Michael Jackson's personal physician pleads not guilty to involuntary manslaughter [Updated]

Michael Jackson’s personal physician entered a plea of not guilty Monday afternoon at a standing-room-only arraignment attended by Jackson’s parents and several siblings.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Keith L. Schwartz set bail for Conrad Murray at $75,000 – three times the standard for involuntary manslaughter cases. The judge also forbade Murray from prescribing heavy sedatives, including propofol, to his patients.

“I don’t want you sedating people,” the judge told Murray.

[Updated at 3:07 p.m.: Murray, dressed in a light gray suit, remained silent throughout the hearing, other than to answer "yes" in a soft voice several times when the judge asked if he understood the terms of his bail and the rights he waived. At the conclusion of the hearing, Murray was taken into custody by sheriff’s deputies and escorted from the courtroom.]

Earlier Monday, prosecutors charged Murray with involuntary manslaughter in connection with administering a combination of surgical anesthetic and sedatives blamed in the music legend’s death last summer.

In the last hours of his life, Jackson was given a powerful anesthetic -- propofol --  at a level equivalent to what would be used in “major surgery” and in a manner that did not live up to medical standards, according to the singer’s autopsy report released by the L.A County coroner’s office today. 

The complaint filed by the county district attorney’s office alleges that Murray “did unlawfully and without malice kill Michael Joseph Jackson, a human being, in the commission of an unlawful act not amounting to a felony; and in the commission of a lawful act which might have produced death, in an unlawful manner, and without due caution and circumspection.”

Jackson’s parents, Kathryn and Joe, as well as some of his brothers arrived at the courthouse shortly after the charge was filed.

In a news release, the district attorney’s office said Deputy Dist. Atty. David Walgren, a prosecutor in the major crimes division, would try the case. Walgren is also handling the attempt to extradite movie director Roman Polanski to face sentencing in a 3-decade-old child-sex case.

The release credited the LAPD and the county coroner’s office for building the case against Murray. "Both agencies worked diligently and exhaustively to collect the evidence leading to the filing of the case,” the statement said.

Murray walked into the courthouse at 12:55 p.m. to shouts of “murderer” from a handful of Jackson fans whose presence was dwarfed by an international contingent of media that began camping out at the courthouse last week.

Brian Oxman, Joe Jackson’s attorney, said some family members were disappointed that the physician was charged only with involuntary manslaughter.

The criminal case comes after a seven-month investigation that stretched from the master bedroom of Jackson’s rented Holmby Hills mansion to the heart clinic that Murray ran in a poor neighborhood of Houston. The focus, however, rarely left Murray.

Within weeks of Jackson’s death, detectives described the doctor as a manslaughter suspect in court papers that said he admitted leaving the singer alone and under the influence of propofol -- used to render surgical patients unconscious -- in a bedroom of the sprawling home.

The coroner’s office ruled Jackson’s death a homicide and said the cause was “acute propofol intoxication” in conjunction with the effect of other sedatives Murray acknowledged providing.

Despite the almost immediate focus on Murray -- authorities first questioned him in the hospital where doctors were working in vain to revive Jackson -- the multiagency probe that included federal and local investigators progressed slowly, and the doctor was not formally accused of wrongdoing until the district attorney’s office filed its complaint.

Involuntary manslaughter is the least serious homicide charge available to prosecutors, its maximum punishment of four years in prison far less than the life sentence for murder or the 11 years for voluntary manslaughter. The charge, which applies to an unlawful killing committed without malice or intent to kill, turns on Murray’s possible negligence in allegedly giving Jackson propofol for an unapproved purpose -- the treatment of insomnia -- and outside of the normal operating-room setting.

The drug, one of the most widely used general anesthetics in the nation, is so dangerous that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says only those trained in anesthesia should administer it.

Murray told police that he had been giving Jackson nightly intravenous doses of propofol for six weeks, about the time he began working for the performer, according to police affidavits filed in court. Murray, who was in debt and behind on child support payments, earned $150,000 a month treating Jackson and closed practices he operated in Las Vegas, where he lived, and Houston to join the performer in Los Angeles for rehearsals.

According to the affidavits, Jackson told the physician that for years other doctors had treated his chronic insomnia with doses of propofol, a white liquid the singer called “milk.”

Murray eventually became concerned that the singer was addicted and tried to wean him off the anesthetic, according to the affidavits. The day Jackson died, Murray had tried to get the performer to sleep using Valium and, later, two other sedatives, according to the affidavits. But Jackson remained awake for 10 hours, demanding propofol.

According to the affidavits, Murray said he relented and sat next to Jackson’s bed as the propofol took effect. He told police he left for two minutes to use the restroom, and cellphone records indicate he also talked on the phone for 45 minutes, according to the affidavits. When he returned, Jackson was not breathing.

Through his attorney, Murray has maintained his innocence and said he did nothing that should have caused Jackson’s death. In his only public comment -- a one-minute video released in August through his lawyer -- a somber-looking Murray expressed confidence that he would be exonerated.

“I told the truth, and I have faith the truth will prevail,” he said.

-- Harriet Ryan and Victoria Kim in Los Angeles; Jack Leonard and Richard Winton at the Airport Courthouse

Photos: Media focused on Dr. Conrad Murray arraignment

Photo: Dr. Conrad Murray, second from right, is arraigned in the Los Angeles County Superior Court Airport Courthouse on a charge of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson.  Murray was remanded into custody and held on $75,000-dollar bail. Credit: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[nikki d]

way to go dr feelgood

[john doe]

notice the california medical board has taken no action. What does this mean? Obviously the da's office and the police department have went through medical school so next time you are sick or having a heart attack skip the ER go to the police station or da's office they know how to practice medicine!

