Michael Jackson Doctor Conrad Murray To Be Arraigned

Murray to head to trial in death of Jackson following Tuesday hearing.
By Gil Kaufman


Dr. Conrad Murray
Photo: Frederick M. Brown/ Getty Images

Cardiologist Dr. Conrad Murray, the only person charged in the June 2009 death of Michael Jackson, will be arraigned on Tuesday morning (January 25) on an involuntary manslaughter charge. Murray, who was serving as the 50-year-old pop icon's personal physician at the time, is expected to plead not guilty in the case.

According to CNN, the hearing in front of Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor, is only slated to last a few minutes. While Murray has the right to demand a trial within 60 days, it is not expected that a date will be set for one on Tuesday.

After more than a week of testimony, Pastor ruled during a preliminary hearing in early January that there was enough evidence to bring Murray's case to trial. In the meantime, Murray remains free on $75,000 bond, but Pastor blocked the doctor from using his California medical license until the trial is completed.

"Michael is not with us today because of an utterly inept, incompetent, reckless doctor — the defendant Conrad Murray," Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney David Walgren said in his final arguments in the preliminary hearing, where a series of witnesses recounted Murray's actions during the minutes and hours before and after Jackson's death. The King of Pop died as a result of what the Los Angeles County coroner's office called acute propofol poisoning, a reference to a powerful surgical anesthetic that the singer reportedly requested as a sleep aid to combat chronic insomnia.

While prosecutors appear to be building a case that Murray acted recklessly in attending to Jackson in the singer's final hours, CNN reported that the doctor's lawyers appeared satisfied with the results of the preliminary hearing thanks to some testimony they got from prosecution witnesses that might help raise some reasonable doubt about their client's guilt at trial.

"I think the prosecution is going to change their tactics in this case," defense lawyer J. Michael Flanagan said after the preliminary hearing. "It's not the same as what they gave in opening statements." The defense reportedly is set to argue that it was Jackson himself who administered the final, fatal dose of propofol after waking in a panic from a fitful night of sleep. One of the prosecution's expert witnesses in the case admitted under cross-examination that he made a math mistake and that the recalculation supports the defense theory that Jackson may have given himself the dose of propofol that killed him.

CNN reported that Dr. Richard Ruffalo, an anesthesiologist hired by the prosecution, was the last witness to take the stand and his admission about making a mistake on the calculation of the level of propofol in Jackson's stomach fluid reportedly elicited gasps from the members of Jackson's family who were sitting in the hearing room.

Murray's lawyers have suggested that a frustrated Jackson may have poured the anesthetic — which is administered intravenously — into his juice bottle while the doctor was out of his bedroom. "Now it doesn't make sense unless he ingested it orally in a huge amount," Ruffalo testified. The anesthesiologist added that Murray could still be at fault for leaving dangerous drugs near a patient who was allegedly addicted to sedatives and sleep aids.

"It's like leaving a syringe next to a heroin addict," Ruffalo stated. "If he's not getting what he wants, when you leave the room he might reach for it himself ... Either way, it doesn't matter. He abandoned his patient and didn't resuscitate appropriately." Ruffalo said Murray should have anticipated that Jackson, who had previously asked to inject himself with the drug, might potentially administer it to himself. "He gets upset if he doesn't get his milk," he said, explaining that Jackson often referred to propofol as his "milk."

In addition, the pathologist who conducted Jackson's autopsy acknowledged it was possible, though improbable, that the singer gave himself the fatal propofol dose. Speaking to police two days after Jackson's death, Murray told investigators that a sleepless Jackson had begged him for more propofol on the day he died. The King of Pop was in the midst of a grueling series of rehearsals for his planned "This Is It" comeback shows at London's O2 Arena at the time of his death.

A civil lawsuit filed last year by Jackson's mother against the producer of the concerts, AEG Live, alleged that the company had warned the entertainer several weeks before he died that if he missed any more rehearsals they were going to "pull the plug" on the gigs, which the cash-strapped Jackson was depending on to revive his stalled career.

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Justin Bieber Jokes With Chelsea Handler About Lady Gaga's Egg

The teen sensation told talk-show host Chelsea Handler that he thought Gaga's eye-opening Grammy entrance was 'weird.'
By Jocelyn Vena


Justin Bieber appears on "Chelsea Lately" on Monday
Photo: E! Entertainment

On Sunday night, Lady Gaga arrived at the Grammy Awards in a giant egg. Her stylist, Nicola Formichetti, explained that the star was "incubating" for her performance later that night. But fellow Grammy performer Justin Bieber, for one, didn't really get what the point of it was.

"People say it's artistic and stuff. I'm just like, 'You're an egg,' " he said about Gaga's over-the-top Grammy arrival when he stopped by "Chelsea Lately" on Monday night. "She was probably just trying to save her voice or something. She didn't want to talk to a lot of people. She was trying to do something creative."

