Chapter 160 159. Fishing, a fatal blow!

Santa Barbara Police Department, Chief Brown Howard, 43 years old, was appointed as the police chief by the city government just last year.

At this age, you are experienced and well-read, and your future is promising.

However, something happened yesterday that caught him off guard. Prosecutor Tom Schneider actually put the famous star Michael Jackson in jail for a child molestation case.

By the time Brown Howard found out about this, it was too late; everyone had been taken to the police station.

The American judicial system is independent, and prosecutors are almost the most powerful officials in the criminal justice system, exercising enormous and almost unlimited discretion.

At the same time, just as the country, states, counties, and cities are not in charge of each other, prosecutors are not in charge of each other. They are only responsible for their own level of government.

There is a very realistic example. Chuan Bao was once investigated by the New York County prosecutor for a hush money incident. The other party's purpose was naturally to send him to prison to prevent him from continuing to run for election.

A county prosecutor can issue an arrest warrant and arrest a former president directly, just because you committed a crime in my territory. American prosecutors are so powerful! However, prosecutors and police are two different systems, and the latter are obliged to cooperate with the former in handling cases.

Both are generally appointed directly by the city government, so as director, Howard is indeed a higher official than Tom Schneider.

But the embarrassing thing is that he has no power to restrain the other party, only the municipal government can.

But when someone is brought to his territory, he has to bear the trouble, because that person is the pop king Michael Jackson who has countless fans.

So Brown Howard deliberately did not go home and stayed in the police station to prevent Tom Schneider from doing anything irrational.

This guy's prejudice against Jackson had long been known among their group, and no one knew why, but he was just like that.

Sitting in a comfortable big chair, Howard ate the breakfast brought by his subordinates.

"Oppose the abuse of power!"

“Oppose racial discrimination!”

“Oppose violent law enforcement!”

There was a sudden loud roar outside, and Brown Howard was startled, and the sandwich in his hand fell to the ground with a snap.

He listened carefully, walked to the window, pulled up the blinds, and saw that a large group of people had gathered in front of the police station and were still increasing.

These people held up banners and shouted slogans, obviously coming to support Michael Jackson.

Especially when he saw many major media outlets at the front of the crowd setting up cameras and aiming their guns at him, he suddenly felt overwhelmed.

"Damn it, I knew something was going to happen. This bastard caused all the trouble and now he wants me to clean up his mess!"

He hurriedly made a phone call and asked several deputy directors and team leaders to come to a meeting.

After a few minutes, only three people came.

"Why are there only you? Where are the others?"

"Chief, I just contacted Charles. He was blocked outside and is trying to find a way to get in."

"Through the back door, won't you come in through the back door?"

"There were also a lot of people surrounding the back door, and there were also a lot of media. Not only Charles, but many of us were blocked outside."

Brown Howard pointed outside: "What are these people going to do? Who knows? Didn't they say it should be kept secret? Who leaked that Michael Jackson was imprisoned here?"

A captain walked in holding a notebook: "Chief, take a look at this."

Brown Howard looked at the screen, which was Yahoo News. The entertainment and social sections both had news about the unfair treatment of Michael Jordan posted high on them.

However, there is no video yet, only pictures of the damaged Neverland Ranch.

"Santa Barbara police raid Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch and destroy personal belongings!"

"The prosecutor abused his power and violently searched Neverland Ranch, and Michael Jackson was suddenly taken away!"

"When will the judicial system remain fair? Procedural justice is gone!"

"An infringement on any lawful citizen is taking place"

Brown Howard's eyes widened when he saw the headlines, especially when he saw the rooms that were destroyed as if a hurricane had passed through them.

"Why are there such photos? Are they going to rob? Call Schneider over to me! Forget it, I'll go find him."

The group rushed to the interrogation room and found that Tom Schneider had started the interrogation again.

However, with lawyer Meserio by his side, he did not dare to go too far, and his inducement and leading language were exposed on the spot.

