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Lawyer details Jackson's life, struggle with drugs
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY

Apr. 29

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson's family and friends knew he was addicted to prescription medications, but the only ones who refused to acknowledge it were the promoters of his ill-fated final series of comeback concerts, an attorney for the singer's mother told a jury on Monday.

Lawyer Brian Panish traced Jackson's addiction in opening statements during the trial of a wrongful death lawsuit against concert giant AEG Live, telling jurors the company ignored numerous warning signs about the singer's health in his final months.

The opening remarks included emails between AEG executives about Jackson's health. Panish also played a clip of the singer performing days before his death in June 2009.

"You're going to hear the whole story about what happened in the death of Michael Jackson," the attorney said.

Jackson's mother, brother Randy and sister Rebbie sat in the front row of the courtroom as Panish detailed aspects of Jackson's life. Jurors looked at numerous slides and several scribbled notes. A couple of jurors nodded their heads when the lawyer referenced Jackson's achievements, including successful concert tours and a Super Bowl performance.

Panish told the jury of six men and six women that it would ultimately have to decide whether Jackson's mother and his three children deserve compensation for AEG's conduct. Millions, possibly billions, of dollars are at stake, but Panish did not give a suggested damage figure in his opening remarks.

He did, however, praise Michael Jackson.

"His stirring voice, his musical genius, his creativity and his generosity and his huge heart was extinguished forever," he said.

An attorney for AEG was expected to begin addressing the panel later Monday.

Katherine Jackson sued the company in September 2010, claiming it failed to properly investigate physician Conrad Murray before allowing him to serve as Jackson's tour doctor as he prepared for his "This Is It" shows. She is also suing on behalf of her son's three children, Prince, Paris and Blanket.

AEG denies it hired Murray, and its attorneys have said they could not have foreseen the circumstances that led to Jackson's death at age 50.

A jury previously convicted Murray of involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors said he gave Jackson a fatal dose of the anesthetic propofol in 2011. The hospital-grade anesthetic was being administered as a sleep aid.

Panish told jurors they would be putting together a puzzle, with Jackson, Murray and AEG Live as the three pieces.

He said Jackson suffered from addiction to prescription medications and Demerol at times during his life, and the problem increased when he was keeping up a rigorous schedule. Panish cited a 1984 accident that injured Jackson during a Pepsi commercial suit as causing the singer tremendous physical pain throughout his life.

"People who knew him believed he had a problem with prescription medication," Panish told jurors. He said the only group that claims they didn't know about Jackson's addiction issues were AEG and its executives.

The lawyer showed a brief clip of Jackson rehearing for the "This Is It" shows and a clip of the singer dancing in the early stages of his presentation. He also showed footage of 1999 show in Munich in which Jackson was performing when a bridge dropped 50 feet with the singer on it. Despite pain, Jackson continued performing, Panish said.

Panish said Jackson turned to Demerol to relieve his pain.

Panish also detailed Murray's money problems, including an impending foreclosure and other debts. AEG also had issues as well, the lawyer told jurors, saying the company was feeling intense pressure from concert promoter Live Nation.

He said AEG saw the Jackson shows as a way to make a lot of money and better compete with Live Nation. The company was so concerned with getting Jackson to perform, "They didn't care who got lost in the wash," Panish said

Emails between AEG executives will be some of the key evidence in the case, which may last 90 trial days.

Panish displayed a March 2009 email sent before a press conference featuring Jackson, in which AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips wrote to Tim Leiweke, the former CEO of AEG'S parent company, that Jackson was drunk and refusing to address fans.

"This is the scariest thing I have ever seen," Phillips wrote Leiweke. "He is an emotionally paralyzed mess riddled with self-loathing and doubt now that it's show time. He's scared to death."

Panish said Jackson's behavior was just one of several warning signs that the company ignored before the death.

Jackson's mother and his two oldest children, Prince and Paris, are listed as possible witnesses. An AEG attorney said Monday the company intends to call Murray as a witness.

Murray did not testify at his criminal trial.

Panish attempted to steer blame away from the singer and toward AEG.

"Michael paid the ultimate price. He died," Panish said. "Michael has taken responsibility."

___

AP Special Correspondent Linda Deutsch contributed to this report.

Anthony McCartney can be reached at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

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Michael Jackson song played for jury in civil case
By: ANTHONY McCARTNEY
Apr. 29 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An attorney for Michael Jackson's mother has played a song during opening statements at a wrongful death trial that the lawyer says the superstar wrote for his children.

Attorney Brian Panish also read jurors a note on Monday that the singer wrote to his mother to demonstrate their relationship.

Katherine Jackson is suing concert giant AEG Live, claiming it failed to properly investigate a doctor who cared for Jackson and was later convicted of involuntary manslaughter in his 2009 death.

AEG has denied wrongdoing and its attorney is expected to address jurors later Monday.

Panish told jurors they would ultimately decide whether to find AEG liable for Jackson's death and how much his mother and children should receive.

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Jackson back in spotlight as civil trial begins
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY | Associated Press – 45 mins ago.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson's words and music rang through a courtroom once again — this time at the start of a wrongful death trial — as a lawyer tried to show jurors the pop star's loving relationship with his mother and children.

Jackson's praise for his mother brought tears to her eyes, a tender moment on Monday, when her superstar son was repeatedly called an addict by lawyers on both sides of her lawsuit against concert giant AEG Live.

Jurors listening to opening statements were given a brief tour of Jackson's life through photos of him with his children and videos of his performances. While Jackson's song, "You Are My Life," filled the courtroom, jurors watched footage of a Christmas morning when he gave his children a dog.

Jackson's troubles were also on prominent display, with attorneys describing his financial troubles and his struggles with prescription drug abuse.

Attorneys read emails describing the singer as unhealthy and in need of a serious intervention. A defense attorney for AEG Live at one point flashed a slide listing 45 medical professionals. He said Jackson had consulted with each of them over the years and requested doses of the powerful anesthetic propofol from some.

Both sides concluded opening statements and testimony was expected to begin on Tuesday.

Jackson died in June 2009 from an overdose of propofol. A year later his mother, Katherine Jackson, sued AEG claiming the company failed to properly investigate a doctor who was giving it to him. The former physician, Conrad Murray, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and remains jailed.

Murray, AEG and Michael Jackson were part of an intricate puzzle that plaintiff's lawyer Brian Panish intends to piece together for the jury in the coming weeks. He told the panel that AEG, motivated by its desire to overtake a competitor, created a conflicted situation for Murray in which he chose a huge payday over properly caring for Jackson.

The company also ignored Murray's troubled finances and Jackson's string of health problems as he prepared for a series of comeback concerts titled "This Is It," Panish said.

"They didn't care who got lost in the wash," Panish told the jury. He repeated the adage, "the show must go on," to describe AEG's actions toward both Jackson and Murray.

Defense attorney Marvin S. Putnam countered that the company couldn't have known Jackson was using propofol or the depth of his addiction. He said Jackson hid the addiction from his family, and medical professionals were barred from telling anyone about it due to doctor-patient confidentiality.

"The truth is, Michael Jackson fooled everyone," Putnam said. "He made sure that no one — nobody — knew his deepest, darkest secrets."

He told the panel that it was Jackson who wanted Murray's treatments, and the singer ultimately was responsible for his death.

"This case is about personal choices," Putnam said. "Also, it was about his personal responsibility. There's no question that Michael Jackson's death was a terrible tragedy. I believe the evidence will show it was not a tragedy of AEG Live's making."

Panish urged the jury of six men and six women to reject placing blame on Jackson.

"Michael paid the ultimate price. He died," Panish said. "Michael has taken responsibility."

Jackson died before signing Murray's $150,000 a month contract to serve as his tour doctor.

During his opening remarks, Panish displayed several emails between AEG executives discussing Jackson's health.

One was sent by AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips before Jackson's news conference announcing his "This Is It" shows. The message to Tim Leiweke, former CEO of AEG'S parent company, stated that Jackson was drunk and refusing to address fans.

"This is the scariest thing I have ever seen," Phillips wrote to Leiweke. "He is an emotionally paralyzed mess riddled with self-loathing and doubt now that it's show time. He's scared to death."

The trial will feature testimony from the children's parents, Debbie Rowe, who was married to Jackson and who Putnam said witnessed the entertainer receiving propofol treatments in the 1990s.

"Ms. Rowe knew this was incredibly dangerous," Putnam said, and she insisted on staying by Jackson's side while he was under the effects of the anesthetic.

The case also might feature testimony from Jackson's mother and the singer's two oldest children, Prince and Paris.

Panish told jurors it would be up to them to decide any possible damage award to Jackson's mother and children. If Jackson had lived, he could have earned at least $1.5 billion, the lawyer said.

___

AP Special Correspondent Linda Deutsch contributed to this report. Anthony McCartney can be reached at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] .

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Jackson's private life on display in civil trial
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY

4/30/13

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jurors in the civil case between Michael Jackson's mother and concert giant AEG Live got another glimpse of the singer's private life on Tuesday through the eyes of a paramedic who described the singer's bedroom and the frantic efforts to revive the King of Pop on the day he died.

