Bombshell Testimony from Chris Tucker Paints Accuser as Cunning – MB#270

Bombshell Testimony from Chris Tucker Paints Accuser as Cunning – MB#270 JUNE 1 2005 – With closing arguments scheduled to begin this week in the Michael Jackson trial, the media is in full spin mode thanks to some of those who are scared to death their broadcast future and TV face-time will dry up after this trial. Suddenly the latest garbage reports revolve around a “report” from “Wacko Ortho”, i.e. Vanity Fair’s Maureen Orth. Not to mention the contingent in the media known as the “cacklin’ heffas” with such self-obsessed “luminaries” as tabloid report Diane Dimond, Kimberly Guilfoyle-Newsome, Nancy “dis”Grace, including that noisy little chihuahua, Maureen Orth. None of these people saw fit to highlight some of the most explosive testimony that has come out in trial without trying to discredit it in some way. One thing the media apparently aspires to do but can’t really accomplish is to conceal the facts forever. Continuing to break down specific elements often overlooked (purposely or not) by most of the media, we turn to actor/comedian Chris Tucker’s testimony. Tucker testified in the Jackson trial over the course of 2 days from May 24-25 2005. His testimony must have given the pro-prosecution broadcast pundits a heart attack. His testimony went right at the behavior of the Arvizo brothers; the cunning and manipulative way they behaved long before they had ever met Jackson. Much later in his testimony, Tucker admitted that he began to think Gavin Arvizo (Gavin A. or G. Arvizo), himself, was cunning and confirms that the little….*expletive removed*…. would ask him for money. Apparently his brother Star Arvizo was so smooth that, Tucker testified, he would almost feel like checking the younger Arvizo’s pockets before they’d leave his house. And, yeah, they logged time at Tucker’s house too. But he says he would always fail to act as a disciplinarian in response to such behavior because he felt sorry for and wanted to help Gavin Arvizo; the former cancer patient. Besides, he couldn’t very well go around accusing the “little” brother of something. Tucker, too, became an easy mark, but didn’t have the deep pockets of Jackson. Tucker is part of a string of witnesses who testified as to the disruptive and terrible behavior of the accuser. But you may not have known this by listening to a certain delusional sect of talking heads whose jobs it seems is to downplay most of the defense bombshells by building up the prosecution. __How in hell did they meet all these celebs?_ The question that many have asked is just how in the world did this family ‘just so happen’ to meet all of these celebrities? It appears they sought out contact with these celebs by using the G. Arvizo’s illness. They knew so many celebrities, that they actually introduced one to another: Tucker met Jackson through Gavin Arvizo. Ain’t that ironic? Tucker originally met Arvizo at Jamie Masada’s comedy club The Laugh Factory with the accuser’s biological father, David Arvizo, at a benefit. According to Tucker, that particular benefit was for a camp of kids who wanted to act and tell jokes. Yeah, apparently the accuser wants to be an actor…….some would argue that he’s playing the role of a lifetime right now. But I digress. This one benefit was apparently to raise money for Arvizo, because Tucker later testifies that that’s what he was told. The money raised was supposed to pay for what Trucker thought were medical bills, et cetera. A few days later, Tucker testified, Gavin Arvizo told him that the benefit didn’t make any money. Gavin A. himself asked Tucker for money under the allegation that the benefit didn’t raise any money. He had his hand out under the allegation the benefit was a complete bust. Tucker says he wired them $1500 or more as a result. From the court transcript:

MESEREAU: And explain that, if you would. TUCKER: I was asked a few days later to give some money, because they didn’t raise any money. They didn’t make any money. So I did. I wired some money to their foundation. MESEREAU: Okay. Who told you they hadn’t raised any money at the benefit? TUCKER: Gavin told me, and his father — well, Gavin told me. Gavin told me. MESEREAU: So Gavin told you they didn’t make a dime at that fund-raiser? TUCKER: Yeah, they said they didn’t make any money, and they needed some money. They couldn’t — you know, they needed some money. So — MESEREAU: And you then wired them some money? TUCKER: Yeah, I wired them some money. MESEREAU: How much did you send them; do you know? TUCKER: It was probably 1500 or more. MESEREAU: Okay. And you believe that was for medical expenses? TUCKER: Yes, I was hoping it was for that. (2-22 pg 11920)

