Video: 'Michael Jackson's 1993 Innocence Statement - From Neverland'

(Wednesday, December 22, 1993, 12 noon PST) — Reclusive superstar Michael Jackson fought back today against child molestation allegations, describing a Dec. 20, 1993, court-ordered body search as “the most humiliating ordeal of my life” during a live, four-minute message televised worldwide from his Neverland Ranch in Santa Barbara County, California.

“I am totally innocent of any wrongdoing, and I know these terrible allegations will all be proven false,” Jackson said. “Don’t treat me like a criminal because I am innocent.”