Michael Jackson back in court after illness

SANTA MARIA, California - Michael Jackson has returned to his child molestation trial after suffering a "flu-like illness," and the judge apologised to would-be jurors, assuring them the pop star had been genuinely sick.

Jackson, 46, briefly waved and flashed a "V" for victory sign at fans before entering the Santa Maria, California courthouse after a weeklong suspension in the jury selection procedure because of his unexpected illness.

Jackson spent two days last week being treated at a local hospital for what doctors described as "a flu-like illness with some vomiting. "

More than 100 jury candidates were sent home for a week, only a few days after another one week delay due to the death of the sister of Jackson's lead attorney, Tom Mesereau.

"We've had a couple of false starts," Superior Court Judge Rodney Melville told the prospective jurors. "Mr Mesereau really did have a tragedy in his family and he could not have performed as he is expected to. Mr Jackson really was sick. He really had the flu. "

Melville assured the would-be jurors that neither incident had been a ploy by the defence and asked them not to hold the delays against Jackson or his lawyers.

Jackson is charged in a 10-count indictment with molesting a 13-year-old boy at his Neverland Valley ranch and with conspiring to commit child abduction, false imprisonment and extortion.

Melville has established a pool of about 240 jury candidates, from which he will choose the 12 men and women who will ultimately decide Jackson's fate, as well as eight alternates.

As questioning of the jurors resumed on Tuesday, three women acknowledged they might find it difficult to be fair.

One woman said she had been falsely accused twice of similar child molestation crimes in the past and had her own ideas about the preferred outcome of the trial.

Another woman said she had seen a news interview with an unidentified person involved in the Jackson trial. She said she considered the interview inappropriate and could not erase it from her mind.

A third woman described herself as a close follower of high-profile trials and celebrity news. "Will I forget what I know already? I don't think so. I've just always had an interest in high-profile cases. I have read a lot about them, " she said.

So far only one jury candidate has been eliminated from the pool, an elderly man who said his health would not withstand a trial expected to last six months.

Both prosecutors and defence attorneys are permitted by law to excuse jurors who cannot be fair. Each side can also remove up to 10 jurors without stating a reason.

- REUTERS