Gavin A. is the one who told him that no money was raised at the fundraiser and asked Tucker to send money. Whether or not money was actually raised at that benefit remains to be seen. He was at Tucker’s house when he made the request, by the way. More from the transcript:

MESEREAU: Mr. Tucker, yesterday, you testified that Gavin Arvizo called you after the one fund-raiser you attended, told you that no money had been raised, and that because of what he said, you sent him $1500 or more, right? TUCKER: Yes. But he was over my house when he asked for the money. MESEREAU: It wasn’t on the phone? 11944 TUCKER: It wasn’t on the phone. (21-28, 1 (pg 11944-11945))

Tucker says G. Arvizo was “real sad-looking” when he told Tucker the fundraiser was unsuccessful and asked Tucker for money. Mesereau asked Tucker on the stand if he was suspicious of what Arvizo was telling him and Tucker replied, “Yes, but I was always thinking I was helping him, so I just did it.” Tucker says during this earlier time, he’d only see the father with the Arvizo brothers. He says at one point he even took them to Knotts Berry Farm and shopping. Tucker says he took them to Knotts Berry Farms because he wanted them to have a good time. Remember Gavin A. was a recovering cancer patient at that time. On this trip were Tucker, Tucker’s son, David Arvizo (biological father), Gavin, Star, and Davellin Arvizo, and Azja Pryor. __Holy terrors: On the set with the Arvizos__ Tucker met Janet Arvizo in 2001 in Las Vegas on the set of a movie he was shooting. He says his early conversations with her were brief because he was filming the movie and probably had a hectic schedule. He did confirm that he paid for everything while they were in Vegas. In fact, he says he was so busy that it had to be brought to his attention the family had stayed way past the length of time he thought they would. Tucker says he found out later that people on the set were trying to get them to leave. From the transcripts:

MESEREAU: To your knowledge, did they stay very long? TUCKER: To my knowledge, I heard they stayed a while, and they was — they was trying to get them to leave, but I didn’t know because I was so busy. That they did stay a couple of — a week or two. I don’t know. MESEREAU: And you say they were trying to get them to leave. Who are you talking about? … BY MR. MESEREAU: To your knowledge, did the6 Arvizo family remain on the set while you were filming? TUCKER: Only the kids, they came. The father — I think they came with the father, and they was on the set for a while, and then they was doing stuff around town, but they was on the set a few times, yes. (14-21…25-28 |1-4 pg 11923-11924)

It was on the movie set in Las Vegas that Tucker first talked to Jackson on the phone. Tucker explains:

TUCKER: I was on the set of one of my movies in Las Vegas, and Gavin told me that he talked to one of Michael’s people, and it was — possibly he was going to call the next day and we’d talk on the phone, because he knew I was a fan of Michael’s, I guess, and I told him that would be fine. And we talked on the next day. Michael was on the phone in my trailer, I went to my trailer and I talked to him, and that’s when we talked. (21-28, 1 (pg 11949-11950))

Tucker confirmed that most of the time, his contact was with Gavin A. who would tell him things and make certain request of him. Tucker admitted that he considered Gavin A. to be rather sophisticated. Not at all like the ‘sad little naïve victim’ the prosecution tried to sell the jury. He described Gavin A., particularly, as being “cunning at times” but says he would overlook his behavior because he felt sorry for him; like a number of other people. From the transcripts:

