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After
the defense rests, prosecutors will begin a rebuttal
and Jackson's attorneys will then be given an opportunity
to respond. Closing arguments probably will not begin
before next week.
Tucker
also testified that he once took Jackson aside and warned
him to ``watch out'' for the boy's mother because he
had grown suspicious of her.
Tucker
said the boy repeatedly asked for gifts but that he
forgave the boy's behavior because he knew he had battled
cancer and had family problems.
``He
would always say, 'Chris, let me have this ... I'm not
feeling too good,''' Tucker said.
Other
comedians who have testified, including George Lopez
and Jay Leno, cracked a few jokes on the stand. But
Tucker's demeanor was calm and serious in stark contrast
to his outrageous demeanor in the ``Rush Hour'' films
and such movies as ``Friday'' and ``The Fifth Element.''
Jackson,
46, is charged with molesting the boy in 2003 when the
youth was 13, giving him wine and conspiring to hold
his family captive to get them to rebut a documentary
in which the boy appeared with Jackson as the entertainer
said he let children into his bed for innocent sleepovers.
Tucker,
whose testimony began Tuesday and continued Wednesday,
met Jackson's accuser at a benefit while the boy was
battling cancer in 2000.
Tucker
provided details about a gift of at least $1,500 that
he gave to the family after the fundraiser for the boy
at a Hollywood comedy club. He said the boy came to
his house after the fundraiser and told him it hadn't
netted any money.
``He
was just real sad looking, saying they didn't raise
any money and they needed some money,'' Tucker said.
Jackson
defense attorney Thomas Mesereau Jr. asked Tucker if
he became suspicious since he had seen many people at
the benefit.
``Yes,
but I was always thinking I was helping him so I just
did it,'' Tucker said.
Tucker
said he also took the boy's family to an amusement park
and on shopping trips to a mall.
On
Tuesday, Leno testified that he grew suspicious when
he began receiving overly effusive voice mail messages
from the boy in 2000. He said he thought it strange
that a 12-year-old would tell a comedian in his 50s
that he was his hero.
``I'm
not Batman,'' Leno said, to laughter throughout the
courtroom.
Leno
said the boy left so many messages that he finally approached
comedian Louise Palanker, a friend who was among several
comedians helping the boy's family.
``I
said, 'What's the story here? This doesn't sound like
a 12-year-old. This seems a little scripted,''' Leno
testified. But Leno said the boy never asked for money
and he never gave him any, though he did send ``Tonight
Show'' memorabilia and a picture.
The
defense has said Leno was so concerned about the boy's
calls that he called police, but Leno said Tuesday it
was police who contacted him. He said he probably did
tell police he believed the family was looking for money.
Hours
after testifying, Leno was again mocking the pop star
on the ``Tonight Show.''
He
showed the audience mock footage of his day in court,
including a scene in which young male witnesses were
sipping on drinks in martini glasses.
``OK,
you know the worst part about testifying, I had to follow
the chimp. The witness chair was a mess,'' Leno told
the audience during taping of his monologue.
___
AP
Special Correspondent Linda Deutsch contributed to this
report.
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