Report: Dr. Conrad Murray Gave Jackson Powerful Drug Before His Death

ET
Getty Images/ Pool / Houston Chronicle
Dr. Conrad Murray gave the late Michael Jackson the powerful drug that authorities believe killed him, claims a new report.
The Associated Press, citing an unnamed official, reports that Dr. Conrad Murray allegedly gave Jackson the anesthetic propofol on the night before his death.
A lawyer for Dr. Murray tells the AP that he did not prescribe or administer anything that should have killed the King of Pop. In response to the AP report, attorney Ed Chernoff tells ET, "It's a waste of time responding to all these timed 'leaks' from 'anonymous' sources.

I feel like a horse swatting flies. Everyone needs to take a breath and wait for these long delayed toxicology results.

I have no doubt they want to make a case -- for goodness sakes, its Michael Jackson! But things tend to shake out when all the facts are made known, and I'm sure that will happen here as well."
Dr. Murray, who was with Jackson on the day he died last month, is also the subject of a manslaughter investigation, according to court documents cited by the AP.

Father blames Jackson doctor over death

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EPA ©

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Joe Jackson says he has taken his son Michael's death "very hard" and believes the doctor who took care of him could be behind the singer's demise.

The patriarch of the Jackson family appeared on CNN's Larry King Live and implied his son's personal doctor, Dr Conrad Murray, may be to blame for the death.

"The doctor gave him something to make him rest, and then he don't wake up no more. Something is wrong there," Jackson said. He did not refer to Murray by name.

A phone listing for Murray could not be found, and two messages left with his lawyer, Edward Chernoff, on Monday night were not immediately returned.

The family is awaiting the coroner's toxicology report to determine how Michael Jackson died at the age of 50. The results are expected next week.

Investigators obtained a search warrant and removed several bottles of the powerful anaesthetic propofol from Jackson's home, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation.

Jackson suggested Murray couldn't be found following his son's death on June 25.

"This doctor, he ran away. They had to look for him three days to find him. To me that is foul play," Jackson said.

Police interviewed Murray two days after Jackson's death.

Authorities say he is a not a suspect, though the cardiologist is a key figure in the investigation because he was with Jackson in the mansion and tried to revive him. His car has been seized after police said they believe the vehicle may contain drugs or other evidence.

Wearing a black fedora and a gold medallion of Africa hanging around his neck, Jackson appeared on the show with promoter Leonard Rowe.

When asked by King how he's dealt with his son's death, Joe Jackson replied, "I took it very hard".

Jackson added he didn't know where his son's body is being kept and hasn't seen the results from a second autopsy performed on Michael Jackson at the family's request.

Micheal Jackson hair on fire

Behind the Scenes of Michael Jackson's 'This is It' Concert

ET

Michael Jackson was busy putting on the final touches for his 50-date London concerts at the O2 Arena when he unexpectedly died. Now, ET's Thea Andrews is with the men behind the massive production to reveal what could have been Michael's most incredible concert tour yet!
A show filled with music, dance, stunts and pyrotechnics, Michael's "This is It" concert was being directed by Kenny Ortega, the man who designed Michael's "Dangerous" tour, choreographed 'Dirty Dancing' and also brought "High School Musical" to the world. Kenny says that Michael promised "the concert of a lifetime" and was prepared to deliver.
"We [had] some fun things planned," he says, referring to gigantic spiders, 20-foot puppets, a flaming bed, a pole dancing aerialist, a 3D movie and plenty more magic. "It's complex in scale and it's as big as anything I've ever done or attempted to do for an arena production."
Michael was reportedly planning to open the show with "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and a glass sphere would float around the King of Pop, light up, drift over the crowd and then return to his palm.
Rehearsals for the concert series began at CenterStaging in Burbank, CA, owned by Johnny Caswell, but the huge space still wasn't big enough for the production, so Michael moved to L.A.'s Staples Center downtown.
"He was intently involved in making this, along with Kenny, the greatest thing he'd ever done," says Caswell, who adds that the performance stage, just under 10,000 square feet, "was not big enough to house the set, or high enough. It was really gonna be big stuff."
The "This is It" concerts will never be, but there are reports that AEG Live, the promoters, have approximately 100 hours of rehearsal video and may turn the footage into anything from a CD to a DVD, motion picture, pay-per-view or television event.
Watch ET for all the latest Michael Jackson news…

Jackson's mum, kids 'to gain from will'

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A 2002 will by Michael Jackson divides his estate between his mother, three children and one or more charities, the Wall Street Journal has reported.

But his father, Joseph Jackson, apparently does not feature, said the story.

