Superstar Michael Jackson will not face a new probe into allegations of child abuse despite TV documentary admissions that he shares his bedroom with children, prosecutors said today.
A US child protection charity had called for the singer to be investigated after he told interviewer Mr Martin Bashir that youngsters sleep over with him at his Neverland ranch.
But Santa Barbara County District Attorney Mr Thomas Sneddon said that under Californian law, merely sleeping with a child without "affirmative, offensive conduct" was not a criminal offence.
Police would require co-operation from a victim before any charges could be brought, he said.
"Sleeping in bed with a kid is not a crime that I know of," he told the Santa Barbara News-Press.
Mr Sneddon said a high-profile 1993 investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against the singer involving a 13-year-old boy remained "open, but inactive."
Jackson was never charged, but later reached a multi-million-dollar out-of-court settlement with the boy's family, which he would not discuss Mr with Bashir because of a confidentiality agreement.
The 44-year-old singer said in the documentary, Life With Michael Jackson, that he had slept in a bed with "many children", including actor Macaulay Culkin and his brother Kieran.
"It's not sexual. We're going to sleep. I tuck them in," he said. "It's very charming. It's very sweet."
But Ms Gloria Gruber, president of Prevent Child Abuse California, called for state authorities to interview the children with whom he had shared his bed after the programme was screened in the US last night.
"The fact that he sleeps with children who are unrelated to him is definitely a red flag and concern," she told GMTV.
"In light of the fact that over 10 years ago there was one incident that was actually a prosecution, which was then dropped, leads us to further concern. Our major concern is the protection of children and I feel this needs to be investigated further," she said.
Jackson has made an official complaint to TV watchdogs about the documentary, which he says "utterly betrayed" him.
His lawyers said the programme contained "clear innuendo" that the singer is guilty of inappropriate behaviour with children.