Michael Jackson Manslaughter Trial – Day 1

The above picture although very disturbing was presented in court and appears to be a lifeless Michael Jackson on a gurny. We have included it to show what happened and what state Dr. Conrad Murray left Michael Jackson when he took calls, wrote emails and hid medicine in the minutes following MJ’s death.

Conrad Murray knew he was doing something wrong when he ordered mass amounts of drugs, administered the drugs without proper training, equipment or monitoring, delayed calling 911 and then lied to medical officials trying to save Michael Jackson. This is the image the prosecution is trying to provide to the jury who now has to decide if the doctor was grossly negligent during the care of the superstar.

Awful and reckless behaviour must be proven and the prosecution laid out timelines. It was heart wrenching to hear the evidence, see the pictures and hear the drugged recording of Michael weeks before his death and found on the doctor’s phone.

The prosecution’s opening statement was aired today on TV paint a reckless scene on the day Michael Jackson was pronounced dead under the care of Dr. Conrad Murray.

Pictures of the scene, bedroom, bathroom, medical equipment, drugs, jug of urine, MJ’s last rehearsal clothing. Phone records were discussed in relation to the timeline of what authorities believe was the doctor’s actions during his care and after the suspected time Michael died.

Interview details were discussed when authorities talked to the doctor after Michael’s death.

According to the prosecution, a minimum of 25 minutes seems to have elapsed when the doctor noticed Michael not responsive to the time he told security to call 911.

The jury heard that for over 2 months the doctor was giving nightly doses of Propofol. It was during the interviews that he finally admitted using this drug. For over 30 days monthly he administered this drug.

The prosecution went over what drugs were administered according to the doctor. According to the interview of Murray, the doctor claimed MJ would cancel the rehearsal so the doctor agreed to give him Propofol.

The amount administered was debated. The 25 mg of Propofol would have induced only 5 minutes of sleep. Over 155,000 mg of this drug were shipped to the doctor’s girlfriend.

‘Stunned in the sense that he wasn’t breathing’. Abandonment – leaving unattended is medical abandonment.

Claiming he was only gone for 2 minutes. Approximately 45 minutes of phone calls were conducting.

At 11:17 Murray is emailing the insurance broker to tell him Michael’s heath was fine.

In Murray’s own words, “To speak to a 911 operator would be neglecting him”.

In addition, the court saw bags were stored in the changing room.

The prosecution wrapped up their opening statements by going over Standard of Care. Here are some of the points raised by the prosecution.

Standard of Care

Hinges on gross lack of care in this case. Omissions and actions from doctor – extreme deviation of care – gross negligence – voluntary manslaughter.

Propofol – powerful anesthetic with highly monintored setting with equipment to revive a patient. Improper setting rprepresents an extremem violation of standard of care.

Propofol – not for treatment of insomnia – is gross negligence

Propofol requires continuous medical monitoring and equipment which Murray lacked.

Written informed consent – discuss procedure with patient – benefits, risks, etc. – no such document existed or was found.

Requires charting, documenting all vital records, dosages every 5 minutes -

No doctor patient relationship – to refuse inappropriate care. Employee-employee relationship. He worked for $150,000 a month.

Deceived paramedics by refusing to disclose the administration of propofol – repeated with emergency doctors.

According to the defense the doctor ‘Literally and physically abandoned Michael Jackson’.

The court heard a heart wrenching audio tape of Michael talking under the influence of drugs. TMZ included the following audio from the court on their site. Click the Play item on the left side at the bottom.

One of the question we have is what was MJ taking when this was recorded and more importantly, why was this recorded and found on the doctor’s cell phone.

Here are some of the picture of the crime scene, including his bedroom, bathroom, drugs and equipment and clothing that Michael wore during his last rehearsal.

 

 

 

Let us know what you think.

Michael Jackson ‘Trial of the Century’ starts

Leading up to the Michael Jackson manslaughter trial, news has leaked out constantly about jury selection, who will testify, what will be admitted and the defenses angle at trying to get Dr. Conrad Murray off the hook for the death of the King of Pop.

Jury selection involved a long questionnaire with most noting knowledge of MJ’s death and the circumstances surrounding the event. Lets fact it, you would have to live on Mars to not be exposed to some of the coverage over the last two years.

Footage from the This is It concert was ruled not be included as was the press conference announcing the shows. The judge plans to keep a tight reign on what is relevant in what has been deemed the Trial of the Century.

Having lived through the OJ Simpson trial, one can only wonder if the coverage will be as extensive considering how much has already been aired about Michael’s death. Simpson’s trial forever changed how celebrity trials are viewed and televised.

The defense seems to have made it clear how they plan to defend their client. Their take is that the drug starved singer was on deaths door already, probably drank the Propofol that killed him, thus causing his own death.

The prosecution seems to be painting a very different picture of a doctor more worried about his love life than monitoring a patient that he admistered dangerous drugs to in a unorthodox method. Their angle will be that he had a duty to take care of his patient instead of texting and phoning people while his patient died.

Testimony will also show that other professionals arriving at the scene believed Michael was already dead, did not get the needed information from the doctor they needed, witnessed the doc administering CPR incorrectly, and watched as he bagged evidence.

The judge has ruled that the prosecution cannot bring up the fact that the good doctor could not be found or returned their attempts to discuss the case with them for several days and/or weeks.

Whatever the outcome of this trial, there are a few facts that remain.

1. It will be watched by fans, public, lawyers and medical experts. It could determine the outcome of future legal cases as it deals with the care and duty of doctors.

2. Prescription addiction is now in the mainstream media. The public now know it is a growing threat. Will the laws for those supplying drugs be changed to make professionals accountable when it would appear they are nothing more than street drug dealers.

3. Fans will stand by their conviction that Michael receive justice. Only the courts will truly decide.

4. The King of Pop’s legacy will include how this case is handled and its outcome.

We plan to cover the trial and update you on it.

Let us know what you think.