Jackson Investigation Intensifies

Picture taken 6/23/09: Jackson at rehearsal (2 days before death)

The investigation into the death of Michael Jackson is well under way. Los Angeles investigators took two bags of evidence from Jackson’s home today, and they made a brief statement that there were bottles of medications collected. Dr. Conrad Murray, who was paid $150,000 a month to provide care for the star, denied any wrong-doing on his part. In an interview with CNN, Jackson’s trainer, Lou Ferrigno, claimed that Michael seemed “lean and fit” during their training sessions less than a month earlier. Ferrigno said that Jackson looked as good as he has in “15-years.” New pictures released show Michael rehearsing and healthy-looking just days before his death.

Investigators will also be heavily focused on the circumstances surrounding the singer’s death to see if there was any gross negligence committed. How long did the doctor wait until he ordered the 911 call? Why was a professional cardiologist giving CPR to Jackson while he was on the bed? Even the 911 operator knew that the floor or a hard surface is normal protocol. What does the mystery 911 caller have to say? Allegedly he was one of Jackson's security guards.

CNN reported today that Murray was checking on Jackson every half-hour or so. The doctor will have to face questions like: why Jackson was not in a hospital receiving proper care, or what was Jackson’s condition? What drugs was Dr. Murray prescribing Jackson, and what drugs were in his system at the time of his death? Furthermore, investigators will be looking at the possibility that other Dr.’s may have been providing Jackson with drugs that may or may not have been found in the house.

These are all questions that the investigators will surely be searching to have answered. This is not jumping to conclusions on the part of investigators, this is just standard procedure. There very well may have been no crimes committed. However, you don’t have to be Dick Tracy to find the circumstances of death in this case, odd. Murray’s attorney, Ed Chernoff, claimed on CNN that the time lapse between when Murray found Jackson and when paramedics arrived was approximately 25 – 30 minutes. Chernoff completely downplays any negligence on the part of his client, and that Murray was not only Jackson’s personal physician, but a dear friend.

It will take at least two weeks for police to release any pertinent information about the case, and toxicology results—which will reveal what drugs if any were in Jackson’s body—will most likely take 4 – 6 weeks. Dr. Cyril Wecht (Forensic Pathologist) told CNN that "Jackson probably had up to three different drugs in his system which caused death by acute combination drug toxicity." Wecht estimated that Jackson’s system will show the drug demerol, but Chernoff adamantly denied that his client prescribed the drug. Wecht responded by saying, “Forensic Science will tell the story, not an attorney.” Currently, police have issued a statement claiming that Dr. Murray is NOT a suspect and that this is not a crime investigation, it is a death investigation. This official title will most likely not change until after the results from the toxicology report surfaces. However, this could simply mean that police don’t have enough evidence to file charges at this time.