The credibility of the boy accusing Michael Jackson of sexual abuse is in doubt following a claim that he recently signed legal papers saying the pop star never acted inappropriately.
It has also emerged that the boy's family had launched two other abuse-related lawsuits in the past, winning a $130,000 settlement in one case.
The new developments came amid signs that the health of the 12-year-old cancer survivor at the centre of the allegations had deteriorated.
San Francisco Assistant District Attorney Kimberly Guilfoyle Newsom said she had heard a tape in which the boy, his mother and brother say Jackson never acted inappropriately.
