Thursday, January 24, 2013 at 11:11AM
Conrad Murray, Jail, cry, michael jackson, tom mesereau, voicemail | Email Article | Print Article Thursday, January 24, 2013 at 10:53AM DR. CONRAD MURRAY'S
CRYING VOICEMAIL
I'm in Constant Pain
Read and listen to recording HERE http://www.tmz.com/2013/01/23/dr-conrad-murray-crying-voicemail-constant-pain-phone-cant-sleep-jail/#ixzz2J6pqh1xr
Wednesday, January 23, 2013 at 10:55AM An appeals attorney for Conrad Murray said she was "shoved" out of an attorneys room at the Men's Central Jail by the son of another of the doctor's attorneys.
Valerie Wass said she arrived at the downtown jail on Tuesday to meet with her client, who was the late Michael Jackson's personal physician, to discuss Murray's complaints about his medical care. She found Murray with his trial attorney, J. Michael Flanagan, and Flanagan's son Ryan, who is also an attorney.Wass said she opened the door and the younger Flanagan "forced me out of the room" and shoved her, and then the altercation became verbal. "My client saw what happened," Wass said.
She said J. Michael Flanagan sought to defuse the situation. Wass said she is Murray's appellate attorney. She and Flanagan both represent Murray before the California Medical Board. Wass said she filed a police report about the incident.
Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said the department was conducting a battery investigation of the alleged altercation.
Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the pop star's 2009 death and is appealing his jail sentence.
Wass said after the incident that she met with Murray for three hours about his medical complaints. She said a sheriff's commander was responsive to her requests for help for Murray.
Read full article at LA TIMES http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/01/conrad-murrays-appeal-lawyer-says-he-saw-her-shoved-by-another-lawyer.html
Jail, attorneys, conrad, fight, jackson, lawyers, michael, murray | Email Article | Print Article Tuesday, January 22, 2013 at 11:25PM 
Conrad Murray went from star prisoner to star witness at the L.A. County Jail today ... when a FIGHT broke out between his lawyers during a jailhouse visit ... TMZ has learned.
Sources close to Murray tell us ... Murray had been complaining about pain in his right arm and shoulder for the past couple of days ... and today, two of his attorneys (who are each working on different cases) raced down to the jail to check in on The Doc.
The first to arrive was J. Michael Flanagan -- who reps Murray in all matters relating to the Michael Jackson manslaughter case. JMF arrived with his 30-year-old son Ryan, who's also a lawyer but isn't working on the Murray case.
After the Flanagans began to visit with Murray in the jail, Murray's other attorney, Valerie Wass, showed up. Wass reps Murray in all matters relating to the California Medical Board and the appeal of his criminal conviction.
According to our sources, Wass claims she tried to enter the visitation room to speak to Murray, but was physically blocked -- and pushed -- by Ryan. Wass claims Ryan and his dad proceeded to shout at her until they left.
We're told Valerie eventually got to meet with Murray --and immediately afterward, she filed a battery report against Ryan.
As for The Doc, one source tells us Murray witnessed the whole thing -- and if there's an investigation, he could play a key role in the case.
Read more: http://www.tmz.com/2013/01/22/conrad-murray-fight-jail-j-michael-flanagan-ryan-valerie-wass/#ixzz2J6xqMDcc
Jail, attorneys, conrad, fight, jackson, lawyers, michael, murray | Email Article | Print Article Thursday, December 6, 2012 at 11:04AM 
Lady Gaga buys a Jackson crystal glove; courtesy of Julien's Auctions
As I reported last week, over 1,000 lots of Michael Jackson items were sold atJulien’s Auctions last Sunday, Dec 2, in Beverly Hills, California.
I noted that the total sale estimate of $1 to $2 million for the Tompkins and Bush collection seemed low. It was; the sale grossed over $5 million.
But that wasn’t the most surprising part. For me, it was that Lady Gaga bought 55 items. Normally buyers like to keep their privacy. So, when Lady Gaga tweeted “ The 55 pieces I collected today will be archived & expertly cared for in the spirit & love of Michael Jackson,” I was impressed.
Lady Gaga’s purchases mean some of Jackson’s things will remain stateside, for all his fans–particularly his “Bad” jacket ($240,000) and a crystal glove (over $100,000) according to the Los Angeles Times.
Darren Julien told me he thought that many of the Jackson items would go to museums, investors and most significantly overseas to China, Russia and Japan. And many did, although his auction house keeps bidding details confidential.
