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Jackson goes to court to watch prosecutor sweat

Pop icon Michael Jackson, flanked by his famous musical family, made a dramatic court appearance on Monday to stare down the prosecutor pursuing him on child molestation charges.

The white-clad "King of Pop" came to watch his lawyer Thomas Mesereau grilling his arch-nemesis, Santa Barbara District Attorney Thomas Sneddon, on apparent contradictions in his testimony.

The Jackson clan arrived at the pre-trial hearing, which the superstar had not been required to attend, in a customized gold and black tour bus to the screams of around 300 waiting fans from across the globe.

"He was here to see Mr Sneddon get beat up," Jackson family lawyer Debra Opri told reporters of Jackson's day in court in the California town of Santa Maria.

"I think Mr Mesereau did a good job of letting Sneddon embarass himself," she said.

Jackson has accused Sneddon of waging a vendetta against him. Sneddon tried but failed to prosecute Jackson for child molestation in 1993, but the case collapsed when Jackson settled out of court with that boy.

Wearing a white suit with a gold armband and dark glasses, Jackson spent more than five hours in and around court.

With him were his parents, Joe and Katherine Jackson, his singing sisters LaToya and Janet and his brothers Jermaine, Randy and Jackie. The siblings were all swathed in white in a show of support for their brother.

"Innocent, innocent," chanted the fans, some of whom were dressed in Jackson-style garb. Many held placards defending their hero.

"If Michael Jackson is Peter Pan, then Thomas Sneddon is Captain Hook," proclaimed one poster, referring to the courtroom face-off between Jackson and Sneddon.
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