Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor, today sentenced Dr. Conrad Murray to four years in jail — the maximum punishment possible — for his part in Michael Jackson’s death, stating that the doctor’s role in the singer’s fatal overdose was “money-for-medicine madness.”
Murray, who was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, was chastised by Pastor for failing to express any remorse for the pop star’s death, and boldly suggesting in a recent documentary that Jackson bore responsibility for his own demise.
“Talk about blaming the victim,” Pastor said. “Not only isn’t there any remorse, there is umbrage and outrage on the part of Dr. Murray against the decedent.”
“Michael Jackson died not because of an isolated one-off occurrence or incident,” Pastor said. “He died because of a totality of circumstances which are directly attributable to Dr. Murray, not some mistake or some accident in the early morning hours of 2009.”
Pastor said Murray engaged in a “horrible cycle of medicine.” And called Murray’s treatment a “disgrace to the medical profession.”
Prosecutors described Murray as a deceptive and incompetent doctor who in complying with Jackson’s request to be given propofol to put him to sleep, abandoned his Hippocratic Oath and medical judgment.
“Conrad Murray knew perfectly well that what he was doing was wrong,” Deputy Dist. Atty. David Walgren said. “He knew perfectly well that what he was doing was risking Michael Jackson’s life.”
Prosecutors had also argued that Murray should serve the maximum sentence, citing his “lies,” “coverup” and “concealment.”
Witnesses testified to many flagrant medical missteps by Murray such as giving propofol in an unmonitored setting, fumbling at basic resuscitation, keeping no records –- failures that experts said directly led to Jackson’s overdose death.
As “The King of Pop” ceased breathing and overdosed under the influence of propofol, the doctor was allegedly chatting on the phone, and exchanging email and text messages. And in the crucial moments after he discovered the singer had stopped breathing, he delayed calling for help and lied to paramedics and emergency doctors, witnesses said.
Officials from the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department said Murray will likely serve only half of his four-year jail sentence due to a recent change in California law that allows non-violent felony offenders to serve their time in county jail instead of state prison.
source – L.A. Times
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