So DID Michael Jackson commit suicide?

That's what his doctor is set to claim when he goes on trial for manslaughter next week. But the truth may be more sinister

By DAVID JONES
Last updated at 9:19 PM on 31st December 2010
Comments (30)
Add to My Stories
Among the many tired repeats served up on Boxing Day television, the least festive offering was surely This Is It, the film that inadvertently captured the tortured last days of Michael Jackson's life. It was screened on Sky's 'family' channel, but it ought to have been categorised as horror.
The fallen King of Pop was seen rehearsing for 50 comeback concerts at London's O2 Arena, but with the first show fast approaching, he seemed to know he was heading for disaster, and his desperation was pitiful to behold.
He couldn't even remember the words of his hit songs, much less sing them coherently, and his arthritic dance moves made mockery of the mercurial genius who had once created the moon-walk.

Clearly not well: Michael Jackson pictured in rehearsal for a comeback tour just two days before he died
'It's like I've got this giant fist in my ear,' he complained, bizarrely, at one point, by way of explaining why he had aborted his run-through for the umpteenth time.
Certainly, to Jackson's obsequious inner circle - his producers, advisers, lawyers and
physicians - it must have been blindingly obvious that this wraith-like 50-year-old man was mentally and physically sick, and was being pushed beyond his limits.
And yet, with their own jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars at stake, they relentlessly drove him on.
Watching this slow motion car crash last weekend, one could well understand why, 18 months after Jackson died, there remains a widespread demand for someone to be
held to account in a criminal court.
The question is, who?
Ever since Jackson was pronounced dead at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Centre in Los Angeles, at 2.26pm on June 25, 2009, accusing fingers have been pointed in every direction. Several members of his family even claim that he was murdered.

Defending his corner: Dr Conrad Murray outside court last year
Soon, though, it became clear that Steve Cooley, the veteran LA District Attorney in charge of the investigation, had one man in his sights: Jackson's personal doctor, 57-yearold Conrad Murray.
Murray's homes and clinics in Las Vegas, Houston and LA were raided, and computers and documents seized.
When his 27-year- old girlfriend, former nightclub stripper Nicole Alvarez, refused to assist with the investigation, she was forced to testify before a grand jury.
Then, last February, the Grenadian-born cardiologist, who had been hired just six weeks before Jackson died and was being paid £100,000 a month to keep the singer functioning, was charged with involuntary manslaughter.
The prosecution alleges he attempted to treat Jackson's insomnia by administering a lethal dose of propofol - a powerful anaesthetic drug normally used only before
operations. If convicted, he faces four years in jail.

Accused: Conrad Murray, right, with his attorney at another court hearing in November, 2009
Murray's trial is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, with a two- week prel iminary hearing to decide whether there is sufficient evidence of 'unlawful killing without malice' to place before a jury.
However, the first salvo in a legal battle being billed as the biggest celebrity case since that of OJ Simpson was fired this week, when a sensational aspect of Murray's
defence strategy was laid bare.

During a pre-trial argument between the prosecution and defence over who should test two syringes found in Jackson's bedroom, LA Deputy District Attorney David Walgren said Murray's lawyers would try to prove that the star took his own life.
'I do think it's clear the defence is operating under the theory that the victim, Michael Jackson, killed himself,' he said.
Hours before Jackson died, he had summoned Murray to his rented mansion complaining that he was unable to sleep. The doctor then spent several hours alone with him.
'Michael complained to many people of the burning effect of propofol. He would have been screaming in agony before he could get any meaningful amount of the drug into himself.'
When interviewed by detectives soon after Jackson's death, Murray is said to have admitted giving him sedatives and a small quantity of propofol, fed through an IV drip.
In evidence, however, Murray is expected to claim that he left the room for two minutes to go to the bathroom, whereupon Jackson awoke from his fitful slumbers and
dosed himself with a massive fatal quantity of the anaesthetic.
Did he really commit suicide? Well, he was certainly extremely depressed - and for good reason. Leaving aside his drug dependency and his psychological debilities, he was about £300 million in debt, and his once glittering career had been ruined by
a series of child-sex scandals.
Heaped on top of all this was the monumental stress of trying to recreate his old magic, night upon night, for the forthcoming concerts that would either restore or irreparably break his reputation.
But as the Jackson family's long-time lawyer, Brian Oxman, told the Mail this week, the defence's theory - though very convenient - seems far-fetched.
'The science doesn't stand up,' he said.
'Michael complained to many people of the burning effect of propofol. He would have been screaming in agony before he could get any meaningful amount of the drug into himself.'
He went on: 'Yet we are being told by Murray that Michael injected himself with a full 125cc from the syringe. That is five times the amount Murray said he himself
injected.

