Janet Jackson seeks restraining order against 'stalker'
Janet Jackson is seeking a restraining order against a man she claims has been stalking and harassing her for years.
The singer, whose brother, Michael, is currently in court facing child abuse claims, has filed papers asking Robert Gardner to stay away from her.
Jackson said in the papers, published on American website Celebrity Justice: "It is only a matter of time before he has the opportunity to harm me."
Gardner allegedly started stalking Jackson nine years ago after writing notes to her.
In one he reportedly wrote: "Dammit Janet I know it has been three years since we have been intimate but if you still love me it should not matter."
But Jackson says Gardner became more intrusive in recent months, saying: "His conduct recently has escalated and he has threatened to travel to Los Angeles on February 28, 2005 in order to continue stalking me."
Last month, she claims Gardner sent three faxes telling her of his impending travel plans.
She added: "I am deeply disturbed by the fact that a man I do not know, who believes he knows me intimately, has been in close proximity to me and is continuously attempting to physically contact me."
A hearing on Jackson's preliminary injunction request Gardner is set for March 17.
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Pop singer Janet Jackson on Thursday won a restraining order against a man she says has been stalking her for nine years and who turned up at a television studio with a knife and a box-cutter.
A Santa Monica Superior Court judge ordered Robert Gardner, 46, of New York, to stay at least 100 yards away from Jackson, her family and associates for three years.
Jackson did not attend the hearing but said in court documents that Gardner had fabricated a "personal history" with her, and had been following her and attempting to arrange meetings for nine years.
She stated he was stopped by security at the New York studio taping of her March 2004 "Saturday Night Live" appearance armed with a box-cutter, a large pair of scissors and a knife.
The appearance came shortly after the infamous "wardrobe malfunction" in which Jackson's breast was exposed to millions of TV viewers during the Super Bowl halftime show.
"I do not want to be considered a stalker," Gardner told the judge on Thursday. "I'm one of her fans."
Janet Stalker Ordered To Stay Away For Three Years
46-year-old Robert Gardner told a Santa Monica, California, judge Thursday, that he just can't understand why Janet Jackson is seeking a three-year restraining order against him, but the judge didn't buy his tale and granted Janet a three-year stay away order.
Outside the courtroom, Gardner told 'Celebrity Justice' that he and Jackson once worked together and were "lovers." But he said the relationship ended on a sour note. Read more and watch a video clip here.
