Sponsored adThis sponsor paid to have this advertisement placed in this section.
Video: Michael Jackson's Drugged Voice Shocks Conrad Murray Trial
Image:
Sponsored adThis sponsor paid to have this advertisement placed in this section.
The world's media focused on LA yesterday for the opening of the trial of Michael Jackson's physician, Conrad Murray, 58, for the involuntary manslaughter of the pop legend. The most striking piece of evidence submitted by the prosecution on the first day was this recording, allegedly of a heavily-drugged Jackson—the substance is unknown—retrieved from Dr. Murray's iPhone. Images of the entertainer lying dead in the hospital were also shown to the court. The prosecution is seeking to establish that the doctor acted with gross negligence by giving Jackson the sedative propofol, causing his death in June 2009, aged 50. "That is what Conrad Murray is seeing and observing on May 10, 2009," said Deputy District Attorney David Walgren in court after the recording was played. Michael's mother and sister, Katherine and Latoya Jackson, listened tearfully nearby. Choreographer Kenny Ortega was also called as a witness, and testified that although he'd been concerned about Jackson's health, in the last couple of days of his life the star seemed, "full of energy, full of desire to work." The defense contends that Jackson administered too much of the drug to himself, an argument that will partly rest on establishing that he was an active drug addict. Murray faces four years in jail and the loss of his medical license if convicted. "When people leave my show, I want them to say, 'I've never seen nothing like this in my life... He's the greatest entertainer in the world,'" says Jackson in the recording, slurring unrecognizably.
Sponsored adThis sponsor paid to have this advertisement placed in this section.
Please read our comment policy. - The Fix
Will Godfrey is the former editor-in-chief of TheFix. He was also the founding editor-in-chief of Substance.com, and previously co-founded a magazine for prisoners in London. His work has appeared in Salon, Pacific Standard, AlterNet and The Nation among others. He is currently the Executive Director at FILTER. You can find Will on Linkedin and Twitter.