Prime time: Michael Jackson performing in Singapore in 1994
'Also, propofol takes effect within ten to 15 seconds. By the time he had injected 25cc, about 15 seconds would have elapsed, and by then he would have been asleep. It just doesn't make sense.'
Indeed not, and if Murray was being tried in the court of U.S. public opinion, he would surely be found guilty.
For despite attempts to portray him as a paragon of Hippocratic virtue (his attorney, Ed Chernoff, has even posted the names and phone numbers of grateful patients on his website, so the media can call them for a character reference), in many ways the doctor makes the perfect scapegoat.
The feckless father of seven children by various wives and mistresses, he has been pursued through the courts for unpaid child support - plus a variety of other debts - for years, and his medical practices have constantly teetered on the edge of bankruptcy.
But his luck turned in 2006 when he was asked to treat one of Jackson's children for a minor complaint. He evidently impressed the singer and they became friends.
'It's tragic. He was essentially drugged to keep him working. He was fed this medicine because he complained of pain, and then the people who did all this put out the music, saying he was in terrific shape.'
And when Jackson offered him a staggering salary to abandon his clinics and join his entourage for the London concerts, it was an easy decision to make. At the time, Murray owed his creditors more than £300,000.
There is every reason for questioning his judgment in compliantly giving Jackson regular cocktails of narcotics when it must have been patently evident from the skeletal, pock-marked body before him that he was dealing with a chronic drug addict.
For all this, however, one can't help but wonder why he - or rather he alone - will be in the dock next week.
By Jackson's own admission, his dependency dated back to 1984, when he began taking painkillers after an explosion on the set of a Pepsi commercial set his hair on fire.
And as his biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli says, down the years there must have been 'many Dr Murrays', all too willing to facilitate his habit.
Furthermore, during his final few months, Jackson had been 'treated' by at least six other doctors, none of whom seems likely to face charges. The same goes for the compliant pharmacists who dispensed prescriptions presented by Jackson's gofers, many of which were written out to transparently false patients.
Then there is AEG, the production company which stood to make more than £75 million from the O2 Arena concerts. Shouldn't they bear some responsibility for placing such a huge burden on a performer who was palpably unfit?
Brian Oxman is certainly no apologist for Dr Murray, for he is acting for Jackson's father Joe, who, in a separate civil court case, accuses the doctor of being responsible for his son's 'wrongful death'.

