Today was day 17 of the People vs. Conrad Murray trial and the second day of defence witnesses.
Cherilyn Lee
The first witness on the stand was Cherilyn Lee, a holistic nurse. Early on in her testimony the court was adjourned as Ms Lee was very emotional and felt unwell. She told the court "this is very sensitive for me". When court resumed Lee testified about the time Jackson had asked for her Diprovan (the brand name for Propofol).
Ms Lee had previously testified that she had tried to use holistic methods to help Michael sleep. Today she stated when Michael first asked her for Diprovan she did not know what it was. Lee was concerned that Michael had a familiarity with Diprovan. Lee consulted a doctor about the drug and the settings under which it should be used. The doctor stated Propofol is not appropriate to be used in a home setting.
When Ms Lee conveyed this to Michael he stated that doctor’s had told him it was safe to use as long as he was monitored. At this point Jackson told Lee that he had used Propofol before but only for surgery, but he knew it would “knock him right out”.
Lee states that the next day Jackson was a “tad upset” that she did not help him receive Diprovan to sleep. Jackson stated that by not sleeping it would “mess up my performance”. This would be the last time Ms Lee saw Michael.
21st June 2009
Ms Lee told the court that on the 21st June 2009 she received a phone call from one of Jackson’s bodyguards stating that Michael wanted to see her. Ms Lee was in Florida at the time so told the bodyguard it would not be possible. Lee told the court she could hear Michael in the background saying “tell her what is wrong. One half of my body is hot; one half of it is cold.” Lee believed this could be a symptom of Propofol use and told the bodyguard to take Jackson to the hospital immediately.
The prosecution then cross-examined Ms Lee. As Ms Lee had brought all of her medical notes regarding her treatments and consultations with Jackson the prosecution used this as an opportunity to again reiterate the importance of keeping medical records, (and highlighting the fact the Dr Murray had no notes at all).
Ms Lee had previous testified that Jackson would drink a lot of highly caffeinated drinks such as Red Bull, leave lights on and play music and movie and she believed this was the reason he could not sleep. She recommended turning the music and movies off, turning the lights down and drinking soothing drinks to help with sleep. All of her suggestions were written in her notes.
As MJ had asked Lee about Diprovan she consulted a doctor and researched the side effects of Propofol. She notes that she informed Jackson of these side effects which include dizziness, agitation, chills and delirium. Another symptom is memory loss. Lee told the court that she asked Michael “what if you forget your lines?’. Michael responded “I would never forget my lines.” Lee then said to Michael that she knew he wanted to be knocked out but what if he was to never wake up. Jackson told her as long as he was monitored he would be OK. Ms Lee then told Michael “no one who cared or had your best interest at heart would give you this.”
Ms Lee was very emotional during her testimony.
Amir Dan Rubin
The second testimony came from Amir Dan Rubin, the former chief operating office of UCLA Medical Centre. Rubin helped write the press release announcing to the world that Michael Jackson was dead.
Rubin testified that a meeting was held in a conference room in UCLA hospital with Jermaine Jackson, AEG and a UCLA PR representative to write the press release. Rubin said that he remembers seeing Murray there in retrospect. Murray appeared distressed but this was the mood for everyone involved. Murray told the group that the cause of death was not known at the time. Rubin seemed to imply that Murray had a lot less to the with the press release than what Dr Murray told the police in his interview.
Rubin also told the court that he was present when Katherine Jackson, Michael’s mother, was informed he was dead. Rubin’s stated he heard the “anguish of a mother who had lost a son”.
Randy Phillips
The third testimony of the day came from Randy Phillips, the chief executive of AEG Live. Earlier Judge Pastor had stated that Jackson’s contract with AEG Live could not be admitted as evidence. This may have had an impact on what questions could be asked to Phillips. Phillips told the court that he had never discussed money with Jackson, the meetings they had were purely creative.
Phillips told the court about his company and Michael Jackson. Phillips stated AEG’s role is to show the greatest artists and best talent. He went on to say that Michael Jackson was the greatest star in contemporary music. He stated that London is probably the biggest concert market in the world, bigger than New York and Toronto combined. Phillips said that the residency at the O2 area was called a “mountain to Mohammad” by those involved and would only be possible with a star as famous as Michael Jackson.
Phillips also testified that Michael was motivated, energised and receptive to the idea. MJ was keen to be able to settle down and have a good home for his children so they could stop living like vagabonds. Phillips stated that Jackson got emotional when speaking about his motivations for the gigs and they both cried.
Phillips then told the conditions Jackson laid out if he were to perform. He stated he did not want to live in London; instead he wanted a 16 acre estate outside London. He also wanted the Guinness Book of Records to be present, as no other star would do a residency with that many dates ever again. Jackson agreed to do 31 dates, which was 10 more than Prince had done at his residency at the O2. Phillips stated AEG wanted more than 31 dates as all of those tickets would have sold out in the presales.
Throughout this testimony the defence repeatedly tried to comment about Jackson’s financial situation (most probably to show that Jackson was in financial crisis which could have caused him to feel suicidal). The judge repeatedly sustained objections over these questions as he had specified before that financial matters are irrelevant to the case.