When the “Dorothy Dress” was up for sale at Julien’s Auctions, Julien told me he hoped to sell the dress to one of his clients in Asia who “loves western pop culture.”
Now that would be “Bad”…
The “Dorothy Dress” sold for $480,000 in November but there is no ID on the buyer. Hopefully, the pinafore is somewhere over the rainbow, USA! If Dorothy’s ruby slippers were national treasure enough to make it to the Smithsonian, then why not her pinafore? No sparkle?
Certainly Jackson’s items sparkled enough to catch the eye of Lady Gaga. Good for her—archiving and all.
Read Forbes article here http://www.forbes.com/sites/lynndouglass/2012/12/05/lady-gaga-buys-55-items-from-michael-jackson-auction-says-shell-archive-all/
Saturday, November 3, 2012 at 11:02AM 
Pop icon Michael Jackson was leasing the 1.2-acre estate in Holmby Hills for $100,000 a month at the time of his death. (Estella Sneider) |
November 2, 2012, 2:01 p.m.
The Holmby Hills mansion where Michael Jackson lived at the time of his death in 2009 has sold for $18.1 million. The property, recently priced at $23.9 million, had been for sale for as much as $38.5 million before the pop icon took up residency.
The buyer is Steven Mayer, a senior managing director for Cerberus Capital Management, according to several media reports. The sellers are Roxanne Guez and her husband, Hubert, chief executive of clothing manufacturer Ed Hardy.
The French chateau, designed by Richard Landry and built in 2002, features a theater, a wine cellar with a tasting room, an elevator and a gym with a spa. There is a guesthouse with stained-glass doors near the swimming pool for a total of seven bedrooms, 13 bathrooms and nearly 17,200 square feet of living space.
Jackson was leasing the 1.2-acre estate for $100,000 a month when he died after receiving the anesthetic propofol for insomnia. His doctor, Conrad Murray, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter last year and sentenced to four years in prison.
The 50-year-old was preparing for his "This Is It" concert tour during his time living at the mansion.
Mauricio Umansky of the Agency in Beverly Hills handled both sides of the transaction.
Read more http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-hotprop-michael-jackson-20121102,0,1883326.story
Thursday, August 16, 2012 at 8:42AM 
G.V. Cruz/Getty Images
Michael Jackson’s father, Joe Jackson, has dropped a wrongful death lawsuit he filed against Conrad Murray, the jailed doctor who was convicted in the King of Pop’s death.
A request for dismissal was granted Monday, according to court records. No reason is given for the suit being dropped.
Joe Jackson filed the suit against Murray back in June 2010, on the one-year anniversary of Michael’s death. When a federal judge declined to hear the case, it was re-filed in state court in Los Angeles.
Among other things, Joe Jackson claimed in the suit that Murray lied to doctors about giving Michael the drug that caused his death, the powerful anesthetic propofol.
Murray’s attorney said in a statement to ABC News, ”We are relieved that the civil suit has been dismissed voluntarily. It is has been a miserable three years for Dr. Murray and he continues to pray for the peace and well being of the entire Jackson family.”
Still pending is a case brought by Michael Jackson’s mother, Katherine Jackson, against promoter AEG Live, alleging negligence in hiring Murray. AEG Live was behind Michael’s London concerts for which he was preparing at the time of his death. That case is scheduled for trial in April 2013.
Read article HERE
Monday, August 13, 2012 at 8:56PM An appellate court denied a request Monday that it order forensic testing on a piece of evidence that Dr. Conrad Murray's lawyers claimed might cast doubt on his guilt in Michael Jackson's death.
The 2nd District Court of Appeal issued the decision without comment. Attorneys for Murray, who is serving a two-year manslaughter sentence, had asked for lab testing on residue from a propofol vial found in the pop star's room.
The doctor's fingerprint was on the vial, and prosecutors theorized that it held the dose of the surgical anesthetic propofol that killed Jackson on June 25, 2009. Murray's defense, which maintained that Jackson administered the fatal dose himself, asked late in the trial for testing, but was rebuffed by the trial judge who said the request was not timely.
An attorney for Murray, Valerie Wass, said she planned to petition the state Supreme Court to order testing on the drug bottle.
