Watch CBS News

Witness Testimony Wraps Up In Conrad Murray Trial

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Defense attorneys for Dr. Conrad Murray wrapped up witness testimony Friday.

Murray is accused of involuntary manslaughter in the 2009 death of Michael Jackson, who overdosed on the anesthetic propofol.

Dr. Paul White told jurors Friday that Jackson shouldn't have stopped breathing and should have regained consciousness based on the levels of medication that Murray says he gave the singer.

"I thought that there were questions if in fact Murray had administered the drugs that he described in his conversations with the police department in the doses he described, I would not have expected Michael Jackson to have died," White testified when he first took the stand Thursday.

White says a prosecution expert didn't consider the levels of the sedative lorazepam that Jackson may have accumulated in his body in the days before his death.

Earlier this week, Dr. Robert Waldman, an addiction expert, was also asked about Jackson's use of demerol.

The defense has been using witnesses to show Jackson was going through withdrawals from an addiction to demerol.

They are arguing that addiction led to severe insomnia, which prompted Jackson to grab a syringe of propofol and inject it into his own veins.

The defense says demerol had been provided by Jackson's dermatologist, Dr. Arnold Klein.

Klein provided medical records that show Jackson received demerol injections every few days in the weeks before his death.

The records show Jackson received 16 injections in April and nine in May, totaling 1,110 milligrams.

In June, the month of Jackson's death, the pop star received seven injections for a total of 800 milligrams.

Records indicate Jackson received his last demerol injection three days before his death.

Waldman says withdrawal symptoms could have started within 24 hours of Jackson's last dose.

Klein and his staff weren't allowed to testify in the trial.

Cross-examination will be delayed until Monday to give the prosecution more time to review a new analysis of Jackson' autopsy.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.