Jackson also stated he wanted his own physician who would be available 24/7. Phillips stated that they wanted Jackson to have a doctor from London but Jackson wanted Conrad Murray. Paul Gongaware then went on to discuss a contract and terms with Dr Murray. During meetings with AEG Murray stated he was going to ensure Michael had a proper diet, including high nutrient shakes, and that Michael was in great health. Phillips told the court that it was obvious there was a good friendship between Jackson and Murray and that Murray wanted to help MJ. Michael had great trust in Dr Murray.
Phillips then told the court that in the second week of June Kenny Ortega raised concerns about MJ. He was worried about the rehearsals Michael was missing and believed that Michael was not as engaged and focused on the production as he should have been. It was also vital for Michael to attend rehearsals as the musicians needed to ‘key off’ of him. Ortega sent an email voicing his concerns and stated that they needed to show MJ “tough love” and talk about “pulling the plug” on the show. Ortega also mentioned about Michael appearing ill and having to send him home on the 19th June.
Phillips told the court that AEG never considered “pulling the plug” but did believe they may have to postpone the show. (Incidentally the production was postponed for a week but this was not to do with Michael’s health.)
Crisis meeting
A meeting was called at MJ’s house on the 20th June 2009. Those present were Michael Jackson, Conrad Murray, Randy Phillips and Kenny Ortega. The meeting was to discuss both MJ’s health and the production. Phillips stated that in production meetings Jackson was always laser focused and that Jackson was a perfectionist, apart from one meeting. Dr Murray told Phillips that the day before Jackson had visited Dr Arnold Klein’s office. Phillips voiced his concern and told Jackson that he needed to focus and pay attention to the production. The production was having huge technical issues with a 3D suit that MJ was meant to fly in. Michael did not respond to the discussion immediately and Dr Murray spoke for Jackson.
Murray reassured Phillips that he could guarantee that Jackson would become engaged. He also stated that Michael had been working on the production at home with a choreographer. Phillips states that concerns were raised about Michael’s weight and nutrition. Murray stated that Michael was “in great health” and he would look after him. Phillips felt “very reassured” after this meeting.
During this meeting drug use was not brought up. Dr Murray told Kenny Ortega that he should leave Michael’s health to him.
Michael told Phillips “you got me here, now I’m ready. I can take it from here…you build the house and I’ll put on the door and paint it”. Kenny Ortega then responded “great. That’s all I want to hear from you.”
Phillips then attended rehearsals on the 23rd and 24th of June to ensure that the production was back on track. Phillips stated that on 24th June, Michael’s final rehearsal, that it was an “amazing rehearsal” and that he had “goose bumps.”
25th June 2009
Phillips testified that on 25th June he received a phone call around 10.30 – 11AM stating Michael was having breathing difficulty. Phillips then got into his car and rushed to Jackson’s house. When he arrived around 1PM the paramedics were leaving. Phillips then headed straight to UCLA hospital. Phillips saw Dr Murray at UCLA as he was part of the team that needed to draw up a press release. Phillips told the court that Conrad Murray was in “severe distress”.
“Michael Jackson was a genius”
Phillips then ended his testimony by speaking about Michael. He stated that Michael Jackson was a genius and there are no entertainers like him in the world. MJ was an “amazing performer” and his attention to detail was phenomenal “both musically and visually.”
Phillips finished his testimony by saying that Michael was a phenomenal father and his children were everything to him.
Michael Henson
The final witness of the day was Michael Henson, a technical operations officer as Pacific Toxicology. Henson had examined urine samples that he had received from the coroner’s office. Dr Shafer had stated in his testimony that the toxicology report from Pacific Toxicology was not accurate (as it had included Metabolites of Lorazepam as well as the drug itself. This therefore gives a higher reading of levels of Lorazepam).
It was quickly apparent during this testimony that Henson was not qualified to give answers on this topic. Henson was then abandoned as an expert.
Summery
A few interesting points were raised in today’s testimonies. Ms Lee stated that Michael was told as long as he was monitored it would be safe to have Propofol. From all accounts so far it seems Murray was not correctly monitoring Jackson, he was lacking life monitoring equipment and he was out of the room for 46 minutes of the hour leading up to Michael’s death. Lee also told Michael that no one with his best interests at heart would give him Propofol. Both of these statements show Murray to be in the wrong. It seems the defence have yet again called a witness whose testimony works more in the prosecutions favour.
It was odd to hear Randy Phillips state he received a phone call to say Michael was having breathing around 10.30-11AM on the 25th of June. We know that it was around noon that MJ stopped breathing. This may have just been an error on Phillips part but it was unusual.
I felt it was a nice touch by Phillips speaking about the Michael Jackson he knew. It reminded people that he was a human being. A court case can easily dehumanise someone and it almost becomes an abstract version of that person. By speaking about the “genius” of Michael Jackson the performer and the loving father that Michael Jackson the person was really brings home the fact that this case is about someone’s life and not just a celebrity and reports and medical facts.
The trial continues tomorrow. It is believed that the final two defence witnesses will be called to take the stand.
Sophie Dewing
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