Mom of Jackson's accuser pleads innocent to fraud

[Rudey]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The mother of the teenage boy who accused pop star Michael Jackson of sex abuse pleaded innocent on Tuesday 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 October 28.

Her attorney, Patricia Hattersley, could not immediately be reached for comment after the arraignment.

The charges stem from information the woman provided to welfare officials and not her testimony at the Jackson trial, which ended when a jury cleared the 47-year-old entertainer in June.

Prosecutors say the woman, whose name has been withheld by most U.S. news organizations to protect her son's identity, defrauded the welfare system of some $18,000. She could face more than five years in prison if convicted.

She was called to the witness stand in the Jackson case by Santa Barbara County District Attorney Tom Sneddon but refused to testify about her finances or welfare applications on the grounds that doing so could incriminate her.

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.

-Rudey