The manslaughter trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, the man accused of causing the death of Michael Jackson in June of 2009, is officially underway today as opening statements in the trail begin. First up, the prosecution is laying out an overview of its case against Murray then the defense will be allowed to lay out an overview of their case. Click below to see some photos from inside the courtroom here in LA this morning and watch a livestream of the trial as opening statements take place.
Opening statements began Tuesday morning in the manslaughter trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, who is implicated in the 2009 death of Michael Jackson. Murray, 58, is accused of over-sedating Jackson with the powerful anesthetic propofol and failing to notice that Jackson had stopped breathing for crucial minutes before finally calling 911. Defense attorneys say Jackson drank propofol like milk, and suggest that someone other than Murray, perhaps Jackson himself, administered the fatal dose of the drug when Murray’s back was turned. Murray could get up to four years in prison if convicted of the felony charge of involuntary manslaughter. His trial is expected to wrap in the end of October.
As is always the case with these sorts of trials, the defendant sounds REALLY guilty when you listen to the opening statement made by the prosecution (which, as this post goes live, is still underway) but the defense will do their best to counter every argument made by the prosecution. The prosecuting attorney is laying out all of the arguments he plans to make to prove that Dr. Murray is responsible for MJ‘s death. Keep watching, if you can, to hear what the defense will offer in response. This trial is expected to last for 6-8 weeks so this is just beginning. Here we go … we are just weeks away from a resolution of the death of Michael Jackson, the King of Pop.
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Not at all surprised that the defense is going with the “self-administered theory” despite the fact that it has pretty much been said that it would be very difficult for a man under the influence of Propofol to be able to self-inject at the angle the IV port in his leg was at. And any Propofol that may have been found in his stomach could just as easily gotten there AFTER death during life saving procedures, etc.
I just hate that people act like Michael is on trial all over again. At the end of the day, it comes down to one thing….Dr. Murray showed absolutely no integrity and showed negligence in giving a powerful anesthetic to his patient without the proper equipment to monitor him. He should have stuck by his oath as a doctor to do no harm. Propofol should never be used as a way to treat insomnia. Instead, he should have been looking for healthy alternatives to helping the man sleep.
And whoever wants to go around tossing about the words “if Murray wouldn’t do it, Michael would have paid someone else,” that doesn’t matter. That’s just hearsay. And the fact is that it was Murray that provided the propofol, and he needs to pay the consequences.
It’s not just hearsay when the people Michael approached have gone on record with the authorities. It would be hearsay if someone said that they heard someone else say he asked them about it. I agree with your overall point, though.
I suppose you do have a point as well. But is it actually confirmed as truth that Michael did this? I mean, these people said this, but there were people in the 2004-5 trial that went on record with authorities who later admitted that they lied. Unless there is documented proof that Michael was “doctor shopping” all it is is “he said, she said” because people do lie.
I get what you mean. We like to think that when under oath, people don’t lie. But there were more than a few people, the 2003 accuser and his siblings for starters, who admitted to not telling the truth to authorities before…even under oath.
been in medicine for years…iv medication does not end up in your stomach…no matter how much cpr you get. so i dont get your point.
Actually, it is possible. An anesthesiologist was interviewed at one point, and they pointed out that the Propofol, a small amount, could have entered the stomach in retrograde from the blood. I think that was how it was worded.
Either way, it’s a sad state of affairs when people want to mock a dead man who had enough to deal with in his life. Even if he had become addicted to taking something to make him sleep, can you honestly blame the poor man? This is someone who was constantly hounded by the media, who was twice accused (and found not guilty) of child abuse, something that pained him terribly because he loved children.
He had everyone watching his every move, waiting for him to mess up, and he was about to embark on a huge endeavor with the 02 concerts. Imagine going into that knowing that people were just waiting for you to miss one step or lyric just so they can ridicule you in the news about it.
It’s well known that Michael often battled with sleep issues. Both of his ex wives have talked about how Michael would often be up late, unable to sleep.
Whatever the outcome of the trial is, I think it’s pretty safe to say that Michael Jackson was one of the most sought after, slandered and misunderstood celebrities ever in the media’s spotlight. None of us can ever say what we might do in that position, because none of us will ever be that famous.
I think AEG, Dr. Murray, and Michael all contributed to his death. AEG hired Dr. Murray, who they knew was sketchy but a sketchy doctor was needed to do the things MJ requested. Michael had asked other medical professionals to give him the propofol, so he was an active participant. However, Dr. Murray should never have granted such a request. Like the other medical professionals who said NO, Murray should have done the same.
I do think that AEG knew that Michael couldn’t deliver what he was contractually obligated to do, but I also think they knew that if he killed himself in the process, they would still make their money (see: ownership of memorial held at their venue, and This Is It the movie). His press conference for the This Is It tour CLEARLY shows an unhealthy man.
100% agreed. theres alot more too it then Conrad did it.
I don’t think he looked unhealthy at the 02 concerts, actually. I think he looked tired, but it’s really hard to tell with those sunglasses on. A person’s eyes can tell you a lot about their state of mind/health, honestly. When a person doesn’t feel well, you can generally tell by looking in their eyes.
There were times in This Is It where Michael looked reserved or sad…you could just see it in his eyes. Other times, he looked happy to be there, ready to get the show on the road.
It’s a shame he’s gone. I wish he was still here, and I wish that people would just leave him to rest in peace.
But I do agree that AEG is partly to blame. Michael originally signed on for 10 shows. 10 to 50 is a big difference, especially for a 50 year old man who hadn’t been on tour in over a decade. They should have known better.
My question is…how did he pass the physical he supposedly went through? It was a several hour long process or something like that, that I read.
Just such a shame…and now Michael’s kids might be dragged into the court room for this. I feel for them. It’s not their fault that they were brought into this world. They were wanted and raised by a man who loved his kids, and they loved him. Yet people are treating them like they are their dad, saying terrible things about them, and they haven’t done anything wrong.
I wish people would show them some respect. They lost their father, and that father happened to be Michael Jackson. That is no reason to completely throw out morals and compassion and say terrible things about them.
I realize nobody in this post had, but I’ve read on other blogs…people say some terrible things, and it’s uncalled for. The kids are not their father. And Michael was not a bad person. If it does in fact turn out to be true that he was for certain abusing drugs for a long period of time, that still does not make him a bad person. Addiction is a disesase, no matter what anyone says.
Evidence presented in court supports my idea that AEG knew he wasn’t going to be able to do the shows. From CNN:
“In an e-mail early June 20, Ortega wrote, in part, to AEG President Randy Phillips, “My concern is, now that we’ve brought the Doctor in to the fold and have played the tough love, now or never card, is that the Artist may be unable to rise to the occasion due to real emotional stuff.”
The producer said Jackson appeared weak and fatigued on June 19.
“He had a terrible case of the chills, was trembling, rambling and obsessing,” he wrote. “Everything in me says he should be psychologically evaluated. If we have any chance at all to get him back in the light. It’s going to take a strong Therapist to (get) him through this as well as immediate physical nurturing. … Tonight I was feeding him, wrapping him in blankets to warm his chills, massaging his feet to calm him and calling his doctor.”
They knew that he wasn’t going to be able to play all of those shows. If Michael had been alive and had to cancel the shows, they would have had to refund all of the money for the tickets and would also be out the immense amount of money that it took to prepare for the way over budget shows.
Oy. E! just posted pictures of MJ’s dead body. E! lacks integrity.