Celebrity News October 03, 2013
Dr. Conrad Murray on AEG Live Verdict: ‘I Cried’
Although some were shocked by a jury's determination that concert promoters AEG Live was not negligent in the death of Michael Jackson, there was one person who felt vindicated: Dr. Conrad Murray.
The jailed doctor whose hiring by AEG was one of the centerpieces of Katherine Jackson's wrongful death lawsuit against the promoters, spoke to “Today” host Matt Lauer Thursday morning and said, “My immediate reaction was one of tears; certainly, I cried.”
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While the jury agreed that AEG hired Murray, they did not feel the doctor was unfit or incompetent to provide Jackson's medical care, despite claims by Katherine Jackson and three of her children.
Murray was pleased because some of the facts that were not allowed at his own trial were presented. The doctor explained, "I cried because for once the world was allowed to hear some of the facts... much of which I was denied and my attorneys could not present during my criminal trial. I was very relieved that at least the world had a chance of hearing some of the facts."
Murray was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death in 2011 and sentenced to four years in jail. He is filing an appeal in criminal court, and will be released from prison in a few weeks for good behavior and because of California prison overcrowding. He has served less than half of his sentence.
One juror told CBS News, “Dr. Murray was unethical. Had the word unethical been in there, it may have went the other way. He did something that he or no doctor should have done, but, again, he wasn't hired to do that. He was hired to be a general practitioner."
Murray countered, "What the juror said was that if ethics were the issue, the conclusion might be different. This is not about ethics. This was about the Jacksons bringing a lawsuit which I felt from the beginning was frivolous... When you say I am 'unethical,' that was speculation on (the juror's) part, because he has not heard the other side."
He says that when he leaves jail, he just wants to "embrace my children" and "reunite with my family and close friends."