I have to say that, despite my general hunch that Michael Jackson is not a child abuser (which I mentioned at the beginning of the trial), the verdict surpised me. And, in many ways, pleased me, not least because it shows that American juries can actually take decisions that don’t involve a thought process along the lines of ‘Ooh, it looks like he’s messed with kids. I don’t care about the evidence, if he’s messed with kids he should go down.’ Which is, largely, how I thought this might play out. Though I thought they’d convict him on the giving alcohol to a minor charge, rather than the full whammy. I think that a custodial sentence would have been largely unhelpful – but those who read this blog often enough will know that this is my opinion in many (if not most) cases, whether the defendent is found guilty or not guilty. But that’s not the argument I’m having right now. Michael Jackson has been found not guilty on all ten counts against him, and that decision should be respected.

Now we have to be concerned about Gavin Arvizo. Assuming (as we should and must) that the jury’s verdict is correct, then this fifteen year old boy has been living a very public lie for months, and possibly years. He’ll be hated by many Jackson fans, and his family quite possibly slated in the press. And yet, he’s got to somehow grow up as a ‘normal’ person. I don’t envy him, and I only hope that he gets the support he needs during the remainder of his formative years.

As for Jackson, I hope that he too seeks the psychological (and physical) help that it would appear to me that he needs, and that he recovers from the immense stress he’s been put through during this trial as a result of the false allegations.