Many other private moments from the singer's life will be exposed as the case progresses over the next several months, with witnesses expected to testify about secret medical treatments, lavish spending and tender moments spent with his mother and children.

In the nearly four years since his death, nearly every aspect of Jackson's life has been explored in court proceedings, documentaries, books and news stories.

Still, the negligence case filed by his mother against AEG promises to deliver the most detailed account of the singer's addiction struggles, including testimony from his ex-wife Debbie Rowe about treatments involving the anesthetic propofol dating back to the 1990s.

Jackson died from a propofol overdose in 2009 while preparing for a series of comeback concerts at AEG's O2 Arena in London.

Katherine Jackson contends AEG didn't properly investigate the doctor who later administered the fatal dose. The company denies wrongdoing.

During opening statements, attorneys framed Jackson's prescription drug addiction through the prism of his superstar status.

Attorney Brian Panish, who represents Katherine Jackson, said the drug problems worsened when the pop star was under the stress of live performances.

AEG attorney Marvin S. Putnam countered that Jackson's stardom provided a cover to receive multiple, secret medical treatments, many involving propofol.

At one point in the proceedings, the harsh portrayal of Jackson's struggle with addiction, led one juror to lean forward and stare at the floor for several moments.

Katherine Jackson and two of the superstar's children, Prince and Paris, are potential witnesses whose testimony will likely focus heavily on their grieving and losses.

On Monday, Panish played a song Jackson wrote for his children as a montage of photos played during opening statements. He also read a handwritten note from Jackson that his mother framed and has hanging on her wall.

"The only way you can assess damages, is to know what they had," Panish said before reading the letter and playing "You Are My Life."

Katherine Jackson dabbed her eyes with a tissue. On Tuesday, she left the courtroom while the paramedic described her son's condition on the day he died.

It may be several days before jurors get another look at Jackson's softer side.

The trial will also feature testimony on Jackson's troubled finances, with debts that reached nearly $400 million by the time he died.

AEG contends the debts made him desperate to have a successful concert series.

"The private Michael Jackson was like a lot of American in the 2000s, spending a lot more than he was making," Putnam told the jury after describing the singer's lavish Neverland Ranch, his art collection and other spending.

With the start of testimony on Tuesday, the panel was transported by paramedic Richard Senneff into the singer's bedroom, a place he kept locked and where his propofol treatments were administered out of sight of everyone but Murray.

Senneff, a paramedic and firefighter for nearly 28 years, told the panel about responding to Jackson's bedroom on June 25, 2009, and finding an unusual scene.

He described a Murray's frazzled efforts to revive Jackson.

"He was pale, he was sweaty," the paramedic said of Murray. "He was very busy."

He said Jackson appeared to be terminally ill.

"To me, he looked like someone who was at the end stage of a long disease process," Senneff said, adding that Murray told him that he was treating Jackson for dehydration.

Senneff told the panel he found an IV pole, oxygen tanks and a nightstand with several medicine bottles.

Just as he has previously testified in Murray's criminal trial, the paramedic told the panel that Murray never mentioned propofol, the hospital-grade anesthetic that killed the singer.

Jackson's blue hands, feet and lips, and the singer's dry eyes all signaled to Senneff that the singer was dead and hadn't been breathing for a long time.

Onlookers and paparazzi were already gathering at Jackson's gate and someone pressed a camera to the ambulance window to get pictures of the stricken star.

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Detective to detail investigation into Jackson doc
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY | Associated Press

5/1/13

....LOS ANGELES (AP) — A jury will hear more Wednesday about the troubled finances of Michael Jackson's doctor from a police detective who investigated the physician and saw his mounting debts as a possible motive for improper treatments on the pop superstar.

Los Angeles Police Detective Orlando Martinez on Tuesday told jurors hearing a civil case against Jackson's concert promoter that Conrad Murray was more than $500,000 in debt and his finances were "severely distressed."

The doctor's Las Vegas home was in foreclosure proceedings, he owed back child support and had liens and judgments spread across several states.

Martinez said that led him to believe Murray's actions were motivated by the $150,000 a month he expected to be paid by AEG.

"He may break the rules, bend the rules, do whatever he needed to do to get paid," Martinez said. "It might solve his money problems."

Murray's finances were not a factor in the criminal case that ended with his 2011 conviction for administering a fatal dose of propofol to Jackson.

The former cardiologist is not a party to the case, but he is a key figure in Katherine Jackson's negligent hiring case against concert giant AEG Live. The Jackson family matriarch contends AEG did not properly investigate Murray before allowing him to serve as Jackson's tour physician for the ill-fated "This Is It" shows planned for 2009.

Martinez testified he found most of the debts against Murray in public records.

AEG denies it hired Murray, and its attorney has noted that Jackson and his children had been treated by the doctor before the shows were planned.

The detective's testimony will be brief on Wednesday. Court will recess early to allow an alternate juror to attend a family funeral.

Martinez is the second witness called in the case, which in its early stages will focus on Jackson's death. Potential witnesses later in the trial include stars such as Diana Ross, Quincy Jones and Spike Lee. Jackson's mother, several siblings and his two oldest children, Prince and Paris, are also listed as potential witnesses.

Millions and possibly billions of dollars are at stake in the trial, which may last 90 court days.

AEG attorneys said they intend to call Murray as a witness. He remains in a Los Angeles jail and is appealing his conviction.

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Detective details financial woes of Jackson doctor
By LINDA DEUTSCH

May. 1, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The doctor convicted of involuntarily killing Michael Jackson appeared to be on trial again Wednesday as a lawyer for Jackson's mother tried to show the physician's desperate financial situation drove him to extremes in his treatment of the superstar.

Attorney Brian Panish, questioning a police detective, hammered away at the depths of debt that enveloped Conrad Murray when he agreed to give Jackson what he wanted — infusions of the powerful anesthetic propofol to make him sleep.

The pop star offered Murray $150,000 a month to travel with him on his ill-fated "This Is It" concert tour. AEG Live LLC, the concert promoter, reluctantly agreed, according to testimony in the doctor's criminal case by AEG executives.

Panish used the testimony of police detective Orlando Martinez to suggest that if AEG had investigated Murray's background, it would have found a man so encumbered by debt that he was not trustworthy.

The testimony came during the trial of the negligence lawsuit filed by Katherine Jackson claiming AEG didn't properly investigate the doctor who gave her son a lethal dose of propofol. The company denies wrongdoing.

Murray is not a party to the high-stakes court contest. He is serving a four-year prison term for involuntary manslaughter.

AEG attorneys said they intend to call him as a witness. He remains in jail and is appealing his conviction.

A coroner ruled that the 50-year-old star died of the overdose of propofol in his bed on June 25, 2009, while under Murray's care. The drug was not intended for home use.

Martinez, who was lead investigator on Jackson's death, said he discovered that Murray faced student loans, home loans, child support obligations and credit card payments that were in arrears in 2009. Panish said the debts totaled nearly $1 million.

Martinez said he found that Murray had eight children by seven different women and was supposed to be supporting all of them. He said the doctor was about to lose his home and his office in Las Vegas. Without his big payday from Jackson and AEG, he would have been in financial ruin, Martinez said, suggesting this caused him to disregard his medical oath.

Martinez testified he found most of the debts against Murray in public records that would have been readily available to AEG.

AEG denies it hired Murray, and it is likely to blame Jackson for insisting on having Murray as his doctor because of his dependence on propofol.

Millions and possibly billions of dollars are at stake in the trial, which may last 90 court days.

AP Entertainment writer Anthony McCartney contributed to this story. He can be reached at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

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Jurors hear voicemail saying Jackson was sick
By LINDA DEUTSCH | Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Five days before Michael Jackson died, his manager called the singer's doctor, told him Jackson was sick, and implored him to have blood tests done, according to a voicemail played Thursday in court.

The message left by Frank Dileo was retrieved by police from the cellphone of Dr. Conrad Murray and played during the trial of a negligence lawsuit filed by Jackson's mother against concert promoter AEG Live.

"I'm sure you're aware he had an episode last night," the message said. "He's sick ... We gotta see what he's doing."

Plaintiff's lawyer Brian Panish acknowledged outside court that the episode occurred on the day Jackson was told by Kenny Ortega, the director of his "This is It" concert, to go home from a rehearsal because he was pale and shivering.

Panish suggested that if Dileo was aware of the incident, so were AEG executives.

The lawsuit claims AEG didn't properly investigate Murray, who was later convicted of involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors said he gave Jackson a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol.

Jurors were not given any further details on the episode.

Katherine Jackson and her daughter Rebbie sat in a front row of the courtroom during testimony.

AEG denies it hired Murray, and it is likely to blame Jackson for insisting on having Murray as his doctor because of his dependence on propofol, which Jackson used to sleep.

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Jackson's life recounted in opening of civil trial
ANTHONY McCARTNEY (AP) LOS ANGELES.

4/29/13

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson's struggle against drug addiction was on display Monday during opening statements in his mother's wrongful death case against concert promoter AEG Live.

