Michael Jackson’s Doctor May Lose Medical License
The California medical board is once again lobbying for the judge overseeing the trial of Michael Jackson‘s personal physician Dr. Conrad Murray to revoke his medical license. Previously, the court ruled that Murray cannot administer sedatives to his patients while awaiting trial on involuntary manslaughter charges; Jackson died of “acute Propofol intoxication” on June 25th, 2009 and his death was later ruled a homicide. Even though Murray doesn’t practice medicine in California, “there is no legal bar to him changing his mind and engaging in practice in this state,” the California Attorney General wrote in a legal filing, the AP reports. The issue will be addressed at Murray’s next hearing on June 14th.
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As Rolling Stone previously reported, Judge Michael Pastor, who will oversee Murray’s trial, opted not to yank Murray’s California medical license in early April. While Murray does not practice medicine in California — Jackson was his lone client in the state — Murray said he feared losing his California license would cause a “domino effect” jeopardizing his license in Nevada and Texas, where he actively practices, and he’d become unable to fund his defense. The Texas medical board is permitting Murray to keep his license however he cannot administer any sedatives to patients in the state. Murray’s Nevada medical license is also at risk due to an unrelated legal matter, unpaid child support.
TMZ reports that Murray’s defense team, led by lawyer Ed Chernoff, will ask the judge delay the trial’s start date, alleging that the District Attorney’s office has not turned over all documents the prosecution will use as evidence in the involuntary manslaughter trial. Due to the complexity of the medical information in the case, the prosecution previously said there are “hundreds of thousands” of pages of evidence. The D.A.’s office admits its original estimate was hyperbolic.
Though Murray’s lawyers have made no public statements about the nature of their strategy, they’re rumored to be working on a defense based on the shocking theory that Jackson killed himself by administering a deadly dose of Propofol into his own IV bag while Murray was away from the singer making phone calls.
As the one-year anniversary of Jackson’s death approaches, the pop star’s family and fans are making plans to celebrate his life and career. As Rolling Stone reported, Forest Lawn Memorial Park is considering opening up the cemetery to fans can visit Jackson’s final resting place, and Joe Jackson is spearheading a red-carpet event called Forever Michael on June 26th at the Beverly Hills Hilton.