Michael Jackson

The late Michael Jackson likely helped himself to extra doses of potent drugs while Dr. Conrad Murray's back was turned and accidentally took his own life.

That's according to the defense's final witness, who finally came out and said, under oath, the theory that Murray's defense has been floating for months.

Murray's lawyers long have asserted that Jackson caused his own death, even as the likelihood of such an event has been discredited by the prosecution.

Still, White told the jury, in Jackson's last minutes of consciousness, the insomniac took several pills of the sedative lorezepan, then injected the Propofol.

"You think it was a self-injection of propofol between 11:30 and 12?'' defense attorney J. Michael Flanagan asked. "In my opinion, yes," White responded.

White, like the prosecution's star witness, Dr. Steven Shafer, is an anesthesiologist and Propofol expert. The prosecution will cross-examine him next week.

After that, it's up to the jury to determine if there is reasonable doubt to acquit Murray of involuntary manslaughter, or if the prosecution made its case.

It goes without saying that Jackson's family feels they have.

Michael Jackson had such bad insomnia that extreme measures were needed to help him sleep, according to his longtime physician, Dr. Allan Metzger.

He testified on Monday for the defense in Dr. Conrad Murray's involuntary manslaughter trial, and painted a picture of an often desperate patient.

He said he told Michael Jackson on April 14, 2009 that administering an IV anesthetic outside of a hospital was dangerous and he would not do it.

"He asked me about intravenous sleep medicine. He used the word 'juice,'" he said. "I don’t think he mentioned the word of a specific sleep medication."

"[Jackson] did not believe any oral medicine would be helpful."

Metzger had treated Jackson on and off for roughly two decades and had toured with him, just as Murray had planned to do before his June 2009 death.

Defense attorneys are trying to show that MJ was an out-of-control addict who killed himself via drug overdose the second Murray's back was turned.

Prosecutors says Murray was a doctor who, at the rate of $150,000 a month, gave the star whatever he wanted and engaged in many negligent practices.

They also claim  that there is no evidence that Jackson gave himself the overdose of Propofol that killed him, as Murray's defense has tried to argue.

Under cross-examination, Deputy DA David Walgren asked Metzger if there was "any amount of money" that could convince him to give MJ Propofol.

"Absolutely not," Metzger replied.

As if Dr. Conrad Murray's defense team didn't have its work cut out for it already, the legal ensemble is starting to fracture amid reports of persistent infighting.

Ed Chernoff, Dr. Murray's lead attorney, is from Houston and had been staying with another member of the team, J. Michael Flanagan, to save Murray money. 

But he moved out from Flanagan's digs a week and a half ago. "Ed didn't like the way Michael was handling the prosecution witnesses," says a close source.

Murray is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson.

"Ed felt that Michael was too abrasive and caustic with his questioning, and that Michael allowed witnesses to clarify points that only helped the prosecution."

"Things were getting very tense, and he's moved into a hotel in Santa Monica," a source close to Dr. Conrad Murray said, after the final straw this month.

Courtroom onlookers were stunned as Chernoff decided he was going to be handling the questioning of the DA's expert medical witness, Dr. Steven Shafer.

"Flanagan had prepared for approximately four months to cross examine Dr. Shafer," the insider said. "Michael was thoroughly prepared and ready."

It's looking more and more like Dr. Conrad Murray's defense team is going to need a miracle to get their client off the hook in the death of Michael Jackson.

While Murray didn't mean to kill anyone, the charge is involuntary manslaughter, and expert after expert continues to make the case that he's responsible.

The prosecution's star witness said yesterday that Murray gave Jackson higher dosages of drugs than he told detectives, and that's not even the worst part.

Apparently, the anesthetic Propofol was still being fueled into Michael's veins as he passed. Jackson "died, but with the infusion running," Dr. Steven Shafer testified.

Throughout the day, Shafer - who previously listed 17 reasons Michael died as a result of Murray's care - used charts and demonstrations to emphasize his point.

In turn, he shredded Murray's medical care and the implausibility of defense suggestions that MJ gave himself an overdose of propofol or the sedative Lorazepam.

Instead, Shafer says Murray took his eyes off Jackson more than long enough to miss seeing Jackson's lungs become depleted and his heart stop beating.

The case against him was looking strong anyway, but prosecution's main expert against Dr. Conrad Murray shredded the physician on the stand yesterday.

Dr. Steven Schafer called Murray's treatment of Michael Jackson "egregious," "difficult to comprehend," and "inexcusable," among other descriptive terms.

In fact, Schafer testified to 17 different "unconscionable" ways Dr. Conrad Murray's treatment could have contributed to the death of the music legend.

Schafer, an anesthesiologist who wrote the packaging insert for Propofol - the main drug blamed in the singer's death - was damning in his testimony.

He said Murray behaved more like an employee who was following orders than a doctor whose priority was his patient's health, and has no excuses.

