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By LINDA DEUTSCH, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES -- More than half of the first panel of prospective jurors for the manslaughter trial of Michael Jackson's doctor were dismissed because of hardship claims Thursday, signaling a long search ahead for those who will serve in the five-week trial.
And it is yet unclear how many prospects will be excused for disclosing strong opinions about Jackson, defendant Dr. Conrad Murray and the high profile case with which all potential panelists are familiar.
When the judge asked whether anyone in the jury room was unaware of case, not a single hand was raised.
A larger than expected contingent of 187 prospects showed up for questioning Thursday. Court officials said that of those, 115 were dismissed and 72 remained to fill out lengthy questionnaires probing their views of the case in which Murray is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the pop star's death. Murray has pleaded not guilty in the case.
A new panel of prospects was on call for Friday morning and questioning could continue Monday if a sufficient pool has not been cleared by then. The judge has said he wants 100 prospects available who have no problems with hardship and no views on their questionnaires extreme enough to require dismissal.
Those who reported for duty Thursday appeared ready for the news delivered to them by Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor: They had been summoned to serve on Los Angeles' biggest trial of the year - the involuntary manslaughter trial of Michael Jackson's doctor.
No one flinched at the announcement. And all indicated they had prior knowledge of the case.
The judge was not surprised.
"We didn't expect you'd been living under a rock for the past several years, or that you made a pit stop from Mars," Pastor said.
Authorities contend Murray gave Jackson a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol in the bedroom of the pop superstar's rented mansion in June 2009, but attorneys for the physician deny he administered anything that should have been fatal. They will contend that Jackson swallowed an overdose of propofol when Murray wasn't watching.
Murray sat with his lawyers on one side of a long table and prosecutors on the other in the vast jury assembly room, which was transformed into a courtroom for the first round of a jury selection process that is expected to take two weeks to find a pool of 100 people willing and qualified to serve on the case.
Those who passed the first hurdle of having no hardships were given a 30-page questionnaire to fill out. The judge said it was one of the most extensive such forms ever, probing jurors' lives and their knowledge of a case focusing on the death of one of the world's most famous men.
"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," Murray said softly as he was introduced to the panelists. Attorneys also arose and greeted the prospects, who responded with a calm, "Good morning."
For the rest of the 20-minute session, Murray sat starting straight ahead, showing no reaction.
The judge told prospects he had decided against sequestering the jury because he felt, "Jurors would, in effect, be prisoners if they were holed up in a hotel.
"I chose not to follow that path," he said "and by making that choice I am reiterating my faith in every juror chosen in this case."
A central focus of his talk was the Internet and all of its offshoots.
"I certainly realize that for some of us, especially those who have grown up in the Internet age, searching the Internet is as easy as breathing," Pastor said.
But he warned that jurors must avoid online reports about the case.
"If you want to Google, Google away," he said. "Surf the Net, but not about anything to do with this case."
He read an admonition that will be repeated daily forbidding them to discuss the case with anyone, to post messages on social networks or to read any tweets about the case.
He warned they must wait until 90 days after the case is over to negotiate any deals to be paid for information.
"This is not a case about whether Dr. Murray is guilty or innocent," he said. "It's about whether the people can meet the burden of proving him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."
This was the second attempt to start jury selection. In May, the judge aborted an earlier session because lawyers needed more time to prepare. Prosecutors and defense attorneys will have several days to scrutinize the responses before direct questioning of potential jurors begins on Sept. 23.
Jackson's death on June 25, 2009, stunned the world. The King of Pop had been in final preparations for a series of comeback concerts in London, and the focus quickly turned to Murray, his personal physician.
The Houston-based cardiologist faces up to four years in prison and the loss of his medical license if convicted.
___
AP reporter Anthony McCartney contributed to this report.
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Linda Deutsch has written an excellently balanced and informative article on the
Murray trial, proving to shoddy “journalists” like Diane Dimond and other tabloid
writers of her ilk that it is possible to create an interesting story without resorting
to bias and name-calling. I am glad to have a reliable source to turn to with the Murray trial beginning next week.
Wrascil has taken the lazy and low road of merely disgesting & then regurgitating the disgusting rumors about Mr. Jackson that the Medialoid has created and propagated. This way he does not have to expend once ounce of energy or use one brain cell to do his own research and his own thinking. Mr. Jackson was acquitted in 2005 of all charges
brought against him. Please digest that. That and the fact that Mr. Jackson was not
only one of the world’s greatest entertainers, but one of the world’s greatest philanthropists. Why does the fact that he donated hundreds of millions of dollars
to help his fellow man, especially children who were ill or in need, not seem to matter
to those who want to run him down?
Hopefully the jurors will study all of the information as to Murray’s incompetent
handling of his patient and will not allow themselves to be mislead by the “blame the
victim” strategy of the defense lawyers.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=2381588379769
We probably can't expect such fairness from certain other media outlets who delight in tut-tutting at what they choose to perceive as Jackson's lifestyle at every opportunity. One of his main detractors, namely Diane Dimond is doubtless preparing her litany of innuendo and accusations against the King of Pop as we speak, regardless of the fact that is is Murray on trial here and not Jackson.
The jury will be hard-pressed not to be influenced by the malicious interference of tabloid reporters like Dimond, but personally I'm impressed by Judge Pastor's attitude so far in this case and hopefully justice will win out, as it did for Jackson himself in 2005
It's to be hoped that gullible unquestioning people like the commentator wrascil rarely find themselves on juries in cases involving celebrities, or all is lost for the US Justice system.
-- administers a powerful anesthetic in a home setting (without ANY crucial breathing and heart-monitoring equipment)
-- leaves the room for what's estimated to be more than 15 minutes, makes several phone calls, finds his patient not breathing
-- wastes precious time collecting medication bottles rather than calling 911
-- tells the EMT that his “unconscious” patient is fine, he just is treating him for dehydration
-- starts to administer half-assed CPR--ON THE BED!
-- lies to the emergency personnel in the ambulance (doesn’t disclose that he administered Propofol)
This doctor’s actions (whether he acted alone, or was really just a fall guy in a much larger conspiracy to kill Michael Jackson) will hopefully be disclosed in detail. Sadly, the LAPD "stopped" the death investigation with the doctor. There is so much more they should have pursued: his enormously valuable music catalogue, the questionable characters surrounding him and his at one-time contentious relationship with $ony Corporation. We may never see the “others” brought to account, but we will learn that Michael didn't kill himself. He loved his life, his family and his fans too much to do something so senseless.
- and things won't get better until we vote Obama -out- of office.
others would prevaricate the truth.
Those documents provide strong evidence that Jackson was innocent and most likely the victim of extortion. The man lived his life honestly and in the open and he was grossly misunderstood, period. That is the conclusion most intelligent people make when they bother to examine the record.
The difference in the general news coverage of the Troy Davis case—which hasn't been sensational—is that Davis wasn't a famous person whose presence in the case is guaranteed to draw eyeballs to any story. As such, “being famous” is, in our media culture of disrepute, guaranteed to deny the famous person his/her civil rights, such as the presumption of innocence. This is wrong, but media's main goal is profits, not social progress, so media remains a potential obstacle to civil liberty. Uncritical thinkers like wrascil perpetuate this cycle of abuse in the court of public opinion. Thankfully, the jury was able to see through Dimond, Grace, Velez-Mitchell and other tabloidists and Jackson died a free man.