Prosecution's Case Against Murray Nears Conclusion [Updated]
[Updated, Oct.13, 5:15 p.m. PDT | Court has ajourned for Thursday and will be back in session on Friday at 10:30 a.m. The judge is expected to adjourn to discuss procedures and evidentiary evidence. The jury will not be present.]
A prosecution expert testified in court Thursday that the mix of drugs given the Michael Jackson and Dr. Conrad Murray's missteps were a "recipe for disaster."
Olive View-UCLA Medical Center pulmonary/critical care specialist Dr. Nader Kamangar said Murray gave Jackson "very inappropriate therapy in (a) home setting."
Kamanger testified Murray administered sedatives midazolam and lorazepam with the propofol on June 25, 2009 "without appropriate monitoring" or record-keeping, which would have allowed Murray to follow patterns once the medications were given.
"I think this was the perfect storm I described that ultimately culminated in his demise," Kamangar said under oath.
The defense claims Murray was trying to wean Jackson off of propofol, which he called his "milk." Murray had been administering the anesthetic for about two months. The prosecution witness emphasized that the most important thing in a doctor-patient relationship is "knowing when to say no."
The jurors also heard testimony from Dr. Steven Shafer, who is a leading expert in propofol. Shafer is expected to be the prosecution's last witness. The anesthesiologist said in court papers filed by the prosecution last month that "there is almost nothing in Murray's care of Michael Jackson that reflected the actions of a trained physician."
Murray, 58, is charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with Jackson's death from an overdose of propofol.
On Wednesday, Dr. Nader Kamangar, a pulmonary/critical care speacialist who works at the UCLA Medical Center and is a sleep expert called Murray's administration of propofol to Jackson "inconceivable," "beyond comprehension" and "unethical."
The defense case shifted Wednesday when Flanagan told Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor Wednesday, that they were dropping their claim that the singer drank a fatal dose of propofol when the doctor left his bedroom after commissioning a report that determined swallowing propofol would not be fatal.
Murray has pleaded not guilty. He faces up to four years in prison if convicted and the possibility of losing his medical license.
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