JACKSON FAMILY FEUD ESCALATES

The dysfunction known as the Jackson family is spiraling more and more out of control by the day.

Yesterday, a judge awarded temporary guardianship of Michael’s children, 15-year-old Prince, 14-year-old Paris and 10-year-old Blanket, to their cousin, 34-year-old T.J. Jackson. The ruling comes in the wake of news that family matriarch Katherine Jackson has been missing from her California home and may be being held against her will, or even drugged to keep her away from the children.

The dramatic events tearing the Jackson clan apart are all related to one common evil — money! Since the death of Michael Jackson a few years ago, his estate has grown to a staggering multi-million dollar empire — and just about everyone named Jackson wants a piece of it.

In Michael’s officially recognized will, he awarded the bulk of his estate to his children and his mother, while leaving his siblings and his father completely out.  Now, one wing of the family, led by brothers Jermaine and Randy and sisters Janet and Rebbie, are crying foul and demanding that estate executors John Branca and John McClaine resign immediately. The 4 Jackson siblings charge that their late brother’s will is a fake. Naturally, the siblings want the executors removed so that they can assume full control of Michael’s business dealings and finances instead, as well as an enormous pay day for themselves.

Tito Jackson was originally part of this group as well, but he has since bowed out of his family’s increasingly complex conflict.

Tito Jackson

“I completely retract my signature from the July 17th letter sent to the Executors of my brother’s Michael’s estate and repudiate all the claims made against them. I don’t want any part of that letter whatsoever,” the second-oldest Jackson brother said in a statement released by a rep for the estate. Although it’s possible Tito had a legitimate change of heart to end his involvement, it is also possible that Tito has a stake in the new arrangement reached in court yesterday: T.J. Jackson, the new guardian of Michael’s children, happens to be Tito’s son!

Over the past several days, one critical event after another has wreaked havoc within the Jackson family. Earlier this week, Randy, Jermaine and Janet Jackson reportedly followed Michael’s children onto the Jackson family compound and tried to coerce them into leaving with them in a waiting SUV. A security camera captured Janet trying to confiscate the cell phone of Paris Jackson, who has been publicly tweeting her family’s dysfunction for the past week. There were also reports of a physical fist fight, with curse words being flung freely.

Katherine Jackson has been her grandchildren’s legal guardian since Michael’s death in 2009, as per the instructions left in his will. But Katherine has been mysteriously holed up in Arizona with Rebbie and other family members since last week, and has not spoken with her grandkids in over a week, as evidenced by Paris’ increasingly frantic tweets. Katherine Jackson’s lawyer believes she has been sedated with drugs and is being held against her will. According to the attorney, the siblings have spent the past 3 years concocting a plan to convince the court that their mother is physically incapable of caring for Michael’s kids. The attorney said that if the siblings could get Katherine Jackson out of the way, they might receive custody and the $86,000 per month stipend to care for the kids, as well as Katherine’s 20% stake in Michael’s lucrative and ever growing estate.

Katherine Jackson reportedly phoned home twice yesterday, but is said to have sounded extremely sedated while slurring her words. She has still not spoken to Michael’s children or returned to her California home, despite the new ruling awarding guardianship of the kids to T.J. Jackson.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to conclude that something is drastically and perhaps dangerously wrong here. Would Randy, Jermaine, Rebbie and Janet actually plot against their own mother for a powerful stake in Michael’s lucrative estate? Or is this all just some incredibly bizarre misunderstanding?  Stay tuned — this drama doesn’t appear to be at all close to being over!