Police Raid Jackson's Ranch......Again

Sheriff's investigators with a new search warrant raided Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch again Friday, just weeks before the pop star is scheduled to go on trial on charges of child molestation.

Authorities would not reveal why they returned more than a year after dozens of investigators first raided the country estate in the process of bringing charges against the recording star.

The search was conducted "as part of an ongoing criminal investigation," the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department said in a cryptic statement. Spokesman Sgt. Chris Pappas said investigators entered Neverland at 9 a.m. and remained there hours later.

Reached by phone, Jackson attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr. refused comment. District attorney's spokeswoman Susan Tellem would say only that the warrant was authorized by the court.

Attorneys on both sides of the case are barred from commenting by a court gag order.

Jackson, 46, was leaving Neverland when deputies arrived and did leave, said a source close to the family who spoke on condition of anonymity. The source said neither Jackson nor his representative were aware of what was being sought in the search.

Activity on the estate was not visible from the road outside. A sheriff's patrol car was parked inside Neverland's wooden gates.

A new search so late in the proceedings is very unusual, said a former federal prosecutor who has been following the Jackson case.

"It may mean that the witnesses they are preparing for trial now are remembering things at the ranch that they did not mention before," said Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School. "They may want to follow up on how certain things looked."

However, she said the search could also be a response to a dispute that has been going on between the prosecution and defense over the legal process known as discovery. The defense has been resisting turning over material to the prosecution, according to documents in the case.

If the search yields any physical evidence it could be of dubious value, Levenson said.

"At this stage, if they found anything, if I were Jackson's folks I'd say it was planted. So I'm not so convinced how valuable this would be," she said.

The late-stage search could bolster defense requests to delay the case, Levenson suggested.

"How do you go to trial in a case when they are still serving search warrants?" she said.

Neverland, set amid oak-studded emerald hills and horse ranches on the edge of Los Padres National Forest about 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles, was first searched on Nov. 18, 2003.

At least 60 investigators from the Sheriff's Department and county district attorney's office conducted that raid on the multimillion-dollar property in lush Santa Ynez Valley.

The theme park-like estate has a mansion, zoo and amusement park with bumper cars, a merry-go-round and Ferris wheel. Jackson hosted many children's parties there.

Jackson was originally charged in December 2003 on allegations of molesting a boy. Prosecutors then took the case to the grand jury, which issued a superseding indictment in April.

The pop star has pleaded not guilty to child molestation, conspiracy and administering an intoxicating agent, alcohol, to the alleged victim. Jackson's trial is scheduled to start Jan. 31.

In recent pretrial hearings, the judge turned down a bid by Jackson's defense to conduct psychological examinations of the alleged victim and his family.

The prosecution also objected to the extent of subpoenas in which Jackson's lawyers have sought information ranging from military records of the alleged victim's stepfather to family medical records.

The judge ruled that anyone whose records are sought would have time to file objections, but a prosecution request to be notified of all defense subpoenas was turned down.