Grief-stricken: Katherine Jackson and Joe Jackson attend their son's funeral service held at Glendale Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California
However, even the Jacksons' lawyer is dismayed that the doctor is being left to carry the can.
'The AEG group and the people who employed Conrad Murray must share the blame,' he said.
'They knew precisely what he was doing, and paid him to do it.
'They say they had nothing to do with it, but if I hire a doctor to drug someone, and that person dies, I'd expect to be blamed because I'm the one paying the bills.
'As if they didn't know!
'It's tragic. He was essentially drugged to keep him working. He was fed this medicine because he complained of pain, and then the people who did all this put out the music, saying he was in terrific shape (just before his death).
'But in the autopsy, it said he was suffering from pneumonia, brain swelling, chronic bronchitis and anaemia. Oh yes, he was in great condition. If your brain is swelling,
you belong in hospital, not on stage.
'If you look at the photographs from the movie (This Is It), the dancers behind Michael are all about 20 or 25, and they are halfnaked. Yet Michael has three shirts on and a heavy jacket. He was freezing cold. Who are these people trying to fool?
'Conrad Murray is going to bring this out. He is going to say Michael Jackson was in bad shape, and he told him he was in bad shape.'
'He was a sick, 50-year-old man, and they expected him to dance like a 20- year- old. Imagine the pressure!'
If Murray is sent for trial, his attorney is expected to say much the same.
'Conrad was at a lot of the rehearsals for This Is It, and he says Michael never made it through one single song,' says a defence team source.
'He didn't want to go on there, but he had to, and Michael was saying: "If I don't get any sleep I won't be able to rehearse, and if I can't rehearse I can't do the concerts."
'He was a sick, 50-year-old man, and they expected him to dance like a 20- year- old. Imagine the pressure!'
Many observers would agree. Yet if that is the case, why has no one else been
charged?
If we believe Murray's Houston-based pastor and confidant, the Reverend Floyd Williams - a veteran of the civil rights movement - there is a racial element to the case.
'Why else would they accuse the only black doctor who treated Michael Jackson?' he asks rhetorically. 'It can't be any coincidence that his other physicians were all white - and they won't be going on trial.'
But according to Miranda Sevcik, who handles PR for Murray's hotshot attorney, the LA authorities have pursued the doctor 'purely because Michael Jackson's name was associated with the case'.

Gone but not forgotten: Even after his death, Jackson has generated million of pounds worth of record sales
The 18-month investigation cost a fortune at a time when the state of California was laying off workers it is strapped for funds, she says, so they felt compelled to charge someone: and Dr Murray was the easiest target.
Perhaps so, but the most likely explanation is that the case is politicallymotivated, the orchestrator being governor-elect Jerry Brown, a long-time crusader against the abuse of prescription drugs.
During his tenure as California's attorney general, Brown operated a purportedly unique data-tracking system to keep tabs on every doctor who prescribes drugs, the prescription name, the person for whom it is prescribed, the quantity and date.

It was used to investigate the death of gold-digging model Anna Nicole Smith, who took an accidental drugs overdose in 2007.
As a result, her boyfriend and psychiatrist were convicted last October of conspiring to obtain drugs for her.
The verdict has sparked panic in Hollywood, and for very good reason. For decades, its luminaries have paid 'tame quacks' to slip them the illicit pills and potions that control almost every aspect of their lives - from their shape and size to their state of mind.
But Brown - whose tough-guy image was a major factor in his reelection as governor last autumn - is a man on a mission, and the days when such drugs are available on demand may soon be over.
If Michael Jackson's doctor is convicted, it will be a major boost for his campaign, and the prosecution are determined to nail him.
Ordinarily, preliminary hearings are swift and unremarkable, but it is planned to call some 35 witnesses - a process that will take at least two weeks.
Prominent among them will be Alberto Alvarez, the bodyguard who dashed to the scene of Jackson's collapse after Murray called security and, with admirable calmness, alerted the paramedics.
Even by Hollywood standards, it promises to be quite some showtrial, and every dramatic moment will be screened live on TV.
As a result, Conrad Murray will run a daily gauntlet of angry Jackson fans when he enters the downtown Superior Court.
But when the world's most famous pop star dies in a manner which exposes the squalid underbelly of Tinsel Town, it seems that someone - anyone - must be made to pay the price.

Additional Reporting: David Gardner in Los Angeles


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1343137/So-did-Michael-Jackson-commit-suicide-Thats-doctor-set-claim-goes-trial-manslaughter-week-But-truth-sinister.html#ixzz19mJKEWfp

Nope!