Schafer said things Murray did on and before June 25, 2009, are things that every doctor knows not to do – and many led to Michael Jackson's death.

Among his claims faulting Jackson's doctor:

Perhaps it's a little too early to start talking about what happens if Dr. Conrad Murray gets convicted of felony involuntary manslaughter - he has yet to present his defense - but it does not look good for the physician right now.

Between the Michael Jackson autopsy photo, the 911 call and most of all, the various holes in his defense, he'll have to pull off a miracle to be acquitted.

So what happens when and if he gets convicted?

As for how much time Murray would serve, officials tell TMZ that Murray would be jailed for half the actual sentence. So four years as opposed to two.

Moreover, because of severe overcrowding, inmates are eligible for house arrest, based on their prior criminal history, and their risk to the community.

Murray has a clean record and, as one law enforcement official put it, "it's not like he's going to walk around with a bottle of Propofol and kill people."

So if the jail is filled to the max, the Sheriff could quickly put him on house arrest - if not right away, shortly into his sentence - ankle monitor style.

Again, this is all premature. The jury could still find him not guilty on all counts. But right now, we could bet heavily against that possibility occurring.

[Photo: WENN.com]

Dr. Conrad Murray's attorneys are trying to change defendant's defense in his involuntary manslaughter trial, telling jurors Michael Jackson had much more than two minutes alone self-administer a fatal dose of Propofol June 25, 2009.

By claiming this, they are contradicting Murray's own statement.

Murray's attorney J. Michael Flanagan suggested that the two-minute window Murray said he left the star alone for that morning wasn't accurate after all.

Prosecutors have lambasted the idea that MJ could have woken up, grabbed a bottle of Propofol and injected it into the port in his leg in just two minutes.

Interestingly, by suggesting it was a longer window of time, Flanagan is basically saying Murray lied to police ... but Flanagan's version is likely correct.

In the hour before Murray began resuscitating Jackson, he was on the phone for around 45 minutes, according to police and the many women he called.

Dr. Conrad Murray's lawyer announced that the physician is dropping the argument that Michael Jackson accidentally killed himself by ingesting Propofol orally.

What they're not doing is dropping the argument that he self-administered the anesthetic in general. In fact, the defense still will claim that MJ killed himself.

Murray's attorneys say they have concluded Jackson could not have chugged Propofol, however, and will now argue only that he injected it intravenously.

According to TMZ, attorney Michael Flanagan said in court today that a new study by the defense showed swallowing Propofol would not produce fatal results.

The Associated Press initially reported that Murray's lawyers ditched the idea that MJ self-administered the fatal dose in any way, but that is not accurate.

Lead lawyer Ed Chernoff can and very likely will argue that MJ injected a fatal dose after awakening and becoming frustrated with Murray out of the room.

Of course, that's still a claim they may struggle to sell a jury on, and medical experts say that even if it happened, Murray would be responsible regardless.

Not looking good for the doc so far, but his defense has yet to present its case. They're going to need to pull a legal rabbit out of their hat on this one.

Your take: Dr. Conrad Murray ...

[Photos: WENN.com]

A leading cardiologist for the California Medical Board told a jury today that Dr. Conrad Murray was grossly negligent in his treatment of Michael Jackson.

Dr. Alon Steinberg testified that Murray, who's facing involuntary manslaughter charges in the June 2009 death of the pop icon, demonstrated an "extreme deviation" from standard practices in the medical care he provided.

That, more than anything else, could lead to Murray's conviction.

The Michael Jackson autopsy photo displayed in court Tuesday and Murray's recording of the delirious star are chilling, but don't necessarily prove his guilt.

Steinberg's testimony is a different ballgame. We're not on the jury, but it's hard to imagine they won't be influenced by some of this expert's views.

He reviewed Murray's case relying solely on transcripts from his police interview because he wanted "to judge Dr. Murray on his very own words."

Dr. Steinberg made it clear that he is a cardiologist, not an anesthesiologist. That said, these are a few of his observations of Murray's medical care:

In their most striking piece of evidence yet, prosecutors showed jurors today an autopsy photo of Michael Jackson, dead and naked, his body lying on gurney.

The photo, admitted in Dr. Conrad Murray's involuntary manslaughter trial, was taken hours after the star died. MJ's death, as we know, was ruled a homicide.

The date on the tiles beside his body reads August 25, 2009. However, Dr. Christopher Rogers claimed the date was a simple error, and should read June 25.

This was shown during opening statements. Today's image is far more graphic.

Rogers said it is extremely unlikely Michael Jackson killed himself with a deadly dose of Propofol, as Murray claimed in his opening statement two weeks ago.

Jackson's fingerprints were not found on the medication, but more importantly, says the doctor who did the autopsy, Murray's defense theory is very unlikely.

Follow the jump for the Michael Jackson autopsy photo ...