The judge also admonished Murray for his “horrific violation of trust” in treating Jackson. The defense was seeking a sentence that included probation but no jail time, but given the severity of the crime and the world-famous victim, the judge sided with the prosecution in delivering Murray his punishment. In addition to the sentence, Murray was also ordered to pay Jackson’s children a restitution estimated to be in the amount of $100 million, a sum that combines the cost of Michael’s funeral arrangements, plus the lost wages and earnings the singer didn’t collect because he died before his This Is It concerts began. The exact restitution, however, will be decided on a later court date.

While Jackson’s family members did not address the court, they collectively wrote up a statement, which family spokesman Brian Panish read to the judge. “There’s no way to adequately describe the loss of our beloved father, son, brother, and friend,” Panish said on behalf of the Jacksons. “As Michael’s parents, we never could have imagined that we would live to witness his passing; it is simply against the natural order of things. As his brothers and sisters, we won’t be able to laugh, hold, or perform again with our brother Michael. And as his children, we will grow up without our father, our best friend, our playmate, and our dad.”

“We are not here to seek revenge, there is nothing you can do today to bring Michael back,” Panish continued. “We respectfully request that you impose a sentence that reminds physicians that they cannot sell their services to the highest bidder and cast aside their Hippocratic oath to do no harm. As we all know, doing so has devastating results… That is all that we can ask for as a family, and that is all that we can ask for here.”

With a sentence of merely probation a possible outcome, prosecutor David Walgren next took the podium to convince the court why Murray deserved four years behind bars. Walgren spoke of how the “careless and reckless behavior by Conrad Murray continued for two months before the death of Michael Jackson at the hands of Conrad Murray.” He added that Jackson’s death was a “direct result” of Murray’s actions, and that the doctor was constantly was playing a game of “Russian roulette” with Jackson’s life every time he administered sedatives to the singer. Walgren also accused Murray of trying to cover up his crime and lying to investigators.

In addition to the plea for an appropriate sentence, the prosecution also asked the court to make Murray pay an astounding $100 million restitution to the Jackson family. Even worse than the jail time and the restitution Murray will never be able to pay, however, is the fact that the doctor will inevitably have his medical license universally revoked, ensuring that he never treat another patient again and also crippling his financial means.

The defense, meanwhile, called no one to attest for Murray’s character, and the doctor himself declined to speak on his own behalf to plead for a lighter sentence. Lead defense attorney Ed Chernoff made a brief statement to lobby for probation, since Murray is a first-time offender with six children and patients that depend on him.

“We do not disagree with the prosecution that this is a tragedy, and what we lost with Michael Jackson and what his children lost certainly demands punishment. I do wonder, though, to what extent the court considers the entirety of a man’s book of life, as opposed to just one chapter. The two months Dr. Murray was treating Michael Jackson, he did so regrettably. He shouldn’t have done it.” Chernoff also called Jackson a “drug seeker,” and said his client, a 58-year-old cardiologist who was born “dirt poor” in the Caribbean, was lured by the King of Pop and the promise of wealth.

However, the judge was unaffected by Chernoff’s statements and proceeded to eviscerate Murray’s reputation in his critical and moving 15-minute decision. Pastor also condemned Murray for recording an audio tape of a weakened, drugged-out Jackson. “It was designed to tape his patient surreptitiously at that patient’s most vulnerable point,” the judge said. Pastor also explained why — even though Murray was eligible for probation — he was handing the doctor a jail sentence: Throughout the trial, Murray has shown “absolutely no remorse.” Pastor had been an interesting, colorful presence throughout Murray’s trial with his quirky requests to witnesses and his clashes with the defense, but his delivery of the sentence was both a magnificent encore and a stirring epilogue to this long ordeal for the Jackson family and Michael’s fans.

From the onset, Murray and his defense team asked the judge to ban the live television cameras in the courtroom during the sentencing process, since the testimony would threaten the “privacy interest of the defendant.” However, Judge Pastor cited Murray’s controversial MSNBC documentary as a reason to deny Murray’s request, adding that there is a “public interest” to Murray’s fate. It’s no surprise why Murray wanted to cameras off, though: The Jackson family statement, Walgren, and especially Pastor further permanently tarnished Murray’s reputation, which is something he won’t escape even after his sentence expires.