Competing portraits of Jackson emerged during the first hours of the trial, with Katherine Jackson's attorney acknowledging the pop star's drug problems while also trying to show he was a caring son and father.

"His stirring voice, his musical genius, his creativity and his generosity and his huge heart was extinguished forever," her lawyer, Brian Panish, said in his opening remarks.

AEG's attorney, Marvin S. Putnam, said that while Jackson's death was tragic, his guarded private life meant the company was unaware that he was using the powerful anesthetic propofol.

"The truth is, Michael Jackson fooled everyone," Putnam said. "He made sure that no one — nobody — knew his deepest, darkest secrets."

A jury of six men and six women will determine whether AEG should pay Jackson's mother and three children for their losses after his 2009 death from an overdose of propofol. Millions and possibly billions of dollars in damages are at stake in the case that opened with private photos of the singer with his children and video clips of Jackson dancing.

"This case is about personal choices," Putnam said about Jackson's decision to be treated by physician Conrad Murray. "Also, it was about his personal responsibility. There's no question that Michael Jackson's death was a terrible tragedy.

"I believe the evidence will show it was not a tragedy of AEG Live's making," Putnam said as he ended his opening statement. Testimony will begin Tuesday.

Panish said AEG created a conflict of interest for Murray and forced him to choose between a large payday and Jackson's care. He told the jury AEG was feeling competitive pressures and wanted the Jackson tour to work at all costs.

"They didn't care who got lost in the wash," Panish told the jury.

Panish played a song that Jackson wrote for his three children, "You Are My Life," and displayed a note the singer had written for his mother that brought tears to her eyes as she sat in court.

Katherine Jackson sued AEG Live in September 2010, claiming it failed to properly investigate Murray before allowing him to serve as Jackson's doctor as he prepared for his "This Is It" shows. She is also suing on behalf of her son's three children — Prince, Paris and Blanket.

AEG denies it hired Murray, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death. AEG's attorneys have said the company could not have foreseen the circumstances that led to the singer's death at age 50.

Panish told jurors that AEG executives ignored warning signs about Jackson's health and were motivated to push the singer and his doctor to improve their own financial fortunes.

"We're not looking for any sympathy," Panish said. "We're looking for truth and justice."

With Jackson's mother, brother Randy and sister Rebbie seated in the front row of the courtroom, jurors were shown numerous slides and several scribbled notes.

A couple of jurors nodded when the lawyer referenced Jackson's achievements, including successful concert tours and a Super Bowl performance.

Katherine Jackson dabbed her eyes after Panish read a note that her son wrote to her, detailing his feelings about her.

"All my success has been based on the fact that I wanted to make my mother proud," the singer's note said, "to win her smile of approval."

The personal touches came after Panish spent the first half of his presentation detailing Jackson's struggles with prescription drug abuse throughout the last half of his life.

He also showed jurors numerous emails sent between AEG executives concerning Jackson's health and their concerns that he wouldn't be able to perform 50 planned concerts in London.

Putnam recounted the chaotic days following Jackson's death as investigators and the public tried to figure out how the singer died unexpectedly. He urged jurors to remember that propofol killed Jackson.

"One thing became very, very clear," Putnam said. "While the world may not have heard of propofol, Mr. Jackson certainly had. The evidence is going to show you that he had been using that drug for years and years."

He said jurors will hear from Jackson's ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, who would tell them that Jackson used the anesthetic in the 1990s.

"Mr. Jackson got very, very, good at hiding his addiction," Putnam said. "He didn't let anyone see it. Not his staff, not his children. This was the private Michael Jackson."

He said physician-patient confidentiality kept Jackson's reliance on propofol from becoming publicly known.

That extended to Murray as well. "He couldn't tell anyone about the propofol use," Putnam said of the former cardiologist.

Panish, however, said AEG saw the Jackson shows as a way to make a lot of money and better compete with Live Nation Entertainment Inc.

He displayed a March 2009 email sent before a news conference featuring Jackson, in which AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips wrote to Tim Leiweke, the former CEO of AEG'S parent company, that Jackson was drunk and refusing to address fans.

"This is the scariest thing I have ever seen," Phillips wrote Leiweke. "He is an emotionally paralyzed mess riddled with self-loathing and doubt now that it's show time. He's scared to death."

Panish said Jackson's behavior was just one of several warning signs the company ignored before the death.

He told the panel that they would be the ones to assign liability for Jackson's death, but they should look at AEG's actions and not focus on Jackson's issues.

"Michael paid the ultimate price. He died," Panish said. "Michael has taken responsibility."

AP Special Correspondent Linda Deutsch contributed to this report. Anthony McCartney can be reached at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

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First week of Jackson trial previews massive case
By The Associated Press

May 4

A look at key moments this past week in the wrongful death trial in Los Angeles between Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, and concert giant AEG Live, and what is expected at court in the week ahead:

THE CASE

Jackson's mother wants a jury to determine that the promoter of Jackson's planned comeback concerts didn't properly investigate Dr. Conrad Murray, who a criminal jury convicted of involuntary manslaughter for Jackson's June 2009 death. AEG's attorney says the case is about personal choice, namely Jackson's decision to have Murray serve as his doctor and give him doses of a powerful anesthetic as a sleep aid. Millions, possibly billions, of dollars are at stake.

WHAT HAPPENED

— Jurors heard opening statements in which both sides told them Michael Jackson struggled with prescription drug addiction. Katherine Jackson's lawyers said AEG is the only entity that claims it didn't know there was a problem, but the company's lawyer countered that Jackson was so secretive about receiving the anesthetic propofol, only he and a few doctors knew about it.

— Testimony began with familiar faces from Murray's criminal trial, including the first paramedic to reach Jackson's bedroom on the day he died and a police detective who investigated Murray. Detective Orlando Martinez told jurors he believed the former doctor's debts of roughly $1 million prompted him to bend or break rules in his care of Jackson.

WHAT THE JURY SAW

— Upon entering the courtroom, Katherine Jackson stood in the front row along with her son Randy and daughter Rebbie. They were among the first people that jurors likely saw in the packed courtroom.

— A video montage of private family photos of Jackson and his children, including one in which the singer presented younger son Blanket to President Bill Clinton. Jackson's daughter Paris was seen clutching her father's leg in the picture as the singer's ode to his children, "You Are My Life," played.

QUOTABLE MOMENTS

— "We're not looking for any sympathy. We're looking for truth and justice." (Attorney Brian Panish, who represents Katherine Jackson and told jurors that the trial is the "whole story" of how Jackson died.)

— "The truth is, Michael Jackson fooled everyone. He made sure that no one, nobody, knew his deepest darkest secrets." (Attorney Marvin S. Putnam, who represents AEG Live and told the jury that while Jackson's death was a tragedy, the company isn't responsible for it.)

OUTSIDE COURT

— On the trial's first day, some of Jackson's fans who couldn't get a seat in the courtroom craned their necks to peek through tiny windows to get a glimpse of the proceedings.

— Court officials later established an overflow room with closed-circuit video of the proceedings for reporters and members of the public who can't fit in the 45-seat courtroom.

WHAT'S NEXT

— In the upcoming week, coroners' staff will testify about what killed Jackson and will likely be asked about the singer's overall health when he died.

— Conrad Murray and Michael Jackson's children could be called as witnesses in the months-long trial.

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Expert: Jackson doctor unqualified in many areas
Associated Press – 49 mins ago

5/7/13

.....LOS ANGELES (AP) — An expert cardiologist says Michael Jackson's doctor did not have the proper training to treat the singer for insomnia or any drug addictions.

Dr. Daniel Wohlgelernter told a jury hearing a negligent hiring case filed by Jackson's mother against AEG Live LLC that he reached his conclusion after reviewing the credentials of Jackson's doctor.

Wohlgelernter also testified that former cardiologist Conrad Murray was unqualified to administer propofol, the powerful anesthetic that killed Jackson.

The Santa Monica-based cardiologist is testifying for Katherine Jackson, who claims AEG failed to properly investigate and supervise Murray's care of her son.

AEG denies all wrongdoing and says it was Michael Jackson who wanted Murray to work as his doctor while he prepared for a series of comeback shows in 2009.

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Expert: Jackson doctor unqualified in many areas

By: ANTHONY McCARTNEY
May 7, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson's doctor was not qualified to treat the singer for insomnia or drug addiction and botched resuscitation efforts, an expert cardiologist testifying for the singer's mother told a jury on Tuesday.

Dr. Daniel Wohlgelernter said he reached his conclusion after reviewing the credentials of Conrad Murray, who was later convicted of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's 2009 death.

Wohlgelernter testified during a lawsuit filed by Katherine Jackson claiming Murray was negligently hired by concert promoter AEG Live LLC to care for the pop star.

Attorneys for both sides told the panel last week that Michael Jackson suffered from longstanding prescription drug addiction issues.

Wohlgelernter said Murray had no formal training on how to treat such problems, and the former cardiologist was not qualified to administer propofol, the powerful anesthetic that killed Jackson. The singer was using the drug as a sleep aid.

