Paris Jackson video testimony airs in court
The nanny Michael Jackson hired to look after his three children was "obsessed" with the King of Pop and would even climb into his bed, according to the superstar's daughter Paris.
The teenager made the revelations during a pre-recorded video testimony which was shown in court on Tuesday (18Jun13) as part of the Jackson family's wrongful death trial against concert promoters AEG Live.
During the deposition, taped on 21 March (13), a lively Paris
Jackson claimed her father was not a fan of live-in nanny Grace
Rwaramba, saying, "My dad didn't like her, so he tried to keep her
away from us. So he'd send her to run errands a lot."
The singer repeatedly fired her, only to let her return because he
"felt bad 'cause she didn't really have a lot of money", but the
superstar shared his reservations about Rwaramba with his daughter
and her brothers Prince Michael and Blanket: "He said she was
sneaky. She wasn't an honest person, and she lied a lot."
Paris went on to describe one "really creepy" incident with the
nanny, recalling, "One time... I think it was when me and my
brother (Prince Michael) were really, really young, before Blanket
was born... when (Michael Jackson) would stay at a hotel, she would
call the hotel and say that she was his wife. She was obsessed with
him. And they'd let her in, and he'd wake up, and she'd be, like,
in his bed. That's what he told us."
Lawyers for AEG aired the video testimony in court to challenge
evidence given by Jackson's former personal chef, Kai Chase, who
claimed Rwaramba - who was fired for good two months before the
singer's June, 2009 death - was a mother figure for the children.
Chase, who is now employed by the King of Pop's mother Katherine,
was on the witness stand earlier this week (begs17Jun13) and
detailed the impact the superstar's sudden death had on his
children.
Paris Jackson's video appearance in court came just 13 days after
she was hospitalized following an apparent suicide attempt at her
Calabasas, California home.
Prosecutors working for Katherine Jackson and her fellow
plaintiffs, Paris, Prince Michael and Blanket, told the Los Angeles
judge overseeing the trial that the 15 year old was unavailable to
appear in person as she was still receiving treatment for her
personal troubles.
They are demanding damages for the superstar's wrongful death,
accusing AEG Live bosses of ignoring the tragic superstar's health
issues prior to his doomed This Is It comeback concerts.
The trial continues.