Trial of the Century Series

In our previous article, we discussed about how the term came into existence and about one of the most infamous cases in US Legal history. Here in this article, you will find two high profile cases and the reasons why these cases were also referred to as “Trial of the century”.

1. Michael Jackson: Michael Jackson is still adored by millions of fans worldwide. He was an icon of Pop music and music in general. His style and aura will be something that is always going to remain a part of human history. Michael Jackson could have driven off into the sunset, but then the infamous documentary by Martin Bashir came out, and everything plummeted, and his legacy has never been the same. The fact of the matter is that the rumours of Michael Jackson’s inappropriate behaviour had actually come to light as early as 1993, but he was indicted in 2003; it took the legal authorities close to a decade to push things over the line and charge Michael Jackson. Michael Jackson was facing a massive legal struggle that saw him having to prove his innocence on all seven charges which were levied against him. The country was split once again leading to a media frenzy that was a direct result of how popular the accused was at the time. Michael Jackson actually went on to be found innocent on all charges.
2. Law and Skilling: There are some lofty standards to reach if you look at white collar crimes in US history. There have been so many instances of people swindling money from someone else and being taken to court. But nothing beats the Law and Skilling case that lasted for more than two years. Their company Enron was one of the key players in financial securities sector and at one point had over 20,000 employees. The case had insane media frenzy, and by the end of the trial, it had all the ingredients to make the perfect TV show on White Collar Crimes or the perfect documentary. The nation was enthralled for two years on what seemed like the perfect crime that nosedived and brought countless people crashing down. The worst part about this whole thing is the fact that Enron managed to bring down many legitimate and innocent businesses down the drain as well. Law actually got the best deal out of the two; he passed away before he was awarded his sentence. But Kenneth faced the might of the legal system alone and was awarded 25 years in prison for his part in one of the biggest fraud cases in US legal history.