His reliance on a cocktail of drugs to get through life suggests he might have a suicidal wish but doubt he actually would carry it out. His enablers have plenty to answer for.

aiyoyo wrote:Nope!

His reliance on a cocktail of drugs to get through life suggests he might have a suicidal wish but doubt he actually would carry it out. His enablers have plenty to answer for.

One very much agrees with you aiyoyo. Jackson thought himself immortal and would have had no intent of abandoning his family to any life-long torture by the media.

Jackson lived by the sword, and tragically died by the sword. The doctor being prosecuted should have known that his retainer of 100K per month, was not being paid so that he could carry out any work which would rely on his ethical expertise! He knew the risks he was taking by carrying drugs around or leaving drugs unattended whilst working with a drug addict.

One wishes to acknowledge that 100K may be an amount dreamed up by the media

I have always been very suspicious of the MJ death story. Having recently read an Elvis book written by people who were in Graceland the night Elvis died (including Billy Smith his cousin) I was amazed at the similarities in the circumstances of both their deaths. It is almost as if MJ or someone else had read the same book and copied it word for word.

In the state he was in physically and mentally MJ was worth far more dead than alive to a great many people, including himself. He had been thrown a financial lifeline he knew he could not fulfill. He was in a catch 22.

I don't think he killed himself but him being dead was the only way left to secure the future for his family and get the loan sharks off his back.

I don't think anyone will be convicted for his death.

As for Joe Jackson - what WAS he doing advertising his new business venture when asked to comment on his sons death?

That's a very good question lp

Michael didn't kill himself. Physical impossibility though Conrad Murray's defence are certainly sniffing around ways to imply Michael may have managed to inject himself that day..that's if it goes to trial of course, which it's looking pretty much certain that it will.

Believe me, that doctor's going down. Right now the hot topic behind the scenes at court during the preliminary hearing is whether current charges will be raised to murder2.

I'll point out at this stage that the autopsy showed Michael was healthy with no signs of drug use (other than those which killed him that day). His organs were healthy and the only drugs found in him were those which Conrad Murray gave him that morning. A drug dependancy of sorts on and off certainly; an addict - well, if you look no further than the biased media headlines you would think that yes.

Conrad Murray was to be paid $100k a month yes. That's a fact, and stated in contractual documents between Murray and AEG (the concert promoter).

There certainly seems a lot of questions as to the conduct of Conrad Murray and I dont think Jackson committed suicide.

Cherry wrote:There certainly seems a lot of questions as to the conduct of Conrad Murray and I dont think Jackson committed suicide.

Neither do I Cherry, he loved his children too much. Although after watching the "This is it" film over Christmas, I was shocked how desperately thin he looked, his legs were like matchsticks, he didn't look well at all, and his dancing was just not the same.

Michael Jackson was an addict and it finally caught up with him. He should never have been allowed to adopt children (imo). Don't get me wrong, I loved him as a performer and feel sad he is gone. However, I believe he was self destructing for years.

I also believe Conrad should be convicted and thrown in jail!

I also believe he was an addict and a hypochondriac for years. Whether he realised he was an addict is a different story. There is footage of him asking for medication on the LWMJ fim.
I am sure I read that he had asked a British female Doctor to supply him with certain medications for the This is It tour and she refused. Dr Murray was greedy and took the job.

Someone is not telling the truth if they state that MJs body showed no signs of drug abuse and that he was healthy. He was clearly under the influence when he announced the This is it tour.

littlepixie wrote:I also believe he was an addict and a hypochondriac for years. Whether he realised he was an addict is a different story. There is footage of him asking for medication on the LWMJ fim.
I am sure I read that he had asked a British female Doctor to supply him with certain medications for the This is It tour and she refused. Dr Murray was greedy and took the job.

Someone is not telling the truth if they state that MJs body showed no signs of drug abuse and that he was healthy. He was clearly under the influence when he announced the This is it tour.