MESEREAU: And explain what you mean by that. TUCKER: He was really smart, and he was cunning at times, but I always overlooked it because I felt sorry for him. But I knew he was — he was a little kid, but he was cunning. And his brother Star was definitely cunning. MESEREAU: When you say “cunning,” explain what you’re saying. TUCKER: Always say stuff like, “Chris, let me have this. Let me have this. Let me get this. Come on, I’m not feeling good,” stuff like that. And I knew it was going a little too far, but I always said, “He’s sick,” you know, “He’s got a lot of problems, family problems,” so I always just overlooked it. (6-20 (pg 11966))

He was clearly playing Tucker, probably much like he played Jackson and many other people. Jackson has had thousands of children come to Neverland and enjoy his ranch, free of charge, on a regular basis. And hearing requests like ‘oh give me this, I’m not feeling good,’ would have certainly affected a number of people including Jackson. __Culmination of Florida trip is revealed__ One of the huge points made by Tucker’s testimony is that Gavin A. is the one who called him saying the media was hounding the family. Gavin A. is also the one who asked for Tucker to help the family find Jackson, which culminated in the Miami trip in 2003. The Arvizos previously testified that it was Jackson who called them, told them their lives were in danger, and arranged for them to be flown to Florida to do a press conference. Well that turned out to be a complete lie. Apparently the family found out Jackson was in Florida and wanted to be where he was. It was at Gavin A.’s contact with Tucker which made that Florida trip happen. It was Gavin A’s request that caused Tucker to fly the family to Miami. They didn’t’ fly on Michael Jackson’s private jet. They flew on a private plane chartered and paid for by Tucker. He described that initial phone call:

TUCKER: Well, that was part of the — they — Gavin called, and they wanted to — to — they couldn’t get around. The media was following them around. And they wanted to — to find Michael. They wanted to go out of town to find Michael. And I said, “Okay.” I was trying to help them so they can get around and to get out of town so they can, you know, be left alone. MESEREAU: And Gavin told you they wanted to be with Michael? TUCKER: Yeah. They was looking for Michael and they wanted to find him and they wanted to go — and they found out he was in Miami some kind of way and they wanted to go to Miami. (3-12 (pg 11962))

Mesereau then introduced evidence, Exhibit 451, showing that there was in fact 2 calls from Jay Jackson’s house (where the Arvizos were staying) to Tucker’s number on Feb 4 2003. This is a day BEFORE the mother testified Jackson called her asking them to be in a press conference. Not only does this prove they initiated contact with Tucker, but it also proves that they weren’t being “kidnapped” and “held hostage” at Neverland. They’re not at Neverland, but at Jay Jackson’s house. Tucker says he was going out of town so he let the Arvizo’s basically hitch a ride with him to Florida. Jackson is actually charged with a count of conspiracy alleging he’s the one who arranged for the family to fly to Florida — after telling them their lives were in danger — to do a press conference. The allegation comes from Janet Arvizo, who has used any set of circumstances she can against Jackson, in cooperation with her spawn. Tucker says he responded to Gavin A.’s request by saying “come over and you guys can fly with me…I’ll try to charter a plane, and you guys can fly with me and go to Miami” (13-16 pg 11965). On that plane trip was Gavin, Star, Janet and Davellin Arvizo. He also says they were a little sleepy because it was late, but that they were “happy and was excited to go” (8-9 pg 11967). He testified they were “relieved” to get away from California. Happy? That’s certainly not what they testified to. But why did Tucker agree to take them to Florida in the first place? The family knew how to play on Tucker’s sympathies apparently. More from the transcript:

MESEREAU: Okay. Now, what did you say to Gavin when he told you the media was hounding his family after the airing of the Bashir documentary? TUCKER: I told him, you know, I felt sorry for him and I told him if there was anything I could do, I’d try to do something, but — MESEREAU: And did he make any request of you? TUCKER: You know, he was always complaining about they couldn’t get around. And that’s what made me say, “Okay. I’ll try to do what I can to try to get them transportation.” But — I was very cautious with that, but — that’s when I was like, “They can’t get around. The media’s around them.” So that’s what made me say, “I’ll try to give them a car or something.” MESEREAU: You think you made that offer in the year 2003? TUCKER: I think so, yes. MESEREAU: Because they said they had no way to drive around? TUCKER: Yes. (15-28 | 1-7 (11954-11955))

