Michael Jackson’s crystal-encrusted white glove was stolen from the Motown Museum in Detroit. According to one source variant, the glove was found two days later; M.C. Hammer offered a $50,000 reward for its return.
Los Angeles police began investigating allegations of child abuse made against Michael Jackson. No criminal charges were ultimately filed, and the civil lawsuit was settled out of court in January 1994.
Police raided Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch after a child staying there made allegations of sexual abuse. Jackson allowed police to conduct a personal search, which was deeply humiliating for him. He was not charged, but later faced further allegations.
The Los Angeles Police Department formally announced that Michael Jackson was the subject of a criminal investigation following allegations of child sexual abuse.
As part of the Bad World Tour, Michael Jackson performed at Roundhay Park in Leeds on August 29, 1988. On stage he celebrated his 30th birthday, and roughly 90,000 fans sang "Happy Birthday" to him.
The British Daily Mirror published a photograph of Michael Jackson wearing a scout leader’s uniform with five young scouts. It was later clarified that the photograph came from a ceremony in Los Angeles in September 1990, where Jackson received the Good Scout Humanitarian Award. A representative of the scouting organization subsequently stated that Jackson had no connection with the organization and had never served as a scout leader.
A Los Angeles radio station bypassed Epic Records' strict security measures concerning master tapes and broadcast a pirated sample of Michael Jackson's song “Bad” four days before its official release. The leak did not slow the album's expected success, as pre-orders had already exceeded 2.2 million copies.
CBS Records recorded the largest advance order of albums in its history when it shipped 2.25 million copies of Michael Jackson's "Bad" to stores in the United States. The album followed "Thriller", Jackson's best-selling album, and later sold more than 13 million copies.
Michael Jackson released the single “Bad”, the title track of his first album after “Thriller”. It was originally intended to be a duet with Prince, who turned down the offer. The song became a major hit, reaching No. 1 in the charts in the US, Ireland, Norway, Spain, Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands. The album Bad was also released in the UK.