LOS ANGELES (AP) - November 1, 2011
Closing arguments in the six-week case will begin Thursday - one
of the final steps before jurors begin deliberations.
Dr. Conrad Murray held his hands over his mouth as if he was
praying in the moments before Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor
asked the cardiologist whether he intended to take the stand.
The judge also asked if he understood the decision was his alone
to make.
"Have you made up your mind," Pastor asked.
Murray paused, looked at all his lawyers, seemed to sigh and
said, "My decision is I will not testify in this matter."
The judge asked lead attorney Ed Chernoff if he had conferred
with Murray about his rights and Chernoff said yes.
"The court finds the defendant has knowingly, freely and
explicitly waived his right to testify," the judge said. "I
certainly will respect that decision."
Murray had left open the possibility of testifying on Monday,
when he told the judge that he had not made a final decision.
Murray's announcement Tuesday was made outside the presence of
jurors.
Defense attorneys rested their case after calling 16 witnesses.
A total of 49 witnesses testified over 22 days of trial.
Prosecutors contend Murray gave Jackson a fatal dose of the
anesthetic propofol in the bedroom of the singer's mansion. Defense
attorneys claim Jackson self-administered the dose when Murray left
the room.
The last witness was prosecution propofol expert, Dr. Steven
Shafer, who was called by prosecutors as a rebuttal witness to
address a few points raised by previous testimony.
Murray has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter in
Jackson's death on June 25, 2009. He could face up to four years
behind bars and the loss of his medical license if convicted.
Murray's decision against testifying came after hours of intense
grilling by a prosecutor of Dr. Paul White, an anesthesia expert
who has said he believes Jackson injected himself with the fatal
dose of propofol when Murray left his bedside.
After asking only eight questions on Monday, Deputy District
Attorney David Walgren had gotten White to acknowledge that Murray
had repeatedly violated the physician's standard of care.
Throughout the day, White also told jurors that he would have
never done what Murray was doing - giving Jackson propofol as a
sleep aid.
---
AP Entertainment Writer Anthony McCartney contributed to this
report.
---
McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP
Welcome, Mickey
mickey@disney.com
Manage MyDisney Account
Log Out
