Michael Jackson case: Prosecutors seek to show video of 'active, energetic' pop star before his death

Prosecutors in the upcoming trial of Michael Jackson’s personal physician want to show jurors video of the pop star singing and dancing hours before his death.

In papers filed Tuesday in L.A. County Superior Court, the prosecution said the rehearsal video captured by a documentary film crew shows Jackson as an “active, energetic 50-year-old,” countering suggestions by Dr. Conrad Murray’s lawyers that the singer was in a desperate state of mind and caused his own death.

The footage of Jackson performing “The Way You Make Me Feel” two days before his 2009 death and “Earth Song” the evening before show he “was actively involved in preparing for his upcoming tour ... and that he had every reason to want to live,” wrote prosecutors David Walgren and Deborah Brazil.

Judge Michael Pastor is to take up the request and other evidentiary motions Thursday at a hearing.

Murray is to go on trial next month for involuntary manslaughter in Jackson’s fatal overdose from the surgical anesthetic propofol. He has said through his attorneys that the music legend gave himself the lethal dose.

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Prosecutors seek to tell jurors about Dr. Conrad Murray's relationships with three women 

-- Harriet Ryan

Photo: Michael Jackson's personal physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, right, in court in January with one of his attorneys. Credit: Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[linda]

I do think Michael was very stressed about doing the 50 shows compared to the ten he agreed to do, But I do not think he would want to end his own life like the defense is trying to shine light on, the truth will prevail, for beautiful Michael sake, God is a good god he will allow what ever pain the person who killed michael god will deal with them in his way for michaelsoul to rest. I love you with all my heart michael Love Linda

[ilvia E Frausto]

MICHAEL I LOVE YOU AND I MISS YOU .YOU WILL BE IN MT HEART FOREVER................

[SILVIA E FRAUSTO]

THE TRUTH WILL COME OUT .

[jmuhj]

If I wanted a rug, I'd go to a rug shop.

[Tom]

Oh for God's sake Michael agreed to the 50 shows. It's insane to think someone could force him to do 50 shows if he really didn't want to. AND everyone who was actually around him said he was happy upbeat and looking forward to the shows. Kenny Ortega actually testified that Murray told him himself that Jackson was healthy and able to do the shows. Also, "This Is It" is going to be hard for anyone to ignore - he was in great form.

[swhitS]

Just grabbing at straws to justify a murder.

[Tookie]

Hey DA: Make sure you show the real MJ clips from This Is It and not the doubles and impersonators. Wouldn't want you guys to look like fools now. Ha ha!

[googie40]

MJ loved life too much to ever be suicidal. Stressed may be because of the upcoming huge amount of tours, but never that much to the extent that he injects himself. Besides, everyone who has gone through an operation before knows that you can't inject youself with Propofol to the end, you get knocked out immediately. Peramedics never found needles in him, nor did Murray confess that. The thruth shall finally prevail. Love you MJ >;(

[Sam Alexander]

Along the line above, I've heard all those broadcasts from the moon were faked also. In fact, according to some, we never landed there at all. Did anyone notice how faked the moon surface looked, like it could have been the Utah Salt Flats and movie set lighting? And maybe those moon-buggies were really disguised golf carts. I'm sitting on the fence here. What do all the rest of you think?

[ELA]

Any footage from the movie wold be acceptable to prove that point for the D.A. even from the first few scenes where he was clearly rusty, he was involved and lucid. He was active in picking the dancers(extra footage on DVD) Teaching the dancers the moves for They Don't Really Care About Us, filming the new thriller sequence. All show a man actively involved in the process. Just like the final footage.
Not to mention that the staff & even patients at the Dr's office claimed he was in good spirits at that time.

The argument for the defense would have been more plausible if he had died at the start of rehearsals, before things started shaping up.

[Tom]

Hey tookie wookie you were there? And of course you were on the moon too no doubt. Let's let the people who were ACTUALLY with Jackson testify to how he was.