Absolutely agree littlepixie. Lisa Marie Presley has confirmed his problems were serious back in 1994, and I'm sure they started way before then!

That is why I think the whole tour was a farce - whoever was bankrolling that tour knew that MJ was in no fit state to fulfull his obligations. I think it was a scam. I said it way before he died.

littlepixie wrote:That is why I think the whole tour was a farce - whoever was bankrolling that tour knew that MJ was in no fit state to fulfull his obligations. I think it was a scam. I said it way before he died.

These artists of huge fame do generally keep on performing until the end. Like Elvis Presley who was in such bad shape during his last performances, and Tammy Wynette, who had developed a dependence on painkillers, which she injected with syringes, and after her veins in her arms collapsed, she resorted to shooting the drugs between her toes, and in the end had a permanent catheter inserted into her side into which she could insert a needle for shooting drugs directly into her bloodstream. She was still performing in that state, and people didn't stop her!

Crikey, I never knew that about Tammy Wynette!! I don't think MJ had performed for years though, unlike Elvis who carried on. I read that they used to try and fool Elvis by replacing the tablets and draining the capsules for placebos. That is why Billy Smith, Elvis' cousin would not testify against Dr Nic, Elvis' physician when he was taken to Court for supplying the drugs.
Elvis had no money when he died and neither did MJ. Elvis child ran up to the room when they were trying to revive him and so did MJ's. Elvis had been dead long before the emergency services were called and so was MJ.
Elvis had lots of different suppliers and IMO so did MJ.

I don't think Elvis ever had control of his own finances and life in a business sense but Michael Jackson did, he was said to be very astute - then it all changed for him and he owed big time and the jackals pounced.

I still dont know what to make of the whole situation.

Why was the syringe loaded on standby and within his reach unsupervised when the Dr went to Toilet.

I doubt someone like MJ after having received the 25cc in drowsy condition is able to be clear minded to load another 125cc to inject himsef. IF he wanted to commit suicide he wouldnt be looking at dozage.
So exactly 125cc accuracy doesnt sound right.

Only doctors are watchful of that.

littlepixie wrote:I also believe he was an addict and a hypochondriac for years. Whether he realised he was an addict is a different story. There is footage of him asking for medication on the LWMJ fim.
I am sure I read that he had asked a British female Doctor to supply him with certain medications for the This is It tour and she refused. Dr Murray was greedy and took the job.

Someone is not telling the truth if they state that MJs body showed no signs of drug abuse and that he was healthy. He was clearly under the influence when he announced the This is it tour.

Susan Etok has a doctorate. She isn't a doctor in the medical sense.

Is that the lady who says he rang asking her to supply him with drugs?

aiyoyo wrote:Why was the syringe loaded on standby and within his reach unsupervised when the Dr went to Toilet.

I doubt someone like MJ after having received the 25cc in drowsy condition is able to be clear minded to load another 125cc to inject himsef. IF he wanted to commit suicide he wouldnt be looking at dozage.
So exactly 125cc accuracy doesnt sound right.

Only doctors are watchful of that.

Why don't you read the preliminary hearing transcripts? If you Google they're online. Murray claimed it happened whilst he went to the loo yes.

The reality was he spent most of the morning on the phone (sorry- on his two mobile phones) to a variety of folk, including a lawyer and office staff (telling them to remove items from a storage facility - lawyer and office staff hours before he supposedly realised Michael was gone) and three girlfriends.

He hid medication bottles and other related items before calling (via bodyguard who made the call)emergency services. Before telling the bodyguard to call emergency services he had him gathering items for him too...which were stuffed in a closet before the ambulance arrived.

He lied to paramedics about the drugs he'd given Michael, omitting to tell them about propofol.
He lied to doctors at the hospital about the same thing.
He didn't (or couldn't) perform CPR properly (he's a cardiologist)

Off the top of my head that's just a few things. It's in the transcripts for anyone who's really interested. As I've said before the autopsy states Michael was in good health (some signs of arthritis, lupus (not the serious to health kind) and some lung inflamation but overall in good health typical of someone 50 years old). Again its available online.

