Mom of Jackson's accuser pleads innocent

tags:Entertainment United States:-In a very typical situtation the mother of the teenage boy who accused pop star Michael Jackson of sex abuse pleaded innocent to welfare fraud and perjury charges. The 37-year-old woman, accompanied by a defense attorney, entered her plea one day earlier than scheduled, apparently to avoid an expected crush of reporters. Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner James Bianco released the mother of four -- who was called a con artist and welfare cheat by Jackson's attorneys at his child molestation trial -- with no bail requirement and ordered her to return for a status hearing on 28th October. Prosecutors say the woman, whose name has been withheld by most US news organizations to protect her son's identity, defrauded the welfare system of some $18,000. According to court documents the investigation was prompted by a tip from a private investigator in February 2005, after jury selection began in the Jackson trial