Jacko Kin: DA Likely To Be Too Easy on Doc

Latoya, Jermaine Jackson Say Conrad Murray Should Be Charged with Murder, not Involuntary Manslaughter, which Seems Probable

(CBS/ AP)  Dr. Conrad Murray, who has been trying to surrender to authorities for a week, will likely get his chance, with prosecutors saying they will file a charge Monday in the death of Michael Jackson.

A district attorney's spokeswoman did not name the doctor nor say what the charge will be, but Murray's lawyers have said they expect a single charge of involuntary manslaughter against the man who administered an anesthetic to the singer before he died.

As the last person to see Jackson alive, Murray has been the focal point of a police investigation since Jackson died last June 25, at age 50. Murray acknowledged that he administered the hospital anesthetic propofol and other sedatives as Jackson, a chronic insomniac, struggled to sleep.

But, reports ”Early Show” national correspondent Hattie Kauffman, Jackson’s sister, Latoya, and brother, Jermaine, are lashing out, saying Murray should be accused of murder.

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“He should have been charged with premeditated,” Latoya told Hollywood TV. “This is terribly wrong, what happened to my brother.”

“I think he should be cuffed, he should be fingerprinted, he should have his mug shot,” Jermaine asserted to Entertainment Tonight.

CBS News legal analyst Lisa Bloom explained that, “What we have is gross negligence -- a very high level of carelessness, recklessness. That's what's charged under involuntary manslaughter.”

The doctor maintains nothing he gave Jackson should have killed him. A trial would be expected to involve expert medical testimony on the use of propofol and whether there was gross negligence involved in its use at a private home. It is normally administered in hospital settings.

Murray's lead defense lawyer, Ed Chernoff, has said the doctor is prepared for the legal battle ahead.

"We'll make bail, we'll plead not guilty and we'll fight like hell," said Chernoff.

Murray’s only public comment has come on YouTube, in which he says he has “faith that truth will prevail,” Kauffman notes.

A lawyer who defended Michael Jackson against child molestation charges in 2005, Tom Mesereau, told ”Early Show” co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez Monday prosecutors are no doubt being very careful with what they charge. If they charge murder and can’t prove it - proving it means proving every element of the charge beyond a reasonable doubt - if they can’t prove it, he can end up walking on involuntary manslaughter and murder, because jurors don’t like to see prosecutors over-charge cases. They’ve gotta try the case in the courtroom, so they’ve gotta be extra careful what they do.”

Murray had been hired as the performer's personal physician as he prepared for a monumental comeback concert in London. The doctor was to have traveled with Jackson and had closed down his cardiology practices in Houston and Las Vegas to devote himself to Jackson full time.

The death of the pop superstar left the doctor's life and medical practice in limbo. There was talk of a criminal case even before a coroner's report found that Jackson's death was a homicide and pinpointed propofol and other drugs as the cause.

On Friday, after a week of on-again, off-again reports that Murray would be charged, district attorney's spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said the office was delaying any action until Monday amid reports that police wanted to arrest and handcuff the doctor, but that his attorneys were negotiating to avoid that.

The drama of his surrender and subsequent arraignment was to be played out in front of news cameras, and Murray's legal team wanted to avoid the spectacle of having the doctor seen in handcuffs by a large audience - including potential jurors for his trial.

One group that wants to see him in handcuffs is a contingent of Michael Jackson fans. who launched a telephone campaign to the Los Angeles Police Department demanding as much. They threatened to hold a protest at the airport-area courthouse if Murray was allowed to surrender on his own.

[pickaguitar1]

RIP Michael. You are not alone...we are here for you.

[shadys-mom]

The Jackson family had to know what he was, and thus enabled him in all of his weirdness - the plastic surgery and turning his skin white, his propensity for little boys, the way he managed to obtain "his" children, and his obvious drug addiction. To conveniently forget all that now, make him a saint, and be mad at the doctor is not the right thing to do. That entire family is strange - I just hope they don't destroy those children. Even though I don't think he was responsible for michael's death (mj would have gotten it somewhere, if not from this man), I think the doctor should be given a MEDAL for doing the world a favor!

[avigil2]

Hey Shady Mom, no one is trying to make Michael Jackson a "saint". To post something as hateful and disgusting as "I think the doctor should be given a MEDAL for doing the world a favor!", well, that just speaks volumes about you! Stop THE HATE you despicable excuse for a human being.

[bjo1109]

The Jackson family needs to understand and accept that Michael caused his own death. The doctor may have given Michael the anesthetic, but Michael asked for it--in fact, demanded it. And it wasn't the first time; apparently Michael used it on a regular basis. And his family knew it--so, according to their own standards, they should be charged along with the doctor, because they did nothing to stop him. Of course, nobody should be charged in actuality. Michael is responsible for his own death; the doctor was just a tool.

[avigil2]

You just can't walk into your doctor's office and say, "I want this, and this and this". They have to give you a reason to give it to you or not. Unfortunately, money spoke with this doctor and he was paid thousands of dollars. Dr. Conrad Murray is partially to blame for the death of Michael Jackson.

[rondivoo]

When Jackson died, the press went overboard... showing him all kinds of unearned respect, never referring to him as 'Jacko' and tauting all of his 'wonderfulness'... calling him the 'King of Pop.' Of course, nothing about Jackson had changed... the facts about what kind of person he really was, but .... he had DIED... so suddenly he was depicted as something he was not. What he was: A mediocre talented weirdo who slept with little boys.

[avigil2]

What rock have you been living under for the last 30 years? "A mediocre talent"... wow! And you must have some proof that MJ actually did "sleep with little boys" that the courts and FBI did not have. If you do, cough it up!

[shadys-mom]

I think you are "right-on", except you give him too much credit. I didn't like his music, but he could move onstage. He obviously had mental problems (hence all of the plastic surgery and turning his skin white), was pedifile and obviously a drug addict.

[rondivoo]

To the person who wrote this article, I see you have returned to the popular and illustrative name of 'Jacko'... right on!

[jlclancy]

im starting to hate Maggie Rodriguez.. she's not really nice to Erica.. please try changing that attitude or I'll leave the show... Hannah Storm is nicer..

[lilbear925]

Maybe the judge could also charge all the Jackson family who knew this was going on and did nothing to stop it...

[wansim1]

To the "LOOSER" that wrote this article, his name is "MICHAEL JACKSON, THE KING OF POP."

[avigil2]

Please learn how to spell.