Wohlgelernter, a Santa Monica-based cardiologist, also told the jury that Murray improperly focused on Jackson's heart when the singer stopped breathing after receiving propofol and other drugs on June 25, 2009.

Jackson's mother claims in the lawsuit that AEG failed to properly investigate Murray or his finances. AEG denies wrongdoing and says it was Michael Jackson who wanted Murray to work as his doctor while he prepared for a series of comeback shows.

Murray had been expecting to receive $150,000 a month for his work on Jackson's tour, but the singer died before the contract was finalized.

Under cross-examination by AEG attorney Kathryn Cahan, Wohlgelernter testified that Murray's training and credentials were reputable and he appeared to be a competent internal medicine physician.

Wohlgelernter, however, said Jackson's request for Murray to be his doctor and Murray's desire to leave other patients behind to work with the singer should have caused AEG some concern.

Wohlgelernter said the company should have asked why the two men wanted to work with each other.

Several other doctors testified during Murray's 2011 criminal trial that the doctor repeatedly violated the standard of care in his treatments on Jackson.

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Dancer says she gave warnings over Michael Jackson

By: The Associated Press
May 8, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A dancer and choreographer who worked with Michael Jackson throughout his career testified on Wednesday that she told the director of Jackson's ill-fated concert tour that she was worried about the singer's health, but her plea went unanswered.

Witness Alif Sankey told a jury deciding a lawsuit that the pop star appeared thin and unprepared in 2009 for the rigors of his planned comeback concerts known as "This Is It."

The singer showed up at one rehearsal with shoes that had holes in the soles, missed rehearsals and appeared much thinner than earlier in his career, Sankey testified.

Sankey showed jurors an email she wrote to tour director Kenny Ortega in early June 2009, urging him to try to improve Jackson's health and spirits. She said she never got a reply.

"Please help me help you to get him back into that Magical Light, please let me help you help him find what was lost, his GRAIL," Sankey wrote to Ortega, who she had worked closely with for a number of years.

She wrote that she knew what she could say to Jackson that would make him respond and also offered suggestions to help lessen the pain of rehearsals.

Sankey met Jackson while working on his 1987 video for "Smooth Criminal" and was an associate producer and planned to dance onstage during "This Is It."

She was testifying at the trial of a negligent hiring lawsuit filed by Jackson's mother against concert promoter AEG Live LLC. Katherine Jackson claims AEG failed to properly investigate the doctor who was caring for her son and later administered a fatal dose of the anesthetic propofol to the singer in June 2009.

The promoter has denied wrongdoing and its attorneys have said the singer hid his addiction to propofol. Jackson's former physician, Conrad Murray, was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter. He is appealing the case.

Sankey said she based some of her impressions of Jackson over the years on how he felt when they hugged.

"When I hugged him, he just felt like marble," Sankey said about Jackson early in his career. "But when I hugged, when I saw him briefly in 2006, he didn't feel like that anymore. He felt thin. He just felt thin."

He was thin during the "This Is It" preparations, she said, and she became concerned when he missed multiple rehearsals.

The dancer also described meeting Jackson's daughter, Paris, while footage was being shot for the "This Is It" shows. Paris Jackson shared a secret with Sankey, saying she had brought lots of candy stuffed into her purse to the studio and didn't want her father to find out.

There were also several tiny pictures inside her purse — all of her father.

"Her purse was full of candy and pictures of her daddy," Sankey said.

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Makeup artist describes Jackson's artistry, pain
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY Associated Press – 54 mins ago..

May 9, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A makeup artist who worked with Michael Jackson for nearly 30 years says the singer struggled with sleep and required a doctor's care to deal with pain while touring.

Karen Faye is testifying for Jackson's mother in a lawsuit against AEG Live LLC, the promoter of his planned series of comeback concerts.

She says Jackson trusted the advice of doctors to help him sleep and deal with pain from injuries and performances.

Faye says during the "Dangerous" tour, promoters asked that she give Jackson injections of pain medications, but she refused. She says a tour manager who later became a top AEG executive then enlisted a doctor to treat Jackson.

Jackson's mother is suing AEG claiming it didn't properly investigate the doctor convicted of causing Jackson's death. AEG denies wrongdoing

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Makeup artist says Jackson was pushed to rehearse
By: ANTHONY McCARTNEY (AP) LOS ANGELES

5/9/13

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson's longtime makeup artist testified Thursday that she overhead an executive for concert promoter AEG Live insist that the singer rehearse despite signs of Jackson's declining health.

Karen Faye, who worked with Jackson for more than 27 years, told jurors she became increasingly concerned about Jackson's health and agreed with a fan's assessment that the singer might die if he was pushed too hard in preparations for his "This Is It" concerts.

AEG executives continued to push Jackson, Faye said. She testified she overheard a phone conversation in which AEG executive Paul Gongaware told Jackson's assistant to get him out of a locked bathroom and to a rehearsal.

Faye described Gongaware, AEG Live's co-CEO, as "angry and kind of desperate" in the conversation. She testified Gongaware told the assistant to do "whatever it takes."

Faye said the only people she saw insist that Jackson rehearse were Gongaware and tour director Kenny Ortega.

The makeup artist and hair stylist is testifying in a case brought by Jackson's mother, Katherine, against AEG Live LLC. The suit accuses the Los Angeles-based company of failing to properly investigate the doctor who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the singer's death. Her attorneys also contend the company didn't properly respond to concerns about the singer's health.

AEG denies it hired Murray or bears any liability for Jackson's death.

Faye said she informed Ortega, Jackson's manager and AEG Live co-CEO Randy Phillips about her concerns about Jackson's health during the preparations for the shows. She said Jackson was frustrated and after a costume fitting days before his death repeatedly asked her, "Why can't I choose?"

She said that after Jackson missed several rehearsals, Phillips told her to ignore the singer's instructions.

Jurors are expected to hear from Ortega, Phillips and Gongaware later in the trial.

Faye, choking back tears, read portions of an email from one of Jackson's fans that she forwarded to his now deceased manager, Frank Dileo. It described the singer as a skeleton.

"If we do nothing, he will die," the fan wrote. "I know people who work for him cannot tell him anything. I know his own family tried to help him but he won't listen."

Faye said she wrote Dileo that she agreed with the assessment, but the manager never responded in writing.

By this point, Jackson was often cold to the touch and was becoming increasingly paranoid. Faye said he became obsessed with her being within sight when he was rehearsing onstage.

In earlier testimony, she described severe pain the singer experienced after performance accidents and his increasing reliance on doctors.

She said his reliance on medications coincided with the first time he was accused of child molestation in the early 1990s.

"Michael had to go on stage every night knowing that the whole world thought he was a pedophile," Faye said, shaking her head and crying.

During Jackson's "Dangerous" tour that began in 1992, Faye said she refused a request from promoters to give the Grammy winner injections of pain medications.

She said Gongaware, who handled logistics on that tour, brought in doctors who treated Jackson. The tour was halted early so Jackson could receive treatment for his prescription drug addiction.

His condition worsened during the singer's 2005 trial that ended with his acquittal of child molestation charges, Faye said.

"He couldn't eat," she said. "He was afraid. He was in pain. He got thinner. His physical pain, his back pain, it all kicked in."

Faye spent about 90 minutes testifying about her close relationship with Jackson, who hosted her wedding at his Neverland Ranch and enlisted her to travel around the world with him.

She breezily described Jackson's meetings with Princess Diana and other dignitaries, his Super Bowl performance, and other larger-than-life moments from the singer's life. Jurors and spectators laughed at times as a parade of photos and videos shot during Jackson's performances were played.

"I was from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I was just very normal," she told jurors. "I found myself working with this magical person."

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Choreographer: No signs Jackson was ill in 2009
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY | Associated Press – 7 mins ago

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An associate choreographer who worked on Michael Jackson's planned series of comeback concerts has told a jury she never saw signs the singer was ill or might die.

Stacy Walker is testifying for AEG Live LLC, the promoter of Jackson's "This Is It" shows planned for 2009. She says that while she was frustrated the singer missed numerous rehearsals, she was convinced after seeing his final preparations that he could perform 50 shows in London.

Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, is suing AEG, claiming it didn't properly investigate the doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter for her son's death.

Walker told jurors it wasn't her job to focus on Jackson or his health, but that the singer appeared happy about the shows.

Witnesses for Katherine Jackson have testified that the singer was sickly during rehearsals.

yhoo.it/10EgPhM
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UPDATED:

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An associate choreographer who worked on Michael Jackson's planned comeback concerts testified Monday that she didn't see any signs that the pop superstar was ill or might die in the final days of his life.

"I just never in a million years thought he would leave us, or pass away," Stacy Walker told jurors hearing a lawsuit filed by Jackson's mother against concert promoter AEG Live LLC. "It just never crossed my mind."

Walker, who is testifying for AEG, said Jackson appeared thinner than he had been in previous years and wore multiple layers of clothes while rehearing for his "This Is It" shows planned for London's O2 arena. She said despite Jackson missing multiple rehearsals, she was convinced based on his performances the last two days of his life that he was ready for the series of shows.

Previous witnesses have testified that Jackson was shivering, had to be fed by others and appeared unprepared.

