Dr. Conrad Murray is expected to plead not guilty.
by Madeleine Scinto and Elizabeth McHugh
February 8, 2010
UPDATE 6:06 pm - Murray is currently out on $75,000.
UPDATE 2:42 pm - Murray turned himself in at a branch courthouse near Los Angeles International Airport just before 1 p.m. today. He pleaded not guilty during a hearing before Judge Keith L. Schwartz. His bail has been set at $75,000.
Dr. Conrad Murray, Michael Jackson’s personal physician, was charged with involuntary manslaughter Monday in relation to the pop singer’s mysterious death.
In a criminal complaint filed earlier today, prosecutors, led by Deputy District Attorney David Walgren, alleged Murray gave Jackson a lethal combination of surgical anesthetic and sedatives. A search warrant and affidavit from July 2009 to search Murray’s self storage unit in Houston, Texas, included a detailed description of the medications administered to Jackson in the final moments of his death.
Superior Court Judge Keith L. Schwartz is restricting Dr. Conrad Murray from performing "deep sedation" on patients.
Ed Chernoff, Murray’s lawyer, said he will plead not guilty.
Murray has been the center of a seven-month investigation launched after Jackson’s death. Through his attorney, Murray has denied any wrongdoing, insisting he didn’t give Jackson anything that should have caused his death. In August, Murray appeared in a statement on Youtube saying he had told the truth “and the truth will prevail.”
He told investigators he gave sedatives to Jackson to help him sleep, but admitted he thought the singer may have started becoming addicted to the drug. Murray said he was trying to wean Jackson off of it.
According to the affidavit, on June 25th Murray gave Jackson Valium, followed by Lorazepam and Midazolam before finally administering Propofal (Diprivan) diluted with Lidocaine after Jackson could not fall asleep.
Murray said he left Jackson unattended for a couple minutes while going to the bathroom but, based on cell phone records, investigators think he left Jackson for as long as 45 minutes.
Jackson, 50, was found unresponsive in his bedroom at a rented estate in Holmby Hills on June 25th. He was rushed to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and pronounced dead around 2 p.m.
The Los Angeles County’s coroner’s office concluded Jackson’s death to be the results of an “acute propofol intoxication.” The powerful sedative is supposed to be administered by an anesthesiologist in a hospital setting, according to medical experts.
Involuntary manslaughter is the least serious homicide charge available for prosecutors. Its maximum punishment is four years in prison.
