable to this anymore."

All of this would lead anyone who took Psychology 101 to know this is a guy who is crying out for help.

Perhaps now, he'll get it.

Perhaps the trial convinced him to modify his behavior.

Jackson needs to stay away from kids. He needs to get counseling.

Certainly, we don't ever want to go through another trial. Certainly, we don't want to have to feel bad for any more alleged victims.