Walker said she never saw any of that behavior, although she acknowledged that her job was to work with other dancers and not Jackson directly.

"I wasn't looking for things at the time," she said. "I wish I was."

She said she attributed Jackson's multi-layered wardrobe to a personal preference. She said she recalled one incident in which Jackson may have appeared groggy or drugged, but she said she couldn't remember whether she witnessed or heard about it from others on the show.

Walker was the first witness called by AEG in a trial filed by Jackson's mother, Katherine, against the concert promoter. Her suit claims AEG didn't properly investigate the doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death and that its executives missed signs that the singer was unprepared for the "This Is It" shows.

AEG denies all wrongdoing, and contends Jackson hid his struggles with prescription drug addiction. Jackson died in June 2009 from an overdose of the anesthetic propofol, which he had been using as a sleep aid.

A medical examiner who conducted Jackson's autopsy testified Tuesday that Jackson was not underweight when he died and appeared to be in excellent health.

Despite testimony from some witnesses that Jackson appeared emaciated, Dr. Christopher Rogers said the singer did not bear the signs of someone who was starving when he died.

Walker, who worked with Jackson on three projects beginning in 1996, was called to the witness stand Monday because she is slated to leave the country for work. The trial is expected to last several more weeks.

AEG is also calling choreographer Travis Payne, who worked with Jackson directly in preparation for the "This Is It" shows, as a witness. Tour director Kenny Ortega is also expected to testify.

Jurors last week heard from a dancer and also Jackson's longtime makeup artist, who testified that the singer appeared thin and at times unprepared for the concert tour. Another dancer, Alif Sankey, told the panel she expressed concerns that Jackson might die and sent an email about his appearance to Ortega.

Emails presented during the trial so far have shown Ortega expressed concerns about Jackson's physical and mental wellbeing to AEG executives.

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Jackson described as 'loopy' after doctor visits


By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
May 14, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson appeared "a little loopy" after visits with his longtime dermatologist, a choreographer who worked one-on-one with the pop superstar told a jury Tuesday.

Travis Payne said he witnessed Jackson's unusual behavior after the singer visited Dr. Arnold Klein, who Payne believed was performing cosmetic treatments on the singer so that he would be comfortable performing onstage again.

"Sometimes in rehearsal, Michael would appear just a little loopy," Payne said, adding that the singer appeared to be "assisted or under the influence of something."

Payne was working for AEG Live LLC, the company promoting Jackson's the "This Is It" tour, which was canceled after Jackson's June 2009 death.

The choreographer is testifying for AEG, which is being sued by Jackson's mother. Katherine Jackson claims AEG failed to properly investigate Conrad Murray, the doctor who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for Jackson's death, and that the concert promoter also missed or ignored signs of Jackson's poor health.

AEG denies it hired Murray, and claims Jackson was private about medical treatments and hid the depths of his prescription drug addiction. Jackson died from an overdose of the anesthetic propofol, which Murray was giving him as a sleep aid.

The company also did not hire the dermatologist, Klein.

Klein is listed as a potential witness in the case but it is unknown whether he will testify. His treatment of Jackson, which included Demerol shots, have been scrutinized both during Murray's 2011 criminal trial and the current civil case.

Payne, the choreographer, said he witnessed Jackson's unusual behavior several times in the weeks before his death. The singer also appeared groggy during some morning sessions, Payne said, and Jackson occasionally complained he was having trouble sleeping.

Payne said he did not think that Jackson had a problem abusing prescription medications. He acknowledged that Jackson missed rehearsals and he saw the singer shivering or appear cold in some of his final rehearsals.

He told the jury he thought Jackson was thin, but told the jury he wasn't aware of an email that AEG executives sent seeking to remove footage of Jackson rehearsing from the "This Is It" film in which he was described as looking like "skeletal." The email was not displayed for the jury.

Payne told jurors he met Murray twice, but both encounters were brief.

He worked with Jackson beginning in the 1990s and testified that he never saw Jackson drink alcohol or take any medications. The singer also never discussed his medical treatments, Payne said.

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Witness: AEG spent $24 million on Jackson concerts

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
5/20/13

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An accounting executive for AEG Live LLC testified on Monday that the company spent $24 million producing Michael Jackson's ill-fated "This Is It" concerts.

The tally involved expenses compiled through October 2009, roughly three months after the singer's death, said Julie Hollander, a vice president and controller of event operations for AEG Live.

Hollander testified during the trial of a lawsuit filed by Jackson's mother against AEG claiming the company was negligent in hiring the doctor later convicted in the death of the pop star.

Budget documents shown in court indicated the company made no payments to the doctor, Conrad Murray.

AEG budgeted $150,000 a month for Murray's treatment of Jackson, but the singer died of an anesthetic overdose before he signed Murray's agreement.

Hollander said Murray's contract was the only one she had ever seen in which an artist had to approve a contract for services on a tour. She believed Jackson's signature was required because of the personal nature of the doctor's services.

In total, Murray was projected to receive $1.5 million in payments over the first few months of the "This Is It" tour, which was slated for 50 shows at London's 02 Arena.

Attorneys for Jackson's mother are trying to prove that AEG hired Murray and missed numerous red flags about the pop singer's health before his death.

AEG denies it hired Murray and says it bears no liability for Jackson's death.

Hollander also testified that Jackson was responsible for 95 percent of production expenses if his comeback shows were canceled. Budget documents indicated the production was more than $2 million over budget.

Hollander was the first AEG executive to testify in the lawsuit. The company's general counsel Shawn Trell began testifying on Monday.

Plaintiff's attorney Brian Panish questioned Trell about a July letter sent to Jackson's estate asking for more than $30 million in reimbursement, including $300,000 for Murray's services.

Trell said it was a mistake to include Murray's payments as production costs.

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Lawyer: No background check done on Jackson doctor

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
5/21/13

LOS ANGELES (AP) — AEG Live LLC did not conduct any background checks or supervise the doctor who was later convicted of killing Michael Jackson, a corporate attorney testified Tuesday in a lawsuit claiming the concert promoter was negligent in hiring the physician.

AEG Live General Counsel Shawn Trell told jurors that no legal or financial checks were done involving Conrad Murray or anyone else who worked as an independent contractor on the "This Is It" shows.

Jackson's mother Katherine is suing AEG claiming it failed to properly investigate Murray, who was deeply in debt when he agreed to serve as Jackson's tour physician in 2009 for $150,000 a month.

Trell said he thought a background check would be appropriate for people working in financial roles, but not tour personnel who weren't employees of AEG.

Murray's employment status is a central issue in the case. Katherine Jackson's lawyers contend he was hired by AEG, but the company denies it hired him and notes the singer died before signing the doctor's contract.

Trell also acknowledged while testifying that numerous people in the company knew of concerns that Jackson's health was declining.

Five days before Jackson died, AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips alerted the promoter's parent company that Jackson had missed a rehearsal and didn't appear to be ready for his comeback concerts.

"We have a real problem here," Phillips wrote in the message to the CEO of Anschutz Entertainment Group.
Trell agreed with a statement by plaintiff's attorney Brian Panish that company executives knew by then there was a "deep issue" with Jackson.

Trell also said he continued discussions with an insurance broker about additional coverage to recoup AEG Live's investment if the tour had to be canceled.

Hours after Phillips sent the warning email, attorney John Branca, who later became co-executor of Jackson's estate, offered to enlist a spiritual and substance abuse specialist to help Jackson, according to an email shown in court.

On that same day, Phillips and others met with Jackson and Murray at the singer's home.

Hours later, Phillips sent an email to tour director Kenny Ortega telling him not to worry. Ortega had expressed grave concerns about Jackson.

"This doctor is extremely successful — we check everyone out — and he does not need this gig so he (is) totally unbiased and ethical," Phillips wrote.

Panish called Phillips' statement "a flat out lie" and asked Trell whether he agreed with it or if it signified how AEG did business. Trell said he didn't know what Phillips thought he knew when he wrote the message.

"I know this statement is not accurate, but you'd have to speak with Mr. Phillips about what he thought or meant in saying it," Trell said.

Phillips is listed as a potential witness in the case, and Trell said he expects him to testify later in the trial.

Outside court, AEG's attorney Marvin S. Putnam declined comment on the email or Panish's characterization of it.

Trell also said on Tuesday that no one at AEG supervised or monitored Murray, who was convicted in 2011 of administering a fatal dose of the anesthetic propofol to Jackson.

Trell is considered the most knowledgeable person on numerous issues involving the shows, including contracts and Jackson's health. He has not yet been questioned by AEG's trial lawyers.

Earlier in the day, Trell revised previous testimony in which he told jurors that tour director Ortega worked on "This Is It" without a contract.

The lawyer said Monday that Ortega worked under an agreement forged through a series of emails but didn't have a signed contract.

On Tuesday, he told jurors he was mistaken, and Ortega did have a contract. The agreement was signed in April and included three pages of legal text and several pages of emails laying out the terms.

Trell said he had been reminded of Ortega's agreement by AEG's trial attorneys.