As The Amp previously reported, despite the judge’s harsh sentence, Murray will not spend any time in a federal penitentiary, thanks to overcrowding in the California penal system. Instead, since Murray was convicted of a non-violent felony, he’ll instead be transferred to a county jail, where sentences are routinely reduced. For example, there’s every instance where Lindsay Lohan is sentenced to spend 30 days in a county lockup and instead goes free after six hours. Additionally, because of the overcrowding, a new California law dictates that “low-risk” convicts charged with a lesser felony only have to serve half their sentence behind bars, and the other half on probation. For now, though, Jackson’s family and fans can take small solace in Murray receiving a max sentence.

Michael Jackson would have celebrated his 53rd birthday today, but instead his children and father visited his home town of Gary, Indiana to commemorate the “King of Pop.”

Hundreds of fans celebrated this weekend outside Jackson’s small childhood house on Jackson street.

Paris Jackson, 13, told WLS-TV that she “enjoyed seeing so many fans at the house” during her visit.

Jackson died on June 25, 2009 of acute propofol intoxication after suffering cardiac arrest.

In February of 2010 Jackson’s personal physician Conrad Murray pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter, if convicted, he could face up to four years in prison.

The Biggest Album Ever just got bigger. The 25th Anniversary Edition of Thriller celebrates this ground-breaking album with 7 bonus tracks, six of which are previously unreleased. The new tracks include exclusive remixes from Kanye West, Fergie, will

Price:$12.71

Read More

No Description Available.
Genre: Popular Music
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 16-OCT-2001

Price:$7.99

Read More

But with Amy, her death is all the more disappointing. Having released just two studio albums, the latter of which (“Back to Black”) channeled the retro stylings of the 1960s, Winehouse and those who aided her music career were just beginning to tap into the depth of her talent.

Still, her biggest hit in America, “Rehab,” showed us that her demons might be an unshakeable force.

And then there’s Michael Jackson, a man who fought so many demons (some attributed to his father and upbringing, some simply due to growing up in the limelight), that the King of Pop became a total recluse.

With an ever-changing face, two high profile trials, and a relentless media that perpetuated rumors in order to sell newspapers and magazine subscriptions, you knew–deep down–that it wasn’t going to end well for Michael Jackson. That this wasn’t going to be an artist who would be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2035 Grammys.

Judge Michael Pastor went to Sony Pictures Studios last week to view footage of Jackson preparing for a series of comeback concerts, but he said it could be commercially sensitive for Sony and was of no use to the trial.

Sony had sought to quash a subpoena seeking portions of the rehearsal footage not included in the film “This is It” to be used at the trial of Jackson’s doctor Conrad Murray, who faces trial for manslaughter in September.

Pastor ruled that Sony’s appeal was “meritorious,” saying the material he had seen was “extremely valuable to Sony” and would “result in serious financial consequences” if released.

Prosecutors say the footage of Jackson rehearsing before his planned “This is It” series of concerts in London show him creatively engaged and in good health, while the defense argued against showing the images.

The judge said he spent several hours watching some of the footage, including Jackson rehearsing “The Way You Make Me Feel” on June 23, 2009, and “Earth Song” the following day — the day before he died.

“As far as I’m concerned, it was a waste of my time to go over there,” said the judge at the Los Angeles Superior Court.

One of Murray’s lawyers, J. Michael Flanagan, said Jackson was “very talented .. even on his bad days,” but said the released footage would not be a fair representation of his condition in the days preceding his death.

Jackson, whose career had been hobbled by child sex abuse allegations, died on June 25, 2009 at the age of 50, as he prepared for the comeback concerts at London’s O2 arena.

Prosecutors say he died as a result of an overdose of the powerful sedative propofol, which Murray was in charge of administering to help Jackson with his insomnia.

Murray’s defense is expected to argue that Jackson gave himself an excessive dose of the drug while Murray was out of the room at the singer’s mansion in the affluent Holmby Hills neighborhood west of Los Angeles.

No Description Available.
Genre: Popular Music
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 16-OCT-2001

Price:$7.99

Read More

This compilation features 10 of Michael Jackson’s greatest video hits, including “Billie Jean,” “The Way You Make Me Feel,” “Black or White,” “Rock With You” and others. 90 minutes.

Price:$11.98

Read More

Titles: Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ * Jam * They Don’t Care About Us * Human Nature * Smooth Criminal * The Way You Make Me Feel * Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground) * I Just Can’t Stop Loving You * Thriller * Beat It * Black or White * Earth Song

Price:

Read More