Michael Jackson doctor Conrad Murray case goes to jury
By Gadiola Emanuel - 9:54:00 AM
Prosecutors ended their case by saying Dr Conrad Murray's care of Jackson had been "bizarre", while the defence said the singer had caused his own death.
The jury have begun deliberations in the case against the doctor charged with the death of Michael Jackson.
Prosecutors concluded their case by saying Dr Conrad Murray's care of the pop star had been "bizarre" and left the pop star's children fatherless.The defence countered that the singer had caused his own death in June 2009 with an overdose of a sedative.
If convicted, Dr Murray, 58, could face up to four years in prison and lose his licence to practise medicine.
During Thursday's closing statements after the nearly six-week trial, the prosecution projected images of Jackson's grief-stricken children on a giant screen.
"They do not have a father because of the actions of Conrad Murray."
The children, Prince, Paris and Blanket, who range in ages from 9 to 14, were not in court, but Jackson's parents and several of his siblings were present.
Mr Walgren cited Dr Murray's delay in calling 911 and phone records that indicated the physician had been on the phone during Jackson's final hours, when he should have been attending to his patient.
"What was so pressing that he just couldn't care for Michael Jackson?" Mr Walgren asked the court.
He also reminded the jury that Dr Murray had failed to tell the paramedics and emergency room doctors how he had been giving Jackson the powerful sedative propofol as a treatment for insomnia.
"That is consciousness of guilt," Mr Walgren told the court. "That is Conrad Murray knowing full well what caused Michael Jackson's death."
Dr Conrad Murray chose not to testify in his own defence They said Jackson had caused his own death by injecting a dose of propofol while his doctor was out of the room.
"If it was anybody else, would this doctor be here today?" defence attorney Ed Chernoff asked the jury.
Mr Chernoff said prosecutors had failed to prove that Dr Murray had committed a crime by giving Jackson doses of propofol as a sleep aid in the singer's bedroom.
"They want you to convict Dr Murray for the actions of Michael Jackson," Mr Chernoff said.
Dr Murray, who denies involuntary manslaughter, chose not to testify in his own defence.
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