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While many of the same faces were seen in courtrooms in 2005, including Courtney Love, R. Kelly and DMX, the bulk of this year's media focus was devoted to three huge cases: Michael Jackson's child-molestation trial, Lil' Kim's perjury case and the federal money-laundering trial of Irving and Christopher Lorenzo, better known as hip-hop moguls the Gotti brothers.
Both Jackson and the Gottis were exonerated. Kim wasn't so fortunate, as she was convicted on three counts by a Manhattan jury in March and began serving out her year-and-a-day prison sentence on September 19 in a federal detention center just outside Philadelphia. Jail time didn't seem to affect Lil' Kim's record sales, though: Her new album The Naked Truth opened at #6 on the Billboard albums chart in October.
Jackson's full acquittal on 10 criminal counts — including lewd acts on a child under 14 and conspiracy to kidnap a child — came on June 13, ending months of drama both inside and outside the courthouse. But as the year came to a close, Jackson became embroiled in additional legal troubles that could consume his 2006. Late this month, his lawyers continued to try to sort out an overdue $270 million loan, which could put his Neverland Ranch as well as his stake in the Beatles catalog in jeopardy. Also, ex-wife Debbie Rowe claimed the singer lied about having sole custody of his children and asked a judge to demand Jackson return the children to the U.S.
For the Lorenzos, redemption was granted on December 2 — just nine days after the start of their trial. Absolution came more than 11 months after the Gottis were first arrested for money laundering and almost three years after dozens of law-enforcement agents raided the offices of their record label, the Inc. In the end, though, the government's case against the rap moguls faltered and there wasn't enough evidence for the jury to support a conviction — which elated Jay-Z, Ja Rule and Ashanti. After a year of courtroom shockers, one can only wonder what surprises 2006 will bring.
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Photo: Getty Images/MTV News |
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