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Emails show AEG lawyer called Jackson a 'freak'

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
5/22/2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A lawyer for the parent company of AEG Live LLC called Michael Jackson a freak on the day the singer signed a multimillion contract for a series of ill-fated comeback concerts, emails displayed for a jury on Wednesday showed.

The emails were presented by Brian Panish, an attorney for Jackson's mother in her lawsuit claiming AEG was negligent in hiring the personal physician who was later convicted of killing the pop superstar.

The lawsuit also says AEG pushed Jackson too hard despite signs that he was in poor health.

The emails were sent Jan. 28, 2009, roughly four months before the singer's death.

In the exchange, AEG Live General Counsel Shawn Trell told his boss that he was going to Jackson's home to sign contracts for the "This Is It" shows later that year in London.

Ted Fikre, the general counsel for Anschutz Entertainment Group, wrote back in two minutes.

"Does this mean you get to meet the freak?" Fikre replied, according to the emails.

"Apparently. Not sure how I feel about that. Interesting for sure, but kind of creepy," replied Trell, who had spoken approvingly while testifying on Tuesday about his only meeting with Jackson.

Katherine Jackson was seated in the front row of the courtroom when the emails were displayed, and she passed Trell on her way out at the end of the day. They did not acknowledge each other.

"That email just exemplifies that AEG had no respect for Mr. Jackson.," Panish said outside of court. "All he was was a vehicle to make money and to promote their concert business to catch up to Live Nation."

Live Nation is the chief rival of AEG Live.

Jessica Stebbins Bina, a trial defense lawyer for AEG, said the emails were shown merely to embarrass AEG.

"We are four weeks into trial and we have yet to hear one piece of substantive evidence," said Marvin S. Putnam, an attorney who is leading AEG's defense.

He said Katherine Jackson's lawyers have instead opted to attack AEG Live with "side issues and characterizations."

Panish said after court that he would show more evidence of AEG's disdain for Jackson.

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AEG exec testifies about negotiating deal for Michael Jackson's doctor

By: Linda Deutsch, AP
May 28, 2013

LOS ANGELES -- A top executive of the company that was producing Michael Jackson's "This Is It" tour has acknowledged he negotiated a deal for the doctor that the pop star had chosen to accompany him.

But AEG Live executive Paul Gongaware testified Tuesday he never investigated Dr. Conrad Murray's background and merely accepted Jackson's recommendation.

Gongaware testified in the Los Angeles trial as a hostile witness called by lawyers for Jackson's mother in her negligent-hiring lawsuit.

He came under aggressive examination on whether AEG or Jackson was responsible for hiring Murray, who was ultimately convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the superstar's death.

Gongaware said the fact that Murray had been Jackson's personal physician for three years was good enough for him.

Jackson died in 2009 after being given a powerful anesthetic.

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AEG Live co-CEO testifies in Jackson lawsuit trial

By: LINDA DEUTSCH
May 28, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A top executive of the company that was producing Michael Jackson's "This Is It" tour acknowledged reluctantly Tuesday that he negotiated a deal for the doctor that the pop star had chosen to accompany him.

But AEG Live executive Paul Gongaware testified his only role in the matter was negotiating the price of Dr. Conrad Murray's services in compliance with what Jackson asked him to do.

Gongaware said that neither he nor anyone at the entertainment giant investigated Murray's background or credentials.

"The fact that he had been Michael Jackson's personal physician for three years was good enough for me," Gongaware said.

Gongaware, the Co-CEO of AEG Live, testified in the Los Angeles trial as a hostile witness called by lawyers for Jackson's mother in her negligent-hiring lawsuit.

He came under aggressive examination by plaintiff's attorney Brian Panish on whether AEG or Jackson was responsible for hiring Murray, who was ultimately convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the superstar's death.

Jackson died in 2009 after being given a powerful anesthetic.

Asked if he knew that Murray was in financial difficulties when he took the job as tour doctor, Gongaware answered no.

He said that Murray initially asked for $5 million to travel to London with Jackson and tend to him during the tour.

"I just told him it wasn't going to happen," he said, recalling that Jackson then suggested offering him $150,000 a month.

"Michael Jackson insisted on it and recommended him and it was not for me to tell him no," said Gongaware, who is a defendant in the multibillion-dollar lawsuit.

"I wanted to provide what was necessary for him to do his job...He wanted a doctor and I wanted him to be healthy."

Even after the offer of $150,000, Murray wasn't satisfied.

"He started saying he wanted more and I said, 'The offer is coming directly from the artist," Gongaware said.

Minutes later, he said Murray accepted.

"Did that seem desperate to you?" asked Panish.

"No," said Gongaware. "He just accepted Michael's offer."

During Tuesday's court session, Katherine Jackson was accompanied to court by her singing star daughter Janet who sat beside her for the first half of the day. Later, her sister, Rebbie took the seat.

Gongaware often pleaded poor memory of events. He said he may have met with Jackson as many as 10 times, but could remember only two of the meetings and only one when Murray was present.

Prodded by Panish, he remembered a meeting at which Jackson arrived late from a doctor's appointment and had slurred speech.

"He was a bit off," he said, "that was the only time I saw him like that."

At the heart of the case is who hired Murray. At first, Gongaware insisted he did no negotiating with Murray, but, confronted with emails and his previous testimony, he changed his position and said, "The only thing I did with Dr. Murray was negotiate a price."

He indicated that he was so shocked by Murray's demand that he consulted a doctor friend to see what he would charge for the same job. The other doctor said he would have gone on tour for $10,000 a week.

"Did you ever convey that to Michael Jackson?" asked Panish.

"I don't recall," said Gongaware whose testimony was peppered with that phrase.

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Emails reflect AEG's fears about Jackson's health

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
May 29, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jurors hearing a lawsuit against concert giant AEG Live LLC have been shown emails in which top company executives expressed fears about Michael Jackson's health and the amount of time they had to get the singer prepared for his ill-fated series of comeback tours.

The messages were displayed Wednesday during testimony from AEG Live co-CEO Paul Gongaware, who at one point sent his boss' assistant a message stating the show was giving him nightmares and causing him to break out in cold sweats at night.

Gongaware testified that he was joking, but it was just one of several messages expressing concerns about Jackson's health. Another message from Randy Phillips, the top-ranking executive at AEG Live, wrote after one of Jackson's missed rehearsals that, "we are running out of time.

"That is my biggest fear," Phillips wrote to Gongaware and the CEO of AEG Live's parent company, Anschutz Entertainment Group, on June 20, 2009, five days before Jackson's death.

Gongaware said he didn't agree with Phillips' assessment. "He may have said that, but I didn't agree with that," Gongaware testified.

His testimony came under questioning by an attorney for Jackson's mother, who is suing AEG Live and claims it failed to properly investigate the doctor convicted of causing her son's death. Gongaware and Phillips are also named as defendants in the case.

AEG denies that it hired former cardiologist Conrad Murray, or could have foreseen the singer's death. The company's defense attorneys have not yet questioned Gongaware on the stand.

The company's defense attorney, Marvin S. Putnam, said outside court that the emails reflect the company was concerned about Jackson's health, and expressed those concerns to Jackson's lawyer and manager before his death.

Jurors have seen numerous emails throughout the trial, including several sent by people working on Jackson's "This Is It" comeback shows in which they expressed concerns about Jackson's health. Production manager John "Bugzee" Hougdahl, wrote Phillips in the last week of the singer's life that Jackson was on a downward slide.

"I have watched him deteriorate in front of my eyes over the last 8 weeks" Hougdahl wrote.

Katherine Jackson's attorney questioned Gongaware about whether the company put too much emphasis on the showbiz maxim, "The show must go on."

Gongaware denied that was the case.

He told the jury that he was concerned about Jackson's health, but that he thought "This Is It" tour director Kenny Ortega may have been overstating concerns about the singer's wellbeing.

Phillips also expressed concerns about Ortega, writing to Gongaware's private email address, "This guy is really starting to concern me."

Gongaware testified Wednesday that he wasn't sure who Phillips was referring to, and his boss may have been expressing concerns about Jackson or Murray.

Six weeks before Jackson's death, Gongaware sent an email to an assistant for the CEO of AEG in which he urged her to, "Pray for me. "This is a nightmare. Not coincidentally, I have them now every night. Cold sweats, too. Life used to be so much fun..."

Gongaware said he was joking in the message. "I don't have cold sweats," he said. "I don't have nightmares. I sleep great."

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Jackson doc's interactions with AEG Live detailed

By: Anthony McCartney
June 3, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An AEG Live LLC executive who negotiated with Michael Jackson's doctor told a jury Monday that he never considered conducting a background check on the singer's physician.

Promoter and producer Paul Gongaware testified that he didn't think it was necessary to conduct background checks on anyone working closely with Jackson. He said in Conrad Murray's case, he wasn't concerned about his background because he'd been recommended by the entertainer.

The former physician had several liens, child support judgments and was facing foreclosure before agreeing to work with Jackson.

"I just expect doctors to be ethical," Gongaware said. "Their financial side of their life shouldn't affect their medical judgment."

