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Rowe turns tables on prosecution

Jackson's ex-wife, mother of his children, says she lied about his parenting skills in 2003, but was not coached, contrary to others' claims

BY TINA SUSMAN | STAFF CORRESPONDENT

April 28, 2005

SANTA MARIA, Calif. - In what appeared to be a major setback for prosecutors in Michael Jackson's child molestation trial, the singer's ex-wife yesterday insisted that a February 2003 video in which she praised Jackson's parenting skills was not scripted by Jackson associates seeking to rebut an earlier television documentary that had tarnished his image.

However, Deborah Rowe Jackson, as she identified herself in court, also acknowledged lying during portions of the video, specifically when talking about Jackson's qualities as a father to their two children.

But it was her testimony that she was not forced to do or say anything against her will that appeared to ring through the courtroom, coming days after prosecutors had fought for her inclusion in the case on grounds her testimony would include claims she was told exactly what to say and how to say it in the 182-minute video. That would mirror allegations made by the accuser's mother, who says a rebuttal video that she and her family made within days of Rowe's was heavily scripted by Jackson aides frantic to undo damage from the TV documentary "Living With Michael Jackson."

In the documentary, which prompted the current case, Jackson, now 46, stated that he shared his bed with children.

The testimony of Rowe, expected to be the final prosecution witness, was highly anticipated and had been seen as crucial to efforts to portray Jackson as a master manipulator who would stop at nothing to salvage his image. It was clear from the outset, though, that Rowe still has powerful feelings for the man who was her husband from 1997 to 1999, and whom she said she knew as a friend for 20 years before their marriage.

Rowe admitted the two never shared a home, but she wept as she described why she readily agreed to help Jackson after the airing of "Living With Michael Jackson," when the entertainer asked her to assist in damage control efforts. "I was excited to see Michael and the children when this was over," and excited about "possibly reconnecting" with Jackson, she said, adding that the call was the first time they had spoken since their divorce. "I'd promised I'd always be there for him and the children."

Under repeated pressing by prosecutor Ron Zonen, Rowe refused to say what prosecutors have alleged - that she made the video in exchange for promises of visitation with her daughter, Paris, and son, Prince Michael, who have lived with Jackson since 1999. Rowe made clear she expected that doing the video would lead to more contact with the children, but she would not say this was offered as incentive.

As for the video itself, Rowe said she refused offers to look over questions before it began because she did not want anyone to come back later and accuse her of having been coached - precisely what the prosecution says happened.

"As Mr. Jackson knows, no one can tell me what to say. I speak my mind," she said.

It was only when Zonen asked whether she had been honest during the video that Rowe provided the prosecution a scrap of what it wanted. After a long pause, she said, "No." Asked whether she had been dishonest in parts of the interview dealing with Jackson's parenting, she replied, "Yes." Court adjourned before Zonen could go into more detail.

Earlier, another witness seemed to provide less than prosecutors had hoped for when he conceded that he had seen no evidence of coaching by Jackson aides during the filming of a rebuttal video made by the accuser's family. Hamid Moslehi, who worked for years as Jackson's personal photography director, said in the hours he spent overseeing the making of the video, he saw nobody memorizing lines.

The video shows the accuser, 13 at the time, his mother and two siblings heaping praise on Jackson as a father figure and friend. The accuser's mother says everything from the giggles to the outtakes were choreographed by Jackson.