And now we have a valid reason why they wanted to go someplace else in Feb 2003. It wasn’t Jackson’s prosecution-alleged “henchmen” doing the hounding. It was the media hot on the trail of a kid whom they probably wanted to turn into a “victim” of Jackson’s. Even before this trip to Florida, when they were at Tucker’s house, Tucker says he had a weird conversation with Janet Arvizo. She was “frantically crying”. From the transcript:

MESEREAU: Okay. Now, before you went to the airport with them, do you recall having a discussion with Janet Arvizo at your home? TUCKER: Yes. MESEREAU: And what was that about? TUCKER: That’s the point that I was — I was going to give her this truck, the loaner, this truck to drive, but I got real uncomfortable when I was getting ready to loan the truck because she started frantically crying, like — not crying like something normal, but it was like something was wrong with her. And I got really, really — something in my spirit just didn’t feel right about it, and I felt — I said, “Oh, I’m going too far,” because –and I knew she was — something mentally wasn’t right. So I gave her the keys. But then I didn’t feel — I didn’t feel comfortable about it at all. … MESEREAU: But you say she was acting kind of crazy? TUCKER: She started acting frantically, like mentally something wasn’t right. And then I was, like, — MESEREAU: Do you remember what she said? TUCKER: She was just, like, you know, “Chris,” you know, “you like a brother,” and the “brother” thing again, and crying and — just frantically crying and stuff. And then I was, like, “Something” — you know, “Something ain’t right,” you know. (1-18…23-28 (pg 11968) | 1-5 (pg 11969))

Further, in direct contradiction to the mother’s testimony, Tucker says she was excited to go to Florida to see Jackson. If you remember, she also alleged that Jackson’s people were trying to keep the family away from watching the American broadcast version of the Bashir hatchet-job of a documentary. He says no one gave him the impression that they were going to Florida against their will either. It’s a wonder why the prosecution didn’t try to claim that Tucker was an alleged co-conspirator. When in Florida, Tucker says he met up with his brother at the airport and went to the Turnberry Hotel where they stayed during that trip. All of these arrangements were made by Tucker, by the way. Tucker was with the Arvizo kids when they were looking for Jackson in Florida. They finally tracked down Jackson and went up to his room to say hello, according to Tucker’s testimony. After they said their hellos, Tucker says he later had a discussion with Jackson about the Arvizo family. He says he actually warned Jackson to “watch out for Janet” because he “felt suspicious about her.” From the transcript:

MESEREAU: And did you discuss the Arvizos with him? TUCKER: We did. I did. MESEREAU: What did you say? TUCKER: Later on I did. I just told him to watch out for Janet because I felt suspicious about her. MESEREAU: And did you tell Michael Jackson why you were suspicious about Janet Arvizo? TUCKER: Yeah, because — and she even made me more suspicious later on. But first, like I said, I gave her the keys. I — at that point I knew something wasn’t right. And then I was trying to talk to Michael. She kept interrupting, like — and I was like — I didn’t know why she was doing it. And then I just — I tried to pull Michael in the room, and I said, “You need to watch out. Just be careful.” And then — that was really brief, and then I left. (14-28 | 1-3 (pg 11971-11972))