Bang! The door of the interrogation room was pushed open: "Tom, come out with me!"

Seeing the unfriendly look of the police chief, Tom Schneider felt something was wrong.

Although the other party has no power to control themselves, a harmonious relationship is still necessary, otherwise no policeman will cooperate with him when he gives an order.

Meserio smiled at Michael and said, "It looks like we'll be able to get out soon."

In the next room, Chief Brown looked angrily at the man in front of him.

"Tom Schneider, look at what you have done. As an experienced prosecutor, how could your case handling process be so sloppy?"

"The search was conducted without Michael Jackson being present. Did you know that he was not a criminal yet? He was protected by the law."

"Besides, you just searched, why did you destroy the scene into such a mess? Look at what you have done."

Tom Schneider hurriedly looked at the news on his notebook and was also shocked.

"I heard that there are many cameras installed in Neverland Ranch. You are so bold. Now there are reporters and people surrounding it. You must give them an explanation. The Santa Barbara Police Department will not take the blame for you!"

Signaling to the other party not to get angry, Tom Schneider carefully recalled what happened yesterday and studied the photos carefully.

After a while, he suddenly grinned and said, "Chief Brown, there is no need to make a fuss. In my opinion, this is just a cheap frame-up."

"Haha. There are indeed cameras in Neverland Manor, but we have blocked them with technical means. I investigated before I went there. Otherwise, why do you think I dared to make such a big fuss? Of course, I understand the threat of public opinion."

"Are you sure?" Brown Howard looked at the other party suspiciously.

"I'm absolutely sure. And if you look carefully at the photos, they are just some broken furniture. There is no human figure at all. So who can prove that it was us who did it?"

"Who can say that Michael Jackson didn't deliberately damage the house in order to frame the police?"

After Tom Schneider finished speaking, everyone present was enlightened. It made sense. Wouldn't it be a reversal? As for whether Jackson was at Neverland Ranch at the time, although he was not there, many of the staff he hired were there, so it wasn't like there was really no one there.

This may be a procedural flaw, but it is not fatal and can be barely justified.

Thinking of this, Tom Schneider said confidently: "I will deal with those people outside. I also want to use these media to build momentum."

At the main entrance of the Santa Barbara Police Department, hundreds of people shouted for an explanation and for Michael's release, and the crowd was very excited.

Television stations were busy recording the scene and interviewing people who supported the demonstration.

The people hired by Chen Xing had all received simple training beforehand and knew what to say and what not to say, not to mention that there were quite a few real fans among them.

Their angry comments spoke of police injustice.

When the scene was in chaos, the door of the police station opened and Tom Schneider and several policemen walked out.

He picked up the microphone and shouted, "Quiet, everyone, be quiet, listen to me, I will give you an explanation."

Seeing that the police were finally going to respond positively, everyone gradually quieted down.

"Hi everyone, I'm Tom Schneider, the Santa Barbara city prosecutor and the person in charge of Michael Jackson's child molestation case. You can ask me any questions you have."

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Upon hearing this, the reporter from the Los Angeles Times was the first to speak: "Prosecutor Schneider, is it you who arrested Michael Jackson and raided Neverland Ranch yesterday?"

Tom Schneider shook his head: "Ms. Reporter, I want to correct your wording. Jackson is not a prisoner yet, and this is not an arrest. It is just a normal summons and questioning."

"Also, your description of a raid is highly inaccurate. We were doing a routine inspection of Neverland Ranch and had a search warrant."

As he spoke, he took out a piece of document and there was a burst of crazy applause from the audience.

"Prosecutor Schneider, you said that Jackson is not a criminal yet. Does that mean he is likely to become a criminal? Do the police already have the key evidence?"

Behind Schneider, several police officers who participated in the interrogation were cursing inwardly.

After a whole night of interrogation, they found nothing. There was a big lawyer next to them, but they still didn't get anything out of them.

Moreover, after searching the Dream Manor for a long time, no evidence of Mao was found.