That wasn't the only Gaga fashion statement that Bieber was scratching his head at. Recalling an encounter with her infamous meat dress, he explained, "She went for a hug [at the 2010 VMAs] and I was like, 'Oh, let's hold up on that. You have meat on you!' I thought both [the egg and the meat dress] were weird."

Also during his chat with host Chelsea Handler, Bieber mirrored his sentiments about his Grammy loss in the Best New Artist category that he had shared with MTV News on Sunday night. "Yeah. I'm not going to lie. People were expecting me to say something else, but I'm disappointed," he admitted, while adding, "I'm really excited for [winner Esperanza Spalding]. She worked hard."

Bieber also was a guest on "Conan" on Monday night, where he further commented on the Grammy loss. "It was definitely disappointing," he explained. "It's great to even be nominated and have that — it's amazing. We'll get 'em next year."

In between the serious Grammy talk, the teen star allowed himself to be the brunt of a little sight gag. After Bieber explained to O'Brien that fans throw Sour Patch Kids at him since he once shared that he likes them, he reluctantly dished on a new confection that he enjoys.

"I have a new favorite candy ... Promise you won't tell anyone. You know those marshmallow Peeps?" he announced before a whole bunch of the fluffy sweets were dropped on him.

Do you agree with Justin's opinion about Lady Gaga's Grammy entrance? Tell us in the comments.

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Michael Jackson Doctor Pleads Not Guilty To Involuntary Manslaughter

Conrad Murray's trial slated to start March 28.
By Gil Kaufman


Dr. Conrad Murray appears in court on Tuesday in Los Angeles, California
Photo: Irfan Khan-Pool/ Getty Images

Michael Jackson's former personal physician Dr. Conrad Murray entered a plea of not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter in the June 2009 death of the pop star at his arraignment on Tuesday morning (January 25).

According to the Los Angeles Times, when asked by judge Michael Pastor how he pleaded to the charge, Murray said, "Your honor, I am an innocent man." When Pastor interrupted and asked Murray what his plea was, the cardiologist said, "Therefore, I plead not guilty."

The brief hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court ended with Pastor setting a March 28 date for the start of a trial in the case. Murray faces a maximum of four years in prison if convicted, and the Times noted that he surprised the judge by invoking his right to a speedy trial, which meant the case would have to begin by late March. Pastor noted the rarity of a defendant asking to have a speedy trial, then set jury selection for the week of March 28 and said he was inclined to allow television coverage of the trial that the defense expects will last two months.

Lawyers for Murray have maintained his innocence all along, saying he did not do anything that "should have" caused the 50-year-old pop icon's death. The Los Angeles County Coroner's office determined that Jackson died of an overdose of the surgical anesthetic propofol mixed with a cocktail of other sedatives.

Murray has admitted to administering propofol to Jackson in the hours before the singer's death, but the defense appears to be gearing up to claim that it was Jackson who administered the final, fatal dose of the drug after he woke in a panic from a fitful night of sleep.

During a preliminary hearing earlier this month to determine if there was enough evidence to hold Murray over for trial, the physician's attorneys said that there was evidence Jackson injected or drank a fatal amount of the drug when the doctor was not looking.

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Grammys Score Best Ratings In A Decade

Performances by Justin Bieber, Eminem, Lady Gaga, more draw 26.5 million viewers.
By Gil Kaufman


Justin Bieber and Usher perform at the Grammys on Sunday
Photo: Lester Cohen/ WireImage

It stands to reason that any TV show boasting performances from bands that have sold more than 15 million records over the past year between them would be a huge hit. Which is why, thanks to Eminem, Lady Antebellum, Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, Sunday night's 53rd annual Grammy Awards posted the best numbers for the program in a decade.

The Hollywood Reporter reported Monday (February 14) that, according to preliminary numbers from Nielsen, the show was watched by 26.5 million viewers, a 3 percent improvement over last year's Grammy numbers (25.8 million) and the best figure for the show since 2001.

The combination of a relentlessly hyped Gaga interview that aired on "60 Minutes" just before the show, combined with a smorgasbord of performing stars that ranged from legends such as Bob Dylan and Mick Jagger to Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Bruno Mars, a rare appearance by hip-hop icon Dr. Dre and surprise Album of the Year winners Arcade Fire helped make the show a must-see event.

And though viewers were treated to the spectacle of Gaga finally busting out of her space egg during the show, Green frolicking with outer-space Henson Puppets and Gwyneth Paltrow, and Bieber dancing amid a stage full of break-dancing ninjas, when the dust settled, the dark-horse win by Arcade Fire provided the show with a water-cooler moment that kept viewers interested until the entire three-and-a-half-hour spectacle wrapped up.

What was your favorite Grammy moment? Let us know in comments below!

For more Grammy Awards analysis, interviews, fashion and more, stick with MTV News!

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