Tucker testified the conversation between he and Jackson was so brief because the kids were all over the place and because Jackson himself was just very busy; in Tucker’s words, “it was always somebody pulling at him” (7-8, pg 11972). Even after the Miami trip, Tucker says he heard from the kids asking about the keys to a truck he had originally promised the family. Apparently Arvizo either lost or left the keys in Miami which Tucker gave her to appease her. Remember the timeline. While they’re claiming to have been “held hostage” at Neverland, they’re calling Tucker trying to get that truck. They never say anything to him about being threatened and held hostage. Tucker also says he felt like the mother was putting the G. Arvizo up to asking for that truck. From the transcript:

MESEREAU: Okay. Did Gavin continue to call you after you got back from Florida? TUCKER: Yes. MESEREAU: And did you continue to talk to Gavin? TUCKER: Yes. MESEREAU: And did Gavin ever ask you for any more financial assistance? … TUCKER: They was constantly calling for the truck. And I felt like the mother was making them call for the truck because it was getting on my nerves. (17-23 | 1-4 (pg 11978-11979))

Well that certainly wasn’t an answer the prosecution wanted to hear because Sneddon immediately objected and the judge, surprise, surprise, struck Tucker’s answer from the record. Again, there is evidence of the accuser himself asking for this truck most likely at the behest of Janet Arvizo. More on that truck to be discussed later. __Truck requests help solidify suspicions__ You may be familiar with the truck story through Azja Pryor’s testimony, and as mentioned above. She says at some point there was a discussion with Tucker about a truck being given to the Arvizos. Tucker, like Pryor who testified before him, says members of the Arvizo family would constantly hound both him and her about getting that truck. He says “the kids kept calling, asking her [Pryor] for these keys for the truck” (5-6 p 11948). Tucker testified that at first he offered the truck to them but pulled back because of his mounting suspicions, or as he puts it: “I got a little nervous” (20-21 pg 11948). He later expanded his explanation. From the transcripts:

BY MR. MESEREAU: Did you ever decide not to give a truck to the Arvizos? TUCKER: Yes. MESEREAU: Why? TUCKER: Because I got a little suspicious and nervous, and I thought I was doing too much. I said — I said, “No.” MESEREAU: Who did you say “No” to? TUCKER: I said it to my son’s mother after the fact that I offered it. But then I changed my mind. MESEREAU: Okay. And you never gave any member of the Arvizo family any automobile? TUCKER: No. (27-28 | 1-11 (11948-11949))

The Arvizo kids’ hounding him about the truck is just one thing that made Tucker suspicious of the family. His reservations echoed Mark Geragos’s, and other people around Jackson, as well as the obnoxious Jay Leno – whether he wanted to admit it or not. It’s not simply happenstance that a number of people became suspicious of this family at some point or another. Tucker even testified he knew Jackson lent them a vehicle to use by that time in 2003, but G. Arvizo was still telling him they had no way to get around town. Tucker admitted those circumstances are what made him wary also. But again, he’d overlook it because of Arvizo’s illness. He’d try to make excuses for Gavin A.; thinking maybe the vehicle Jackson lent them broke down or something. At one point during his direct testimony, Tucker was asked if anything else made him distrustful of this family. To which, Tucker says: “I think they did a lot of things that I didn’t see that my people were telling me to watch out” (18-20 pg 11955). That could very well be the same situation going on around Jackson. There were a number of things Tucker failed to act upon because, he says, he felt sorry for the Gavin A. From the transcript:

TUCKER: I observed a lot of stuff, but I always — you know, I always gave it the benefit of the doubt, because I felt sorry for Gavin and I always wanted to try to help him and I let a lot of stuff just go by. But I knew what they was talking about. (13-17 (pg 11956))

This could also be a reason why some of the staff at Jackson’s Neverland Ranch didn’t recommend that Jackson toss the disruptive pair out on their asses. This kid was, at one point, days away from dying. So, like Tucker, many people did feel sorry for him. Tucker gives an example of what concerned him but he also offers a reason why he didn’t do anything about it. He took Mesereau back to the set of his Las Vegas movie though his testimony. He said the family was at one point trying to move into his hotel room; another thing that sent up the red flag of suspicion. Tucker testified:

