Michael Jackson Fans Sue Leaving Neverland Accusers In France
A few Michael Jackson fan clubs have sued Wade Robson and James Safechuck, the subjects of the HBO documentary Leaving Neverland, in a court in Orleans, France today, as Reuters reports.
The three groups — The Michel Jackson Community, the MJ Street and On the Line — are suing for symbolic damages of 1 euro for “sullying [Jackson’s] image” after detailing their allegations of sexual abuse in the documentary.
The fan clubs are represented by lawyer Emmanuel Ludot, who won a similar case in France in 2014 when Jakcson fans were awarded symbolic damages of 1 euro from a lawsuit against Dr. Conrad Murray, the doctor who supplied Jackson with drugs before his death. They alleged they had suffered emotional damages following the pop star’s overdose.
These types of lawsuits are filed in France because the country’s defamation law extends protections beyond death, while the courts in the U.S. and Britain do not.
A judgement in the case will be delivered on 10/4.