Just started reading Margaret Maldonado’s book JACKSON FAMILY VALUES. The first chapter tells her background story, how she came from a dysfunctional family in LA, brought up by her stepdad, her troubled teenage years when she became addicted to drugs, her many overdoses and finally her time in rehab.
It was after she came out of rehab in January 1986 aged 21 that she met Jermaine in a restaurant. She was with her friend when Jermaine saw her, came over to their table and introduced himself. She was at a venerable stage in her life, after years of hard partying & drug abuse, just out of rehab & Jermaine swept her off her feet.
A few months into their courtship she found out that Jermaine was married & confronted him. He gave her the typical cheating man story, that they were separated & getting a divorce, which she found out later was a lie.
page 17 In May 1986 she finds out she is pregnant. at last my life was on track, I had put drugs behind me & found a gentle stable man with whom I could raise a family.
page 18 Jermaine seemed delighted with my pregnancy & went around telling everyone. We had been togther for 7 months & his legal separtion from his wife was well under way or so I thought. page 19 she finds out thats not the case, Jermaine is still very much with his wife & has been lying to her. At 8 months pregnant she confronts him with his lies,tells him to back to his wife. He insists the marriage is over&he will divorce his wife. He says he will take care of her & the baby & sets her up in a condo in Pacific Palisades near his house in where he lives with his wife.
She goes into labour on Christmas Day, goes to the hospital with her mother, while Jermaine is at home with his wife & other kids. On Christmas Day Jermaine made no secret of what was going on, getting regular phone updates from the hospital.
page 25 as the new year progressed Jermaine came to the condo more &more to see his son. Hazel , Jermaines wife was now pregnant. Maraget knew that other members of the Jackson family would be there but she didnt know Hazel, Jermaines wife would be there. Jermaine brings Margaret’s baby to the restaurant & proudly poses for the cameras with his son. The next week the photos appear in the media with an article how Jermaine shows up to a family event with his lovechild accompanied by his 8 months pregnant wife!!! Jermaine at a family event, has his 8 months pregnant wife looking after his mistresses child!!! When Margaret confronts Jermaine about it, he blames Carol , Marlons wife for selling the photos to the media!!
page 27 not long after that Jermaine wants to bring the baby to a family softball game, Margaret agrees. as the day goes by, she gets worried that Jermaine is gone longer than the agreed time. She gets worried about her baby so decides to phone Jermaines house. Hazel Jermaines wife answers & says the baby is with HER. Jermaine didnt bring the baby to the softball game, his wife was looking after the baby at their house!!! Margaret & Hazel start talking & it turns out that Jermaine has convinced his wife that Margaret didnt want to keep the baby. Jermaine had talked Hazel into raising the child & they had bought new baby things in preparation for this!! Jermaine wanted Hazel to adopt Margaret’s baby & raise it as her own. Hazel was 9 months pregnant & due to give birth at any day!! this time when Margaret confronted Jermaine, he blamed the older children, saying how happy they were having a baby in the house!!
Hazels baby is born on 17 March 1987 but Jermaine spend more time with Margaret & her baby. Now that he has two baby sons, Jermaine often brings Hazels baby to Margarets house & brings Margarets baby to his home with Hazel. Jermaine never told the two women where he brought the babies but Hazel & Margaret used different brands of diapers so it was obvious what was happening & where the babies were spending time.
Hazel eventually has enough of the whole situation and files for divorce in October 1987