[Cecilia]

I hope that not only Murray but others so called medical doctors around pay for their illegal acts. Deepah Chopra has said that there are more than one doctor doing that have done the same not only to Michael but to other artists in Hollywood. Please, stop these greedy, criminal people!!!!!

[Teresa Smith]

Im appalled that after all that is known about what was done, and what was NOT done, That the DA would choose to file the very minimum charges. This was so much more then just an unfortunate accident. It was gross negligence at the very least.

I wonder what the DA has to gain. or if this is some sort of payback to MJ from the DA's office.

Is there any recourse to him being charged with more? Can a Jury find him guilty of something worse? Can another proseciting agency file charges, such as the FBI? or Supreme court?

That this man could KILL Michael Jackson and get away with a slap on the wrist is criminal in itself.
I know one thing .. The DA has no chance for re-election, nor anyone who is part of his team. Also if found Guilty can future charges still be filed?
This man has to pay.. and pay dearly. Him, and ANYONE who somehow led MJ to believe that Propofol was ok and could be used in his home as long as a DR was present and led him to believe it was the answer to his insomnia nightmare.
Clearly MJ was not a Doctor, He was desperate, Insomnia is Painful.. But he did want to be safe, thats why he hired a Doctor to administer it an stay with him all night to watch him. Im sure he didnt know that certain measures had to be in place to use this drug safely, especially since none were.

It was MURDER..perhaps not 1st degree but Murder all the same.

[roy barson]

MJ Fans! you know he did not deny that sleep overs occurred. My advise dear star struck fans, if a 50 year old wants to have sleepovers with your 13 year old, be suspicious.

[Jennifer]

How does a physician leave a patient alone for 45 minutes with anesthesia going through their veins? How does a physician not use pulse and heart monitors, which is the standard of care? I would have liked to see him charged with depraved indifference. His indifference to the life of Michael Jackson couldn't be more glearing. I hope that he will serve some jail time and not just get probation.

Justice for Michael.

[J. Hall]

This should be a wake up call for all the other uncounted wealthy insomniacs also secretly addicted to propofol. Oh sorry, you're currently sleeping. Well then wake up all the other candyman doctors with their nuts in a financial vise who better stop their gambling habits and straighten up. stat.

[TheBigPicture]

I've changed my mind about this Dr...

Jackson was a competent adult and he chose to ingest these drugs...probably for the last 10 years...he had to be on something similar when he was moon walking in his PJs on his SUV during his child molestation trial..

I don't think we should waste taxpayer dollars on a trial...however, Dr FeelGood needs his MD license pulled by the AMA and maybe fined...

That's all...

[sc341]

MURRAY IS GUILTY OF MURDER. Not Involuntary Manslaughter, MURDER.

[Ana Siqueira]

MJJ WAS RIGHT !!!!

THEY DON´T REALLY CARE ABOUT US !!!!!

[Sandra]

Teresa Smith (February 08, 2010 at 04:50 PM)
"...Can another proseciting agency file charges, such as the FBI? or Supreme court?"

"Also if found Guilty can future charges still be filed?"

The Supreme Court isn’t a prosecuting agency. Lawyers bring cases to them by way of the lower court system first. MJ's case is a criminal case involving a homicide. The only way the S.C. would hear it is if his Constitutional Rights were violated, and violated in such a way that could affect the Constitutional Rights of all Americans. You might say "of course they were," but that's why we have a criminal court system. There are already rules in place to govern the conduct of doctors and the punishment of anyone who wrongfully takes a life. The Constitution talks about freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom to bear arms, etc. It doesn't talk about the freedom to be free of crooked doctors, that's where the criminal courts come in. Also, the volume of wrongful death cases every year would overwhelm the S.C. considering there are only 9 justices.

The FBI isn’t a prosecuting agency either. FBI is responsible for investigating possible violations of federal law and are subordinate to state and local enforcement agencies. The U.S. Justice Department or the U.S. Attorneys offices make decisions in prosecuting cases. The only way the FBI would be involved is if Dr. Murray had criminal activities that crossed state lines or local authorities asked them to participate because they lacked the proper resources to conduct their own investigation. Although licensed to practice in 3 states (California, Texas, and Nevada) the crime Murray is being charged with happened only California. Although, local authorities could ask the FBI to get involved if they thought it was necessary.

I believe future charges can be filed after a guilty verdict. If he's acquitted, he can't be tried again for the same crime. This is a concept called "double jeopardy" and is forbidden by the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.

[Sandra]

To add...
You probably remember that O.J. Simpson was acquitted of murder in his 1995 criminal case. The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution forbids a person from being tried twice for the same crime (double jeopardy). However, the families were able to file a wrongful death civil suit against Simpson, that he lost, which doesn’t violate the Fifth Amendment. There is no jail time associated with a case like that but he was fined a large sum of money...that, for the most part, hasn't been paid. Because the penalties are so much higher in a criminal case (jail time or death sentence, depending on the state you're in) the standards for proving your case are higher and the rules for evidence are stricter than for a civil case. For example, hearsay evidence is not normally admissible in a criminal case where it can be in a civil case.