People vs. Dr. Conrad Murray
Propofol Expert:
Michael Jackson Killed Himself
Propofol Expert -- Dr. Paul White Testifies
Updated 10/31/11 at 8:45 AM
Anesthesiologist and Propofol expert Dr. Paul White -- the defense team's final witness -- told the jury today, he believes Michael Jackson killed himself by self-injecting Propofol.
The prosecution has argued ... Murray had MJ on a Propofol IV drip the day he died, resulting in an accidental overdose that killed the singer.
But Dr. White testified, there was no evidence -- either on the scene or in Murray's police interview -- that Murray hooked MJ up to a Propofol IV drip the day he died.
It's worth noting -- Murray admitted during his police interview that he had previously administered Propofol to Michael using an IV drip in the weeks before the singer's death.
According to White, the evidence on scene suggests Murray was only responsible for a small, non-fatal Propofol injection -- and he believes MJ was the one who injected the final and fatal dose.
Other highlights:
* Yesterday, defense attorney J. Michael Flanagan addressed what he called the "elephant in room," asking Dr. White whether he could justify administering Propofol, and then leaving the patient. White answered, "Absolutely not."
* White said he wouldn't expect Jackson to have died from the amount of Propofol Murray claims he gave the singer.
* White told jurors the amount of Propofol that Murray said he gave MJ the day he died was barely enough to reduce anxiety and cause a bit of sleepiness.
* White challenged Dr. Shafer's conclusion that Murray gave Jackson at least nine 4 mg injections of Lorazepam throughout the morning of June 25 ... saying those amounts are "enormous" and would have put anyone to sleep ... or even killed them.
* White said a more reasonable scenario would be: MJ took 8 pills of Lorazepam -- two or three at a time -- throughout the night.
* He explained the reason there were only traces of Lorazepam found in MJ's stomach, is because it's absorbed quickly by the digestive system. Had the Lorazepam been given IV -- as Shafer argued -- NO Lorazepam would have been found in MJ stomach.
* Not to be upstaged by the prosecution ... White did his own Propofol demonstration, showing it was not only easy but "perfectly safe" to administer Propofol via injection.
* White said if Murray had used an IV bag to administer Propofol, there would have been traces of the drug in the bags recovered at the scene ... and there weren't any.
* White said he believed Jackson gave himself a dose of Propofol around 11:30 am -- and that, combined with the Lorazepam and the 25 mg Murray gave him earlier, is what killed him.
* During an aggressive cross examination, prosecutor David Walgren got Dr. White to acknowledge that Murray deviated from the standard of care when he gave MJ Propofol.
* White told prosecutors he's never heard of anyone administering Propofol at a home setting.
* White said it's "desirable" to keep medical records but did not think Murray's failure to keep records was an "extreme" deviation from the standard of care.
* White told Walgren he's been paid $11,000 for his testimony so far. He said his usual fee is $3,500 a day.
* White said he had no problem leaving a patient's bedside 15-30 minutes after giving them a small dose of Propofol.
* White agreed he would not leave the room if he were treating a patient who had indicated he liked to inject himself with Propofol.
* White said he would have called 911 sooner but he didn't it would have made any difference in this case.
* During a particularly contentious moment, Walgren asked White whether Murray had an obligation to report all the drugs he administered to MJ. White said sometimes, in cases of emergency, details are "overlooked." Walgren then asked whether Propofol was "a detail that was overlooked?" White answered, "Obviously it was overlooked"... Walgren shot back, "Not obviously... It could also be a lie." White acknowledged that yes, It's was possible.
VIDEO im Bericht * White testified he now rejects his initial theory that MJ may have died from drinking Propofol.
* White said he wrote that opinion in a preliminary report which he wrote in 2 days. Walgren asked him to find the word "preliminary" in the report. White was unable to find it.
* Walgren asked White whether he had come up with any theories that did not place the blame squarely on MJ. White said he did not.
* White acknowledged he would have never agreed to administer Propofol as a sleeping aid ... saying, "no amount of money" could persuade him to do it.
* Judge Michael Pastor warned White to refrain from bringing up details from personal conversations with Murray ... which could allow the defense to introduce statements by Murray without putting him on the stand. White hinted that Murray told him MJ had his own supply of Propofol.
* White said it was possible MJ climbed out of bed, found a syringe containing Propofol that Murray left in the bedroom and injected himself with the fatal dose.
* White told the jury, ER docs would not have been able to save MJ ... regardless of what Murray did or did not tell them.
* White said David Walgren contacted him early on to see if he could testify on the prosecution's behalf ... but White had already committed to testifying for the defense.
http://www.tmz.com/2011/10/27/people-vs-dr-conrad-murray-defense-propofol-expert-testifies-paul-white-michael-jackson-manslaughter-mj/#continued