TUCKER: Well, they stayed for a long time in Las Vegas, but, like I said, I was working, you know. But they stayed. They wanted to move to my hotel, and they wanted the same room I had and stuff. I was getting all this information, but I was so busy. So I knew about that, and I knew about Gavin wouldn’t sit down on the set and all this stuff. But I knew how Gavin was, and I just wanted him to have fun and be — to be a kid, or whatever. (20-28 (pg 11956))

This isn’t the first time the public has heard about the Arvizos wanting to move into someone else’s house or place. According to previous reports, the Arvizos wanted to move into Neverland at one point, and have Jackson pay for the tutoring of the children. They also reportedly wanted to move in with actress Vernee Watson-Johnson. As mentioned previously, Tucker paid for their Las Vegas visit to the set. Also discussed previously, Mesereau asked him if he remembers how long they stayed. Tucker said, “It had to be weeks.” He was then asked point blank by Mesereau if he thought he was being taken advantage of, and was asked to describe some of Gavin A.’s behavior on the set. More from the court transcripts:

MESEREAU: Did you think they were taking advantage of you? TUCKER: I was hoping they wasn’t. I was hoping they wasn’t, but, you know, when it got back to me, yeah, that’s what it looked like. But I was hoping they wasn’t. MESEREAU: You mentioned Gavin’s behavior on the set. Please describe what you’re talking about. TUCKER: He just — just — just bad, you know, being bad, being like a little kid. And people — you know, the director was telling me, you know, it was time for them to leave, they got to go. But I was like being naive, still being naive, you know, “This kid, let him have some fun.” But everybody was saying the same thing, so it was — it was getting, you know, that we couldn’t hardly film, because they wouldn’t know it was time to — for action, I mean, “Be quiet. We got to do a scene.” So it got a little out of hand. (8-26 (p 11957))

The Arvizo’s taking advantage of someone? Oh no say it ain’t so! There are a string of people who didn’t want to believe they were being taken advantage of either; both Jackson and Tucker being two of them. Like Jackson, Tucker says the family began referring to him as part of their family. If you remember, the family alleged Jackson told them to start calling him “daddy”. Now we have corroboration from another witness that they tried to run the same game on him. Tucker testified, “She just was frantically always saying I was their brother and all that stuff, and that she loved me and all this stuff” (1-3 pg 11960). Tucker then described his reaction to this behavior:

MESEREAU: And what was your reaction to that? TUCKER: I was — you know, I was getting a little nervous, because, you know, my whole thing was to just help the kid, not to get attached to the whole family. Not like that. Because I just wanted to make his life a little easier. So I said, you know, I need to watch myself because I know, you know, I’m high-profile, you know, I got to be careful, because sometimes when people see what you got and what you — you know, they’ll take advantage of you. So I tried to be careful and tried to pull back a little bit. (4-15 (pg 11960))

He was getting “nervous”? He didn’t want to “get attached to the whole family”? Obviously, Tucker’s radar went up, just like the obnoxious Jay Leno’s radar. For all we know Jackson’s radar went up as well, if not too late. Jackson, like Tucker, may have tried to pull back too. If you remember, Azja Pryor testified that Janet Arvizo complained she and her family were being kept away from Jackson. This may have been an illustration of Jackson pulling back from the family. After a while, this “brother” moniker started to get Tucker more nervous than he already was. According to Tucker, Gavin A. would say “You’re like a big brother”, and would often tell Tucker he loved him. He talked about one episode where Janet Arvizo was “frantically” reacting, calling Tucker the “brother” and Jackson the “father”. He also says Gavin A. was repeating the same thing. To quote Tucker:

“He was repeating the same thing. It was – it was – she was saying ‘father’, and Gavin was saying ‘father’ and he was saying I was a brother and it was just getting to be a bit too much” (9-12 pg 11974).