They did find a few Playboy magazines, all featuring mature and sexy girls, but doesn't that prove Jackson's sexual orientation is normal? But Tom Schneider said something different. He said with a serious face, "I can't reveal the details of the case, but I can tell you that the investigation and other aspects are going very smoothly. We have obtained evidence and I believe there will be a result soon."

Upon hearing this, everyone present looked at each other in bewilderment. To most people, the case was progressing smoothly, which meant that the investigation was already clear, and that Michael Jackson had most likely admitted to the crime.

This is actually a common tactic used by the police, using ambiguous rhetoric to create smoke screens, confusing the public and putting pressure on the subjects of the investigation, which is what Tom Schneider calls creating momentum.

Looking at the commotion in the crowd below, Tom Schneider nodded secretly and turned to leave.

"Wait a minute, Prosecutor Schneider, you still have two key questions to answer." The ABC Online reporter shouted.

"What's the problem? Please ask."

"About the news circulating on the Internet, do you know anything?"

Tom Schneider said calmly: "I know. I've been paying attention to it."

"So, what's your explanation?"

Tom Schneider cleared his throat and said confidently: "I don't think it's necessary to spend a lot of time explaining, because people with independent thinking will not be confused by rumors on the Internet."

"First of all, the question is whether Jackson was present. I admit that he was not present at the time, but the online news did not tell everyone that there were more than a dozen people in the manor at the time. They were all hired by Jackson. It was definitely not empty as everyone imagined."

"The search was conducted under their witness and the process was not illegal."

"Then there are those pictures. I think this is ridiculous. Just based on a few pictures of smashed things, they say the police conducted a violent search. This is totally untrue."

"I can assure you that everything in yesterday's search was done legally and in compliance with regulations. There was absolutely no violence involved."

"So how do you explain these photos?" the Fox News reporter continued to ask.

After a moment of silence, noticing that everyone was looking at him seriously, Tom Schneider slowly spoke: "It's simple. I have reason to suspect that it was Michael Jackson himself who caused all this."

"He instructed his employees to deliberately destroy his own property in order to frame the police, attract attention, gain sympathy and clear his name. If you know anything about judicial history, you will know that this is a common tactic used by many criminals."

Tom Schneider put emphasis on the word "prisoner".

"At the time, there were only us and them in Neverland Manor, and there was no third party at all, so this is a naked slander and a provocation and blasphemy against the prosecutors and the police."

"I hope everyone can stay rational and learn to think. Look at the photo, there is not even a single police officer. Isn't that proof enough?"

"The photos were clearly taken after the fact. They were retaken with an ulterior motive."

After Tom Schneider finished his explanation, the reporters present immediately felt that it made sense. In the absence of a third party, everyone would naturally speak on their own side.

Then it is very likely that Michael Jackson's side fabricated the facts.

Especially in this era when there are no law enforcement recorders, this is going to be interesting, the direction of the wind is probably going to change.

And just when Tom Schneider turned the situation around with his eloquent speech and was feeling very proud of himself.

A man wearing a mask in the crowd suddenly shouted, "Prosecutor Schneider, can you really guarantee that you have done nothing and that all procedures are legal?"

"Of course, I can guarantee with my badge that everything I say is true." Tom Schneider did not give in.

"Good, very good, Mr. Prosecutor, your courage is admirable. Why not take a look at this again!"

Boom! Suddenly, a low roar attracted everyone's attention, and everyone turned around and looked behind them.

Across the street, I saw a huge electronic screen gradually rising into the sky. Then the screen lit up, and people could see it clearly even in the daytime.

Just as everyone was wondering what was going on, the screen immediately switched to a video of the police wreaking havoc.

Everyone was stunned at first, then they reacted, and the scene instantly fell into a sea of ​​exclamations and anger.

Tom Schneider felt a chill running straight to his head and his eyes went dark, as if someone had hit him hard on the head.

"It's over!"

Thanks to Luciferhx for the reward of 100, and thanks to all the book friends for their continued support.

(End of this chapter)