Judge Denies Katherine Jackson's Request For New Trial Against AEG
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A judge on Friday tentatively denied a motion by Katherine Jackson's attorneys for a new wrongful death trial against concert promoter AEG Live.
Jackson's attorneys claim the jury instructions and verdict form were misleading during the trial, prompting jurors to clear AEG of wrongdoing in the death of Jackson's son Michael back in October.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Yvette Palazuelos sent attorneys a 45-page tentative ruling denying the motion by lawyers for the Jackson family matriarch Thursday night, in advance of a hearing on the issue today.
Details of the judge's ruling were not immediately available.
Jackson's attorneys argued that once the panel found that Dr. Conrad Murray was fit and competent to be Michael Jackson's doctor when he was hired, it prevented the jury from deliberating AEG Live's actions in supervising and retaining Murray.
KNX1070 legal analyst Steve Meister says Jackson's lawyers would have to have a specific argument that the court did something wrong to taint the outcome that unfairly resulted in a bad verdict.
Jackson's Lawyers To Seek New Trial Against AEG Live
"That's what they have to show," explains Meister. "If they don't show that, they don't get a second bite at the apple just because they wish the outcome had been different."
In their filing, AEG Live lawyers argue that Jackson's attorneys never challenged the instructions when they were originally being discussed.
AEG's lawyers also argued that "There is simply no reason to believe the jury interpreted the verdict form at odds with its plain language and the arguments of the parties."
Katherine Jackson, 83, sued in September 2010 on behalf of herself and her son's three children -- Michael Jr., Paris-Michael Katherine and Prince Michael -- claiming that AEG Live hired Murray to be Jackson's personal physician and failed to properly supervise him.
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