The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, June 08, 2005, Page 4, Image 4
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NICK UT/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Michael Jackson fans decorate with heart-shaped messages in support of Jackson outside Neverland
Ranch in Los Olivos, Calif., Tuesday. The jury finished its second full day of deliberations.
Jackson supporters face end
of colorful courthouse loyalty
By RYAN PEARSON
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
SANTA MARIA, Calif. — They
come from down the road and
overseas. They dance to Michael
Jacksons songs, write their own
lyrics proclaiming his innocence,
date each other, even lose their jobs
for the cause.
A verdict in the Jackson case will
end not only the circus-like trial
but also the noisy and colorful
gatherings of fans who stand
outside court to shout their
support for the pop star.
It has been a 4 1/2-month-long
gathering as quirky as Jackson
himself.
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completed its second full of
deliberations without a verdict,
100 fans milled about, sometimes
singing along to Jackson songs
from a boom box and hoisting
signs such as one that read, “Don’t
Mess With MJ Fans.”
A woman sat with a box of 11
doves she planned to release in the
afternoon — one for each of the
counts against Jackson, plus one.
Others chanted “Michael!
Innocent!” One woman led a line
of about a dozen children dressed
in black pants, white shirts and
black ties. They performed a song
that included the line “We came to
support Michael Jackson.”
Followers of the entertainer
“meet some wonderful people,”
said fan and London resident
Sudhir Kumra. “You get to meet
some scary people as well. But
that’s Michael Jackson, and he
draws people from all over.”
Kumra, 37, said he shelled out
more than $700 for a last-minute
flight to California.
Nearly every day when court
recessed, many of the fans piled
into cars and sped 30 miles to
Jackson’s Neverland ranch to greet
the entertainer’s convoy of SUVs.
Jackson would wave and
sometimes stop to say hello.
After the first full day of
deliberations ended Monday
afternoon, about 50 Jackson
backers made the trip to
Neverland’s well-guarded gates,
which are adorned with red paper
hearts and red and white bunting.
Messages of support are written
on hearts tacked to the estates low
wood fences. Kim Newell of
Melbourne, Australia, wrote:
“Thank you for everything.
Vindication is nearly here.”
A few dozen fans held hands in a
circle and prayed in the driveway.
“He will not lose, not one thing
that he has worked for,” said
Goward Horton, a 24-year-old who
led the prayer. “Not this ranch, not
his children, not anything. The devil
will be defeated.”
Later, an SUV with doors open
blasted “Thriller,” “Billie Jean” and
“Smooth Criminal” as Horton and
others mimicked Jacksons dance
moves on the winding two-lane
road lined with horse ranches and
green and yellow hills.
One of those watching was
Rebecca Reza, 25, who leads a
Jackson fan club. She drove 18
hours from El Paso, Texas, after
taking off from her job.