As the investigation progresses and the authorities close in on the chain of events that led to Michael’s death, Dr Conrad Murray, the man at the centre of the investigation into Michael’s death, was charged with involuntary manslaughter on February 8, 2010.
Murray pleaded not guilty to the charge and was released on $75,000 bail. The judge told him he was allowed to keep practicing medicine but was not allowed to sedate anyone.
So far, the investigation has revealed holes in both Murray’s statements and in the timeline surrounding Michael’s death.
The question everyone is now asking is: is Dr Conrad Murray covering up evidence and lying about what really happened?
Police are now saying that Murray, after administering that final dose of the powerful sedative Propofol to Michael, most likely left him alone for approximately 73 minutes, and not the two minutes he has claimed.
Let’s have a look at what we know about the timeline:
10.50am: Murray administers Propofol to Michael, then leaves him alone to go to the bathroom.
At some point, Murray returns to Michael’s room and finds him not breathing. He begins CPR. Murray claims he left Michael alone for 2 minutes.
11:54am: Murray leaves a voicemail for another patient, Bob Russell. In the voicemail, Murray sounds calm and collected.
12.00pm: It has been reported that Murray made another call, this time to his girlfriend in Houston shortly after noon, but this call has not been confirmed as yet.
12:21pm: Murray calls 911
Given the discrepancies in the timeline, it is now being said that Dr. Conrad Murray may have hidden and tried to cover up the means by which Michael died.
Let’s have a look at what is said to have happened:
Michael received his final, fatal dose of Propofol through an IV in his leg, and Murray told police he only administered 2.5ml, which is a very small amount.
But Dr. John Dombrowski, a noted anesthesiologist who reviewed the LAPD file for detectives, has stated that 2.5ml would not be enough to even put someone to sleep, let alone kill them.
The autopsy report, however, notes the level of Propofol found in Michael was equivalent to what is found in “general anesthesia for major surgery.”
A small, empty, 20 ml bottle of Propofol was found in the bedroom, but a secret compartment was found in a nearby closet which contained numerous bottles of Propofol.
Amongst them, a large, empty, 100ml bottle with a large tear in the rubber stopper was found. A tear in the stopper is made in order to connect an entire bottle of Propofol to an IV.
If this is done, the doctor must use an infusion pump to regulate the flow of Propofol, in order to prevent the patient from overdosing. There was no infusion pump found.
The police believe Dr. Murray may have used the 100ml bottle, then either tried regulating the flow either by just watching it, or letting it flow by itself.
Either way, Dr. Murray admitted to leaving Michael unattended by going to the bathroom at some point.
If Dr. Murray did indeed put the full 100ml bottle into Michael’s bloodstream, that would be 40 times more Propofol than he told authorities he administered.
Murray is due to return to court on April 5 for a preliminary hearing which will reveal for the first time the evidence the prosecution believes will demonstrate how his “gross negligence” was the direct cause of the Michael’s death. If convicted, he could face up to four years in prison.
Here are the court papers outlining the complaint against Murray: Dr. Conrad Murray complaint court papers