One can only wonder who else filled the role of ‘father’ and ‘brother’ before Jackson and Tucker. __Jackson’s whereabouts?__ Tucker testified that before 2003 he had probably been to Neverland 5 or 6 times. However, he’d only seen Jackson at Neverland once or twice during his visits. This seems to be an underlying pattern yet to be fully highlighted. People are in and out of Jackson’s Neverland ranch either without his knowing it or without him even being there. Under questioning by Mesereau:

MESEREAU: Before 2003, how many times do you think you had been to Neverland? TUCKER: Probably five. Five, six times. … MESEREAU: And was Michael Jackson always at Neverland when you visited? TUCKER: No. MESEREAU: How many times do you recall seeing Michael Jackson at Neverland before the year 2003? TUKER: Once or twice. (2-4, 12-17 (pg 11951))

Azja Pryor testified that she’s been to Neverland repeatedly and she’s never even met Jackson. As a matter of fact, Jackson was in Nevada for about a month before and up to the day his Neverland ranch was ransacked by the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Dept. Nov 2003. His 12 year old cousin Rijo Jackson was asked by he didn’t tell Jackson of some of the terrible things the Arvizo brothers were doing. His response was because a lot of times Jackson wasn’t at the ranch. __If you like to make a call, please hang up and try again__ There was another call Tucker made to the Arvizos by accident. He says about a year of two ago, he was going through some old note pads in the process of throwing away non-working numbers. To his surprise, he called that number and Janet Arvizo picked up the phone. He testified that the call only lasted a few seconds. He says “I said, ‘Gavin’, and he said, ‘Chris’. Like real happy, like, to hear from me, because he hadn’t heard from me for a long time” (24-26 pg 11980). Tucker says when the accuser said “Hey, Chris” he then heard Janet Arvizo in the background order him to “Get off that phone – now” (28- 1 pg 11980-11981) at that point, Gavin A. hung up without saying another word. Why not sever all ties? One question media pundits ask is if these people were so suspicious of the family, why didn’t they cut off contact? The answer seems to be two-fold: 1) they still feel sorry for Gavin Arvizo; and 2) They were afraid of what this family would do if they were abruptly kicked to the curb. Tucker said he didn’t immediately cut all ties with this family out of concern of what they may attempt to pull with him. According to the transcript:

MESEREAU: And despite your growing suspicions, you continued to be nice to them, correct? TUCKER: Yes. MESEREAU: Why? TUCKER: Because, you know, I still wanted to — you know, to — I just didn’t want to just — totally just cut them off, because I didn’t know what they would do. So I tried to ease my way away, because I started to find out all these problems they had. And they never told me about these things. So I was like — my friends was warning me, but — and now I was finding out from my son’s mother and from other — MR. SNEDDON: Object as a narrative. THE COURT: Sustained. 28 | 1-14 (12048-12049)

For all Tucker knew, this family may have tried to make allegations against him at some point. So he definitely had a right to be wary and play it cool. Tucker says he didn’t know about the $152,000 JC Penney settlement nor did he know about the bank accounts set up with thousands of dollars in it for the children as a result of that lawsuit. Tucker was never told about Jay Jackson supporting the family either. Jay Jackson was making $80,000 a year. Mesereau continued to make the point about the family, sans the biological father, through Tucker’s testimony by continuing to go down the list of things this family has done:

MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not the mother was getting welfare at the time she was being supported by Jay Jackson? TUCKER: No. MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not the Arvizos were raising money from other celebrities? TUCKER: No. MESEREAU: Now, at some point you said you learned they were calling every comedian in town, right? TUCKER: Yes. MESEREAU: When did you learn that? TUCKER: Later on, in the media. MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not they were asking other comedians in town for financial assistance? TUCKER: No. MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not George Lopez was arranging a fund-raiser for them? TUCKER: No. MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not they were getting free benefits from an acting school — or dancing school? Excuse me. TUCKER: No. No. MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not they were telling people they were homeless? TUCKER: No. MESEREAU: Did you know whether or not Janet hired lawyers to defraud J.C. Penney? TUCKER: No. (14-28 | 1-13 (pg 12050 – 12051))

