(Orlando Sentinel) Michael C. Chartrand expects to find out today what kind of future he has at Walt Disney World after his acquittal in the Tigger trial.
Chartrand's defense attorney, Jeffrey Kaufman, confirmed that his client is to meet with Disney officials to inquire about his employment.
Disney suspended Chartrand from his job as a cast member after allegations surfaced that he had groped a 13-year-old girl while he was in costume as Tigger at the Magic Kingdom's Toon Town.
On Wednesday an Orange County jury took less than an hour to clear him of the sexual molestation charge. Jurors said the prosecutor didn't provide enough evidence to convict Chartrand.
"Michael is just going to go in and ask for his job back," Kaufman said. "They [Disney] are probably trying to figure out what they're going to do."
After he was acquitted, Chartrand, 36, said: "I will never go back as a character. It [the prosecution] has ruined my dream of being a character."
If he returned to Disney, he said, he might like to work as a character greeter, a worker who escorts a character and interacts with guests.
Donna-Lynne Dalton, business agent for Teamsters Local 385, the union that represents costumed characters, said she contacted Disney on Wednesday night to discuss non-character positions available to Chartrand.
Under Disney's contract with its costumed characters, the verdict requires the company to "reinstate him and make him whole," Dalton said. She added that Disney also has to give him back pay missed during his four-month suspension.
"He is going to get back pay," Disney spokeswoman Jacquee Polak confirmed, though she could not say how much.
Dalton estimated that Chartrand makes between $6.35 and $6.85 an hour, and, like most characters, had been working about 40 hours each week. At that rate, he could recoup between $4,500 and $5,000 in back pay.
Kaufman, who aggressively defended Chartrand at the trial, said he could not legally represent him in work-related discussions with Disney. That's because Kaufman works part-time as a character at the park.
"I'm on the schedule for next week," Kaufman said. "I love the place."
The case gained worldwide attention even before Kaufman dressed up in the Tigger costume during his closing argument. Disney had suggested having the suit altered for the court proceedings to preserve the "magic" and to protect the character's image. But that never happened.
Meanwhile, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said none of the roughly 30 similar complaints against Disney characters that surfaced after Chartrand's arrest have resulted in charges.
The cases either didn't have enough evidence to prosecute or the people complaining didn't want to pursue criminal charges, said sheriff's spokesman Jim Solomons.
During the trial, the investigator in Chartrand's case was criticized by the defense for doing poor police work. Solomons said the Sheriff's Office will review the investigation.
"You always critique a high-profile incident," Solomons said. "If we take away something from how we investigated this case and learn from it, we will."
Disney really needs to pony up and give these people a fair wage for the magic that they do, it's not easy!!!!!!!