Gongaware is testifying in a negligent hiring lawsuit filed by Jackson's mother against AEG Live, contending that the company failed to properly investigate Murray before allowing him to work with her son on preparations for the "This Is It" shows.

AEG denies it hired Murray, or could have known that Murray was giving Jackson doses of the anesthetic propofol as a sleep aid. Jackson died from a propofol overdose in June 2009, and Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

Defense attorney Marvin S. Putnam has said hiring Murray was Jackson's personal choice.

Jackson died before signing Murray's $150,000 per month contract to work on the tour. Murray was never paid by AEG for his work with the singer.

Katherine Jackson's attorney Brian Panish, who has said Murray was facing nearly $1 million in debts, said in opening statements that the doctor's financial problems created a conflict of interest in his treatments of Jackson.

Gongaware reiterated earlier testimony that he wasn't concerned about Jackson's health.

The executive worked on an earlier Jackson tour, "Dangerous," that had to be halted due to the singer's prescription drug abuse. He said he saw no signs in 2009 that Jackson was abusing prescription medications.

Gongaware said he recommended that Jackson hire a London-based doctor for the concerts, but the singer didn't seem to give it serious consideration.

"It wasn't my place to say who his doctor was going to be," Gongaware said. "It was his decision."

He also said he never considered performing background checks on Jackson's makeup artist, a choreographer who worked one-on-one with the singer or Kenny Ortega, the tour's director.

"I didn't see the need for it," he said.

Gongaware was shown emails he was sent less than a month before Jackson's death in which tabloid newspapers were speculating the singer was suffering from cancer.

Gongaware urged his company not to respond. "Our redemption will be when he does his shows," he wrote about Jackson. "We don't have to sell tickets, so we can just sit back and prove them wrong by just doing it."
The trial is entering its sixth week. AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips is expected to testify later this week.

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AEG exec denies he pushed Jackson to rehearse

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
June 3, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) - An AEG Live LLC executive denied Monday that he pushed Michael Jackson to rehearse for his ill-fated comeback concerts, refuting earlier testimony by the singer's longtime makeup artist and stylist.

Paul Gongaware said he never told Jackson's assistant to get the singer out of a locked bathroom and to a rehearsal, an incident that was described to jurors by makeup artist Karen Faye.

"Never, never happened," Gongaware said, shaking his head.

Faye testified last month that she overhead Gongaware tell Jackson's assistant to do "whatever it takes" to get the "Thriller" singer to a rehearsal. She described Gongaware as sounding "angry and kind of desperate" on the call.

Gongaware told jurors hearing a negligent hiring case filed by Jackson's mother that the entertainer was under no obligation to rehearse.

The differing accounts are just one of several pieces of contradictory information jurors will have to consider when testimony in the case concludes. Katherine Jackson is suing AEG Live, claiming it failed to properly investigate the physician convicted of administering an overdose of the anesthetic propofol to her son.

AEG denies it hired Conrad Murray, or could have known that Murray was giving the singer propofol as a sleep aid.

Faye, whose testimony was interrupted when other witnesses had to be called, will return to the witness stand before the trial's conclusion and is likely to be questioned by AEG's attorneys about the Gongaware incident.

Gongaware also said he was mistaken when he wrote in an email that his company was paying for Murray.

"We want to remind him that it is AEG, not MJ who is paying his salary," Gongaware wrote in the email, which was sent after Jackson missed rehearsals. "We want him to understand what is expected of him."

Gongaware said AEG agreed to advance Murray's $150,000 a month fee to Jackson, but the costs would have come out of the singer's share of "This Is It" earnings. He said he never instructed Murray about how to care for the singer.

The promoter and producer also told jurors on Monday that he never considered doing a background check on Murray, or anyone such as Faye, who was working directly with Jackson.

Murray had several liens and child support judgments and was facing foreclosure before agreeing to work with Jackson.

"I just expect doctors to be ethical," Gongaware said. "Their financial side of their life shouldn't affect their medical judgment."

The executive was shown several emails that he was sent less than a month before Jackson's death in which tabloid newspapers were speculating the singer was suffering from cancer.

Gongaware urged his company not to respond. "Our redemption will be when he does his shows," he wrote about Jackson. "We don't have to sell tickets, so we can just sit back and prove them wrong by just doing it."

The trial is entering its sixth week. AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips is expected to testify later this week.

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[WeAreTheWorld.]

Michael Jackson trial: Key moments of week 6

By: The Associated Press
6/9/2013

A look at key moments this past week in the wrongful death trial in Los Angeles between Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, and concert giant AEG Live LLC, and what is expected at court in the week ahead:

THE CASE

Jackson's mother wants a jury to determine that the promoter of Jackson's planned comeback concerts didn't properly investigate Dr. Conrad Murray, who was convicted by a criminal jury of involuntary manslaughter for Jackson's June 2009 death. AEG's attorney says the case is about personal choice, namely Jackson's decision to have Murray serve as his doctor and give him doses of a powerful anesthetic as a sleep aid. Millions, possibly billions, of dollars are at stake.

WHAT HAPPENED THIS PAST WEEK

Jurors heard from AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips, the highest ranking executive to testify in the trial so far. He told jurors that he didn't consult a mental health professional for Jackson despite that recommendation from two high-level production workers on the singer's "This Is It" tour.

Phillips testified that five days before Jackson's death, he emailed the singer's business manager that the singer might be in breach of his contract for the shows because he was skipping rehearsals. AEG executives have previously testified that rehearsals weren't required in Jackson's contract, but Phillips said he felt it was a requirement.

WHAT THE JURY SAW

Phillips verbally spar with Katherine Jackson's lawyer, Brian Panish. The pair had numerous testy exchanges and had to be repeatedly warned by a judge to not argue with each other.

QUOTABLE MOMENTS

"I wish you wouldn't call it a baseless shakedown because it's a derogatory," Phillips said moments after testifying that he believed the lawsuit against his company was an extortion attempt by the Jackson family.

"I just expect doctors to be ethical. Their financial side of their life shouldn't affect their medical judgment," AEG executive Paul Gongaware said about why he never considering doing a background check on Jackson's personal physician.

OUTSIDE THE COURTROOM

Jackson's daughter, Paris, was hospitalized after paramedics responded to her home on a report of a possible overdose. Her grandmother's attorney said the 15-year-old is physically fine and receiving appropriate medical treatment. A judge overseeing Paris Jackson's guardianship ordered an investigation into her wellbeing. The teenager is listed as a plaintiff in the case, has been deposed, and is on the witness list, although it remains unclear whether she will actually be called to the stand.

A probate judge said he was inclined to unseal portions of legal filings by a choreographer who claims he was abused by Jackson over a seven-year period while he was a child. The judge said he would likely redact portions of the documents that include private and personal details on Wade Robson, as well as a psychologist's report.

WHAT'S NEXT

AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips is expected to remain on the stand for several more days.

Katherine Jackson's case is expected to last at least another three weeks, and AEG Live may call numerous witnesses, including bringing back Gongaware for additional testimony.

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Jackson treatments raised alarm for AEG Live exec

By: ANTHONY McCARTNEY
6/10/2013

LOS ANGELES – Jurors in the Michael Jackson case were shown an email on Monday in which the top executive at AEG Live LLC expressed grave concerns about treatments Jackson was receiving from his longtime dermatologist.

The email sent by AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips said the company was "scared to death" of drug injections given to Jackson.

Phillips told jurors the email was a response to a $48,000 bill that Jackson's manager received for the treatments by Dr. Arnold Klein.

"He scares us to death because he is shooting him up with something," Phillips wrote.

The email was sent to Jackson's business manager Michael Kane after a meeting was held at the singer's house to address his health and missed rehearsals.

The treatments included numerous shots of cosmetic drugs such as Restalyne and botox, as well as other unidentified intramuscular shots, Phillips said, citing the bill.

Klein's attorney has defended the doctor's treatment of Jackson.

Katherine Jackson is suing AEG Live, claiming it failed to properly investigate her son's personal doctor, Conrad Murray, and missed warning signs about his failing health. Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after giving Jackson a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol.

AEG denies any wrongdoing, and Phillips and other executives have testified during the trial that it would have been inappropriate to ask about or intervene in Jackson's medical care.

Earlier in the day, Phillips was told by a judge to answer questions posed by a lawyer for Katherine Jackson without arguing and that his demeanor might be hurting his case.

Jurors were sent from the courtroom before Superior Court Judge Yvette Palazuelos addressed Phillips, who has sparred with attorney Brian Panish throughout his testimony. The lawyers have been repeatedly warned by the judge about the behavior.

"Arguing with the lawyers isn't really going to help," Palazuelos told Phillips. "It's not going to help your case. It's not going to help anybody."

Phillips said Panish was repeatedly asking him questions about the same subject.

"I'm just trying not to say the wrong thing," Phillips said.

The admonition by the judge came after Panish asked Phillips about characterizations of Murray that Phillips made in an email sent five days before the singer died.

Phillips acknowledged that some of the statements - including that AEG Live had checked out Murray and that the former cardiologist didn't need the job - turned out not to be true.

