SANTA MARIA, Calif. - Michael Jackson will get his passport back, but the pop star may have to wait a while longer before he can retrieve adult magazines and other items confiscated from Neverland ranch.
Judge Rodney Melville yesterday ordered the Santa Barbara County sheriff to return the singer's passport, which he was forced to give up in November 2003 after his arrest on child molestation charges. Jackson was acquitted of all charges on Monday.
But it remains unclear whether prosecutors are willing to return Jackson's personal property - including police photos of his naked penis and stacks of adult mags and books seized from his home during searches.
"In the typical criminal case, all property goes back to whomever it was seized from - no matter what it is. That's all we're asking for," said Jackson lawyer Robert Sanger.
District Attorney Tom Sneddon didn't attend yesterday's hearing, but he told "Inside Edition" he wants to keep the penis photos in case they are needed as "evidence" in a future case.
The photos, which are under lock and key and can't be accessed by cops without a judge's okay, are said to show an unusual dark spot on the underside of Jackson's penis, which reportedly was described by the boy who accused Jackson of molestation in 1993.
Deputy DA Steven Plumer said he needed to check with Sneddon before agreeing to return any of Jackson's property. Asked where his boss was, Plumer said, "I don't know."
Melville also ordered prosecutors to return Jackson family memorabilia to New Jersey collector Henry Vaccaro. Prosecutors raided Vaccaro's warehouse hoping to find evidence, but none of the mementos were used in the criminal case.
In other business, Melville agreed to release a slew of motions that were sealed during Jackson's criminal case because of sensitive content. But many of the touchy issues discussed in the papers were already aired during the trial. The documents will be posted on the court Web site within the next month.