Re that DM article. Much of that comes from Brian Oxman. Brian Oxman's claims of pheumonia and brain swelling are BS. The minor brain swelling occured at the time of his corony arrest ...as is apparently what happens. Oxman is a laughing stock in the legal world. He was sacked by MJ in 2005 for not being able to control his mouth in front of the media and for falling asleep during MJ's trial. He's currently under a "last warning" or he gets disbarred (again). The man is an idiot.

Quote//
"He didn't (or couldn't) perform CPR properly (he's a cardiologist)"

Yes, he was apprently performing CPR on a bed. I have seen doctors on TV perform CPR on a bed but I suppose that is a hard hospital bed. I have never seen a doctor drag a patient out of bed and put them on the floor.

mischief wrote:

aiyoyo wrote:Why was the syringe loaded on standby and within his reach unsupervised when the Dr went to Toilet.

I doubt someone like MJ after having received the 25cc in drowsy condition is able to be clear minded to load another 125cc to inject himsef. IF he wanted to commit suicide he wouldnt be looking at dozage.
So exactly 125cc accuracy doesnt sound right.

Only doctors are watchful of that.

Why don't you read the preliminary hearing transcripts? If you Google they're online. Murray claimed it happened whilst he went to the loo yes.

Mischief

You are missing my whole point. I'm saying no one wanting to commit suicide would measure out medication in exact measure be it in whavtever form, liquid, pills or injection.
So the doctor is obviously lying when he said MJ injected himself with 100cc (not including his initial 25cc) or is it 125cc of pronofol (sp) in his absence while he was in the loo. That's just bloody excuse after he'd goofed up. Injected MJ then went to toilet forgetting to monitor MJ.

This is when the accident happened and his after the accident speaks louder than word. Why busy himself ring people to remove evidence of drugs hanging round places?

His priorities were all wrong. He's guilty as hell of, if not the homicide, than for agreeing to become MJ's jpersonal doctor an indecent amount of money just to pander to MJ's demand and wish of any drugs to shut out the real world. On the other hand, when one thinks about it, if one is truthful most established doctors either working for themselves or for the State would draw that kind of money.

That's beside the point, enabling an fallen idol is quite another matter.

What a waste of life and encurtailment of a talent prematurely.

If "MJ's" body was healthy and showed no sign of drug use I doubt it was him.

littlepixie wrote:If "MJ's" body was healthy and showed no sign of drug use I doubt it was him.

Me too, littlepixie. MJ's body would have had numerous drugs in it at the time of death, and a legitimate toxicology test would have flagged them up (imo). There is absolutely no way on earth that I would believe his body showed no sign of drug abuse/use



Unless the report was referring to 'illegal' drug use, and was not including those that were (cough) legally prescribed by doctor/s?

Maybe MJ did live a clean life albeit needing some sedative medication to sleep and his drug fueled habits just speculated by those around him because of his pecularity. Anyway people always attribute unusual behavior to drugs especially if subject is a star and rich. It seems to be associated as the habit of the rich and disturbed, but doesnt necessary to all rich and famous.

MJ might have been so misjudged during his lifetime. He reclusiveness and childlike manners are speculation materials.

If his health is clean - its not him.

I dont see how Murray can get out of that!

Michael was always trying to get drugs from various doctors, he was a hard core junky (imo). Some ethical doctors, such as Deepak Chopra, turned him down, but sadly in the end, there is always someone who will fill a prescription. Conrad was that sleazy someone during Michael's final years, and I imagine many came before him, but I'm quite certain Conrad was chosen mainly because he didn't say 'No' to Michael.

Prescription drugs have been a way for rich and famous people to 'use' legally for many decades.