A lawyer for Jackson could submit the will, which was believed to be his last, to Los Angeles Superior Court as soon as Thursday, said the Journal.

It names lawyer John Branca and a music executive John Mclain, a friend of Jackson, as executors, according to the Journal.

Branca, who worked for Jackson from 1980 to 2006 and was rehired by Jackson a week before his death last Thursday, wrote the will in 2002, according to the newspaper account.

The singer's parents have not seen the will, their lawyer said in an emailed statement to the Journal.

The report said Joseph Jackson, with whom the singer reportedly had a troubled relationship, was not believed to be included in the will.

It was not known what custody provisions the 2002 will sets out for Jackson's three children. A Los Angeles court on Tuesday gave the singer's mother temporary custody of the children until a hearing in July.

The size and complexity of Jackson's assets and debts is expected to pose a challenge in unwinding his estate, the Journal said, estimating his debt at $US500 million ($A619.2 million).

His assets, which include a 50 per cent stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, could exceed his debts by as much as $US200 million ($A247.68 million), it said.

Michael Jackson dies

By ninemsn staff

PHOTOS: Legend dies

US gossip website TMZ.com said ambulance officers were unable to revive the pop legend after they were called to his house about 5.30am (AEST).

Paramedics said Jackson had no pulse when they arrived and "they never got a pulse back", TMZ reports.

The Los Angeles Times is also reporting the 50-year-old has died, quoting police sources who said Jackson was pronounced dead at the UCLA Medical Centre after arriving in a deep coma.


Fire department official Steve Ruda said Jackson was not breathing when Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded to the 111 call.

The paramedics performed CPR and took him to the Medical Centre, Ruda told the Times.

Earlier, Michael's father Joe Jackson told E! Online he was aware of the emergency but did not know further details.

"I am in Las Vegas, but yes, people in Los Angeles called me and are with Michael and tell me he was taken to the hospital," he said. "I am not sure what's wrong. I am waiting to hear back from them."

The reports came as Jackson prepared to make a keenly anticipated concert comeback in London, his first series of shows in more than a decade and the first since his 2005 acquittal on child molestation charges.

However those concerts — billed as the "final curtain" — had been thrown into doubt after Jackson pushed back the opening dates last month.

Organisers of the concerts had stressed the delay was not linked to Jackson's health.

Promoters and producers AEG Live said the rescheduling was done because of the "sheer magnitude" of the show and the desire for fans attending the opening nights to get the same experience planned for all 50 shows.

In a press conference from the United States broadcast over the internet, AEG Live president Randy Phillips was asked about Jackson's health and said: "I would trade my body for his tomorrow. He's in fantastic shape."

While Jackson reigned as the King of Pop in the 1980s, his once-stellar career had been overshadowed by his colourful public behavior, his startling physical transformation and multiple allegations of child abuse.

Jackson lived as a virtual recluse following his 2005 acquittal on charges including child molestation and plotting to kidnap his young accuser.

Despite his acquittal, the trial was a body blow from which the pop music superstar struggled to recover.

Four years later, Jackson is still worshipped by fans for revolutionising music, dance and music videos at the peak of his success.

The attention however paid to him in recent years has been less flattering, focusing on apparent cosmetic surgery — which he denies — his baby dangling antics and a decade of swirling child abuse allegations.

Michael Jackson has skin cancer

Michael Jackson is reportedly battling skin cancer.

ninemsn
Jackson, 50, has spots of skin cancer on his upper body and pre-cancerous cells on his face, The Sun reports.

Those close to the King of Pop did not deny the report when contacted.

"I cannot comment on this issue," a spokesperson for his publicist Dita Miller was reported as saying in the Daily Mail.

"I am afraid there is nothing more to add at this time."

His New York-based lawyers, L Londell McMillan, refused to confirm or deny the reports.

"We don't speak about these sorts of things ... I cannot say any more," a spokesperson said.

Jackson is said to be determined to make a full recovery after his Los Angeles doctors said the disease was treatable.

"He was at first very concerned, but says he has been assured by the doctors that they can treat this and he will recover," a Sun source said.

Jackson has been photographed making regular visits to his Beverly Hills dermatologist wearing a mask and surgical cap, and reportedly received the shock diagnosis last month.

Jackson's strange skin colour has been linked to the cancer.

He has claimed to suffer from vitiligo, a disease that affects pigmentation, which has the potential to contribute to skin problems.

Medical bodies have also warned in the past that skin bleaching treatments can lead to skin cancer.

Jackson has long been rumoured to have undergone the cosmetic treatment despite repeatedly denying the claims.

The obscure performer's 50 sold-out shows at London's O2 Arena are scheduled to begin in July.