Jackson's Mother Contends Culpability Goes Beyond Dr. Murray

The lawsuit by Katherine Jackson contends that the blame is not all on Murray

There were abundant clues during the criminal trial of Conrad Murray, MD that the jury's verdict would not settle all the legal issues raised since the death of Michael Jackson.

Murray's defense attorney Ed  Chernoff pointedly asked a prosecution witness, "Are you being sued?"  Later, during his closing argument, Chernoff referred to his client as "just a little fish in a big, dirty pond."

Faithfully attending the criminal trial--and conviction--was Jackson's mother Katherine.  For herself and son Michael's three children, she has already filed a wrongful death lawsuit.

Conrad Murray is not named as a defendant.  Instead the suit targets AEG, Inc. the behemoth entertainment company.  Its arm AEG Live  was producing the "This Is It" series of concerts that were to have been Jackson's comeback.  

If few in Southern California had heard of Conrad Murray before Jackson's death made him infamous, perhaps even fewer  still are not familiar with the mark AEG has made on Los Angeles, including Staples Center, LA Live, and advancing plans for a downtown football stadium/convention venue.

Special Section: The Conrad Murray Trial

The civil suit alleges AEG breached its legal duty to Jackson "by putting its desire for massive profits from the tour over the health and safety of Michael Jackson."  Besides the company itself, the suit also names several AEG executives.

Local

Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.

California's commercial Dungeness crab season will end April 8 to protect whales

Female pilots based in Van Nuys aim to inspire more women to join aviation careers

"They pressured Dr. Murray, according to the plaintiffs, into treating Michael Jackson in such a way, and in such an unsafe condition, that it was basically the cause of his death," said Loyola Law School Professor Stan Goldman, who has reviewed the main filings in the case.  The suit also contends the show's producers pushed Jackson to maintain a "grueling" rehearsal schedule, even after it became apparent he had health issues.

During the Murray trial, there was evidence that AEG negotiated the contract with Murray to be Jackson's personal doctor for $150-thousand a month.  Jurors at the criminal trial even heard testimony from three of the four individuals named in the civil suit, though Judge Michael Pastor strictly limited defense efforts to explore the issues of contractual and financial pressures on Jackson in the months before his death.

Prof. Goldman notes parallels and overlapping issues in the two cases.  In the criminal trial, the prosecution stressed that Dr. Murray was grossly negligent for not having proper medical equipment and backup for monitoring Jackson while the surgical sedative propofol was being administered intravenously as a home sleep aide.  The civil suit alleges AEG should have provided that equipment and backup personnel.  Murray's defense tried to make an issue of that during cross examination of Kathy Jorrie, the attorney hired by AEG to negotiate the Murray contract.  Jorrie testified to her understanding that the medical equipment would not be needed until Jackson moved to London for the concerts.

In its legal reply to the civil suit, AEG offered multiple defenses, including a foreshadowing of Murray's unsuccesful trial defense that Jackson himself "engaged in willful misconduct."

Trial date for the civil suit is still nearly a year away in September, 2012.  Lead attorney Marvin Putnam did not respond to NBCLA's request for comment.  Prof. Goldman suspects that AEG would prefer to avoid the publicity of such a trial.

"In that sense, the plaintiffs may have an advantage here in negotiating for an early settlement, at least before trial," Goldman explained.

Follow NBCLA for the latest LA news, events and entertainment: Twitter: @NBCLA // Facebook: NBCLA

Contact Us