When Panish asked if Phillips had acknowledged that some of his statements to the director of Jackson's "This Is It" shows weren't true, the executive said: "Honestly, only to stop you from badgering me, yes."

Palazuelos briefly stopped the testimony and issued the warning.

Jessica Stebbins Bina, a defense attorney for AEG Live, said some of Panish's questions had been argumentative. The judge disagreed.

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CEO describes Jackson as forceful businessman

By: ANTHONY McCARTNEY
June 12, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The head of AEG Live LLC told jurors Wednesday that he knew Michael Jackson as a sophisticated, forceful businessman and not the drugged-up performer who's been described throughout an ongoing civil trial filed over the singer's untimely death.

Jackson was a far more complex figure than has been portrayed during the trial of a case filed by the singer's mother against AEG Live over her son's death, said Randy Philips, the company's president and CEO.

Phillips said based on meetings he had with Jackson in 2008 and early 2009, he found Jackson to be a "sophisticated man who had control of his life."

The portrait of Jackson that's been presented to the jury during the seven-week trial has been inaccurate, Phillips said. Jackson was described by both sides in opening statements as struggling with prescription drug addiction throughout his life.

Phillips said he disagreed with the descriptions of Jackson "because he's been presented as drug-addled 5-year-old. That was not the man I dealt with. The man I dealt with was forceful. Kind, but determined. He was a force."

Jurors have been presented with conflicting accounts of Jackson, even from Philips. They will have to weigh the different portrayals when they decide who is liable for the singer's June 2009 death.

Katherine Jackson's lawyers contend AEG failed to properly investigate the doctor convicted of causing her son's death, pushing her son too hard to perform and missed warning signs of his health. AEG, however, contends Michael Jackson hid his addiction to the powerful anesthetic propofol and that the company could not have foreseen that the singer's doctor was giving him the drug as a sleep aid.

Millions and possibly billions of dollars are at stake in the negligent hiring trial.

Phillips said he didn't see signs that Jackson was struggling with prescription drugs when he met with the entertainer to discuss options for his "This Is It" comeback concerts scheduled for London's O2 Arena in 2009. Phillips has also told jurors that Michael Jackson never told him he was having trouble sleeping.

The executive has described the superstar as difficult to work with, often changing managers and ideas about what he wanted creatively.

In testimony later on Wednesday, he described having to coax Jackson to a London press conference in March 2009 to announce his concerts. The singer was a couple of hours late, appeared hung over and was concerned no one would want to see him perform.

"He is an emotionally paralyzed mess riddled with self-loathing and doubt now that it is show time," Phillips wrote his boss that day. He testified that he just wanted to get through the event and forget it ever happened.

The six-man, six-woman jury has been shown numerous emails throughout the trial in which high-level tour workers expressed concerns about the singer's health, his weight, and whether he was ready for the shows. Many of the concerns were voiced by tour director Kenny Ortega, who Phillips at one point told not to attempt to serve as an amateur doctor or psychiatrist.

Phillips acknowledged earlier this week that statements he wrote to Ortega about Michael Jackson's physician, Conrad Murray, were untrue. Among those statements were Phillips' assertions that AEG Live had checked out Murray, and that the deeply indebted physician didn't need the job.

Murray was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter for giving Michael Jackson a lethal dose of propofol. Murray is not a defendant in the civil case, although AEG Live lawyers said early they intend to call the former cardiologist as a witness.

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AEG CEO cites conflicting info on Jackson health
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY | Associated Press

.....LOS ANGELES (AP) — The head of the company promoting Michael Jackson's ill-fated comeback concerts testified Thursday that he received conflicting and confusing information about the singer's health days before his death.

AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips said he was concerned about information from high-level tour workers that Jackson was unable to rehearse six days before his death, but he was reassured by the pop superstar's doctor that everything was fine.

Phillips said the "Thriller" singer appeared fine at a meeting held hours after he received a series of emails from tour personnel that Jackson's health was deteriorating and he appeared physically incapable of preparing for his comeback shows, dubbed "This Is It."

The reports of Jackson shivering and being unable to eat came from the tour's director, Kenny Ortega, and production manager John "Bugzee" Hougdahl.

In an email sent June 19, 2009, Hougdahl said Jackson's ability to perform had diminished over the previous two months. Jackson died five days later.

Phillips is testifying in a negligent hiring suit filed by Jackson's mother against AEG Live LLC, claiming the company failed to properly investigate the doctor convicted of causing her son's death. Her lawyers contend Phillips and other AEG executives ignored or missed warning signs about the singer's health and pushed him to rehearse.

Phillips said he expected Jackson to rehearse, but it was not something he was contractually obligated to do. He has denied that AEG hired Conrad Murray, the former cardiologist convicted of involuntary manslaughter after administering a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol.

Murray seemed competent, Phillips said, although he acknowledged they did not discuss in detail treatments the physician was giving Jackson.

"As far as I was concerned, the only person in charge of Michael Jackson's health was Michael Jackson," Phillips said.

AEG denies it hired Murray as lawyers for Katherine Jackson contend. Defense attorney Marvin Putnam told the jury in opening statements that the case hinged on personal choices and that Michael Jackson hid that he was receiving propofol as a sleep aid.

Phillips said Thursday that his company doesn't have a policy for dealing with artists who are the subject of articles that state or suggest they have a substance abuse problem.

"We're not judgmental like that," Phillips said. He later added, "You can't give up on people — that's not our job. "

Philips said throughout preparations for "This Is It," he was not concerned about any prescription drug use. He said the singer appeared sharp and engaged at meetings with the exception of one after Jackson visited his longtime dermatologist.

On Monday, jurors were shown an email that Phillips sent expressing concern about the dermatologist's treatment of Jackson.

"He scares us to death because he is shooting him up with something," Phillips wrote Jackson's business manager two days before the singer's death.

Phillips became emotional Thursday when he described Jackson's death, with tears appearing to well up in his eyes before his attorney quickly moved on to other topics.

The executive has been testifying for portions of seven days and will undergo additional questioning by Katherine Jackson's attorney Friday when the trial concludes its seventh week

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Expert: Michael Jackson was totally sleep-deprived
By ANTHONY McCARTNEY
June 21, 2013

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson's inability to learn new dance moves and remember the lyrics to his songs were symptoms that the singer was totally sleep deprived by the time of his death, a sleep expert told a jury Friday.

Charles Czeisler said reports by workers on Jackson's ill-fated comeback concerts that the entertainer was losing weight, exhibiting signs of paranoia and his condition seemed to be deteriorating were consistent with someone who hadn't gotten any real sleep in a long time.

The sleep deprivation was likely caused by Jackson's use of the anesthetic propofol, which Czeisler said would put the singer in a drug-induced coma and not meet his body's need for actual sleep. Studies showed that similar levels of sleep deprivation resulted in the deaths of laboratory animals and would likely cause the death of a human, he said.

Czeisler relied heavily on summaries of testimony provided by a plaintiff's lawyer and emails from choreographers and others working on Jackson's "This Is It" tour to form his opinion. The testimony detailed Jackson's missed rehearsals and reports that he was picking up dance moves slowly, as well as that he requested a teleprompter to display lyrics to his songs.

"The meticulous detailing of his deterioration here was both profound and sad," Czeisler said.

The Harvard professor and sleep researcher is testifying as a sleep expert in a lawsuit filed by the singer's mother against concert promoter AEG Live LLC.

On cross-examination by AEG defense attorney Kathryn Cahan, the researcher acknowledged that he hadn't reviewed actual testimony from the case, including statements from AEG executives that they thought the singer appeared fine and had stellar rehearsals before his death.

Czeisler, who is being paid $950 an hour for his work on the case, said he reached his opinion after reviewing deposition transcripts, medical records and other evidence shown to jurors during Katherine Jackson's eight-week trial against AEG.

A lawyer for Katherine Jackson summarized the evidence used to form the basis for Czeisler's opinion in a 17-minute, 1,833 word question that caused the trial to grind to a halt on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning.

Michael Koskoff's inquiry was posed as a hypothetical question to Czeisler that included a summary of testimony, passages of emails shown to jurors and other evidence presented during trial.

A judge said the question contained details that are inadmissible in the trial and misstated several other details. Superior Court Yvette Palazuelos opted not to strike the question from the record but allowed Koskoff to clarify it. That process took another 19 minutes on Friday.

Attorneys spent roughly an hour arguing over the structure of the lengthy question, leaving jurors waiting for nearly 30 minutes on Friday.

Czeisler earned more than $250 listening to the initial question, and more than $300 listening to Koskoff clarify it. Czeisler is a Harvard-educated sleep expert who has consulted on sleep issues for sports teams, the Rolling Stones, ex-NBA player Shaquille O'Neal and government agencies such as the CIA and U.S. Marshals Service.

Katherine Jackson's negligent hiring suit claims AEG Live is responsible for her son's death because it failed to properly investigate Conrad Murray, who was convicted of giving Jackson a fatal dose of propofol, and missed warning signs about his health.

AEG denies it hired Murray or could have known that the former cardiologist was giving Jackson propofol as a sleep aid.

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