Mesereau then brought Gavin A.’s behavior right home, again, through Tucker’s testimony. Under redirect, he was asked by Mesereau when did he begin to think Gavin was cunning. Remember, this was mentioned near the beginning of this MJEOL Bullet. Anyway, Tucker says there would just be “little things that he would say,” that caused him to both feel sorry for and see him as cunning. Tucker also really lays into Star Arvizo, the accuser’s brother. He says the younger brother “would say stuff all the time like, ‘You got too much stuff.’ And, ‘you don’t need all this stuff’ “ (25-27 pg 12051). He admits he would always ignore whatever doubts he had because he thought he was helping a kid with cancer. But of Star, Tucker says he “would always say cunning stuff,” and he almost felt like he should “check his pockets” before Star A. would leave his house. He also flat out said that he never really trusted Star A. but, again, he’d let certain suspicions go because he wanted to continue to help Gavin A. The defense also asked Tucker to explain what he meant when he earlier called the mother “possessed.” Before a prosecution objection, Tucker says Jackson Arvizo acted like a woman with mental problems and that the kids were ashamed to even talk about her. From the transcript:

MESEREAU: Now, you said the mother was possessed, in your mind, right? TUCKER: Yes. I thought — MESEREAU: What did you mean by “possessed”? TUCKER: Just — she had some mental problems. And I remember the kids always — you know, they was always ashamed to talk about her, and always — SNEDDON: Your Honor, I’m going to object to the question. Calls for a conclusion, speculation, the way it’s phrased. THE COURT: I’ll leave in that part of the answer that she had some mental problems and strike the rest of the answer. (9-22 (pg 12052))

Mesereau then asked Tucker again about that phone bill he introduced as evidence. Under cross-examination, the prosecution tried their damnedest to trip Tucker up concerning that phone bill with the info about the Feb 4 2003 call from the Arvizos. So Mesereau ask if Tucker regularly analyses his phone bills. Tucker replied, “No”. As a matter of fact, he says his phone bill normally goes straight to his business people, who are paid to handle such tasks. He says he had about 4 different landlines, and about 2 call phone lines. Obviously, the defense is rebutting prosecution attempts to paint tucker as evasive. Tucker’s testimony was beyond devastating to the prosecution’s allegations. Since his contact with the family was mainly through Gavin A. and sometimes with Star A., he was in a position to talk about how they acted around him and about what they asked for. In the end, it was Gavin who told Tucker no money was raised at that initial fundraiser where Tucker first met him. It was Gavin who asked Tucker for money. It was Gavin who Tucker says would ask him for things while subtly remind him that he “didn’t feel good”. It was Gavin who called Tucker saying the media — not Jackson’s employees — who were hounding the family. It was Gavin who called Tucker and asked him to help the family find Jackson. It was Gavin who called him repeatedly asking him about that promised truck. It was Gavin and Star who were holy terrors on the set of Tucker’s movie in Las Vegas before they had ever met Jackson. And it was Gavin who, echoing his mother, constantly referring to Tucker as a big brother and to Jackson as a father. Tucker became suspicious of the family. He was so concerned that he started pulling away from the family. He was so suspicious that he actually took Jackson aside, and warned him about the mother, months before the allegations. And no amount of spin, shilling for the prosecution, or trying to come up with more inanely ridiculous allegations is going to change that. One thing they can’t fathom is that this non-black Santa Maria jury may be on the verge of acquitting Jackson on all charges. And all of the help they extended to the prosecution – the leaking of only certain testimony from the grand jury, the leaking of information to glorified tabloid reporters, etc. — throughout this trial will go up in smoke. Stay tuned. -MJEOL