-- Harriet Ryan
Photo: A slide of Dr. Conrad Murray and propofol is projected during the prosecution's opening arguments in Murray's involuntary manslaughter trial in downtown Los Angeles on Sept. 27, 2011. Credit: Al Seib / Los Angeles Times
Read article HERE
Conrad Murray, drug, guilty, michael jackson, propofol, trial, vial | Email Article | Print Article Friday, August 3, 2012 at 9:00PM Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine, claims she was kept from communicating with her grandchildren while she was on vacation in Arizona and unaware that she was reported missing until she overheard a TV report on her whereabouts, according to court documents.
In a statement submitted Thursday to a California court, Katherine Jackson, 82, says her phone was "taken away" and she was never informed that Michael Jackson's children – Prince, Paris and Blanket – were trying to reach her. "…At the time, I trusted the people I was with to be honest with me," Jackson said, according to court documents.
Jackson added, "One morning I woke up to the sound of the television. While there was no picture, I heard a broadcast that stated I was missing." Jackson also stated in the court documents that the phone and television in her room didn't work.
"Mrs. Jackson indeed needed a restful vacation, which she got," her lawyer, Perry Sanders, told ABC News. "The mere fact that she was unaware that there was chaos outside her quiet spa surroundings until she arrived back home and after her interview with the children who arranged the trip, is of no moment."
"Mrs. Jackson stands by her statement that none of her children had bad intentions, notwithstanding that certain of their actions created an unnecessarily dramatic situation," he said.
The court documents were released the same day a California judge reinstated Katherine's guardianship of Prince, Paris and Blanket. While Jackson was away a judge removed her temporarily as guardian and named her grandson, TJ Jackson, 34, as temporary caretaker of the late legend's children. TJ Jackson is the son of Tito Jackson.
In Thursday's hearing, Judge Mitchell Beckloff said an investigator visited Katherine's Calabasas, Calif. home last Friday and had a "glowing review" of how she's taking care of the children.
"I think the kids are in terrific hands, I really do," Beckloff said, adding "All the controversy you told me [last week] caused me concern, but I'm certain Mrs. Jackson is doing a terrific job."
Jackson had earlier said the court ruling that removed her as guardian "was based on a bunch of lies" and that she was "devastated" that her grandchildren were taken away from her.
When Jackson did return home on July 26, Prince Jackson tweeted a statement, saying, "Although I am happy my grandma was returned, after speaking with her I realized how misguided and how badly she was lied to. I'm really angry and hurt."
Some of Jackson's statements in Thursday's court documents conflict with what she told ABC News in a televised statement on July 25th while in Arizona.
"One reason I didn't call is I just gave up my phone, and I didn't want to have any phone calls," Jackson told ABC News then of why her grandchildren couldn't reach her by telephone.
RELATED: Who Are the Players in the Jackson Family Feud?
Reading from a paper on July 25th with three of her children, Randy, Janet and Rebbie, seated next to her, Jackson also debunked rumors that she had been kidnapped.
"There are rumors going around about me that I have been kidnapped and held against my will," she said in the prepared statement. "I am here today to let everybody to know that I am fine.
"My children would never do a thing to me like that, holding me against my will. It's very stupid for people to think that," she said. "There's a lot of lies that have been put out there and I am going home to straighten them out, and this kind of stuff doesn't make sense."
Feud Over a Fortune
The back-and-forth comes amid a bitter family dispute over Michael Jackson's estate, estimated at $1 billion, that was left to his mother and his children.
In a recent letter to the executors of Michael Jackson's estate, Randy, Jermaine, Janet and Rebbie Jackson called the will of the late pop star "fake, flawed and fraudulent." They claim its signature is false: That though the document gives Michael's location on the day he signed as Los Angeles, they know him to have been in New York. They accuse the two executors, John Branca and John McClain, of everything from coercing family matriarch Katherine Jackson, to mishandling business deals, to getting too high of a cut for themselves from those same deals.
In response to the siblings' letter, the executors of the estate, Branca and McClain, issued a statement denying the accusations.
"Any doubts about the validity of Michael's will and his selection of Executors were thoroughly and completely debunked two years ago when a challenge was rejected by the Los Angeles County Superior Court, the California Court of Appeals and, finally, the California Supreme Court," they wrote in the statement.
"We are saddened that false and defamatory accusations grounded in stale Internet conspiracy theories are now being made by certain members of Michael's family whom he chose to leave out of his will. We are especially disheartened that they come at a time when remarkable progress has been made to secure the financial future of his children by turning around the Estate's finances as well as during a time when so many of Michael's fans, old and new, are enjoying his artistry through exciting new projects," they wrote.
On Wednesday, Jermaine Jackson issued a plea for peace in the family and withdrew his signature from the letter.
"Mistakes have been made and irrational things have been said on both sides in a highly-charged emotional environment," he wrote on Twitter. "It is time for us all to draw a line in the sand and move towards peace, co-operation, love and healing. I truly hope that we can find it in our hearts to do so. Because above and beyond anything else, what matters … is family."
While Katherine Jackson was in Arizona, an incident took place July 23, in which the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department responded to a reported "family disturbance" at the Jackson family home in Calabasas, Calif.
There were reports that Randy, Jermaine Jackson and Janet showed up, broke through a security gate and apparently tried to take Michael's children. At the time, Sandra Ribera, a lawyer for Katherine Jackson, described the scene as "chaos," and also claimed that Janet grabbed Paris' cell phone.
ABC News had previously cited a TMZ report that Janet Jackson had slapped Paris, but on Wednesday TMZ issued a retraction.
A statement from TMZ said: "Janet Jackson did not slap or verbally abuse Paris Jackson during a confrontation at the Jackson family home in Calabasas last week. Although we believed the story to be true when we published it, we have now determined it was not correct . Janet did not slap or otherwise touch Paris, nor did she verbally abuse her."
Jermaine addressed that incident, too, on Twitter, saying he and his siblings went to the home to make arrangements for the children to see their grandmother.
"We were denied that access by security — and it was clear that mutual suspicions had allowed events to spiral out of control. I regret that events were ever allowed to reach such a stage. I regret any distress caused to Prince, Paris and Blanket. That was never, ever the intention of myself, Janet, Rebbie or Randy. Moving forward, the most effective way to best serve Mother's welfare, and that of Michael's children, is to start a collective dialogue, in private," he wrote.
Read article HERE
Conrad Murray, blanket, jackson, janet, jermaine, katherine jackson, kidnap, michael jackson, paris, prince, randy, siblings | Email Article | Print Article Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at 8:40PM This post has been corrected; see note at bottom for details.
Dr. Conrad Murray asked an appellate court Monday to order lab testing on a piece of evidence that his defense said might cast doubt on his guilt in Michael Jackson’s death.
In a filing Monday, a lawyer for Murray asked justices for the Second District Court of Appeal to authorize forensic analysis on residue in a bottle of propofol taken from the bedroom of the pop star’s rented Holmby Hills mansion.
The 100-milliliter vial-–identified at Murray’s manslaughter trial last year as Exhibit 30-–has been described by prosecutors as the vessel for the fatal dose of the surgical anesthetic. Prosecutors contend Murray mixed a small amount of another anesthetic, lidocaine, with the propofol and administered it to the singer in June 2009 using an intravenous drip.
They theorized Murray didn’t notice his patient had stopped breathing because he was chatting on the phone. Murray’s defense maintained that he only administered a small amount of the drug and that while he was out of the room, Jackson injected himself with propofol from a syringe.
In the filing, Pasadena appellate attorney Valerie Wass wrote that the testing could determine the proportion of lidocaine to propofol in the vial and therefore which theory was true.
“If a forensic examination of the residue in Exhibit 30 revealed no lidocaine, it would completely negate [the prosecution expert’s] concluding theory…leaving only the theory of bolus injection just prior to Jackson’s death,” Wass wrote.
The request to test Exhibit 30 was the third by Murray’s lawyers. The trial judge, Michael Pastor of Los Angeles County Superior Court, refused a motion for the analysis shortly after the verdict in November 2011, saying that it was not timely. A subsequent request was declared moot.
A jury convicted Murray of involuntary manslaughter. He received a four-year sentence, but is expected to serve two years in county jail. He was suspended from the practice of medicine and state officials are moving to revoke his license permanently.
Wass, who is representing Murray pro bono, said she was unaware of the appellate justices ever granting such an order for forensic testing, but “I certainly felt strongly enough to give it a try.”
[For the record, July 30, 1:25 p.m.: A previous version of this post said both sides acknowledged that Exhibit 30 was the vessel for the fatal dose of propofol; but only prosecutors have described it as such. A previous version of this post also said Conrad's defense attorneys said Jackson injected himself with a lethal amount of propofol taken directly from the vial; they said he injected himself with propofol from a syringe.]
Read article HERE
Conrad Murray, bottle, convicted, death, michael jackson, propofol, tests, trial | Email Article | Print Article 
