Dr. Murray interview tape says it all

We finally heard Conrad Murray’s side of the story, but he wasn’t testifying.

For the first time, we heard the recording of his interview with police just two days after Michael Jackson’s death. And this is likely the last time you will hear his voice (don’t count on Murray taking the stand; that’s typically a last resort for the defense). So if this is the last we hear from Murray remember that he is locked into this story, no matter how good or bad it is for him.

There are two sides to every piece of evidence, and this recording, so far, is no different. Still, Murray gave the prosecution’s case an enormous boost. The tape isn’t finished playing, but there are already conflicting stories and examples of faulty judgments. Here are just a few:

• He claimed he wasn’t aware of Michael’s other doctors, yet various medications
prescribed by other doctors were all around Jackson’s room.

• When Michael stopped breathing, Dr. Murray said he couldn’t call 911, but he had time
to call Michael Jackson’s assistant to tell him to call security. However, he
couldn’t tell security or the assistant about Jackson’s condition because he “would
have to explain the situation.”

• He says repeatedly that he wanted to be “cautious”, yet he had Michael hooked up to a
propofol contraption that most anesthesiologists say was inadequate, not to mention
the drug should only be administered in a hospital setting.

• He said he left the room for only two minutes to relieve himself before returning and
finding Jackson not breathing, yet his phone records reveal he was only on the phone
for over 40 minutes, presumably outside of the room (hard to be on the phone for 40
minutes while your patient was trying to sleep);

The recording did give us seeds of the defense’s theory. Murray says that German doctors taught Jackson how to inject himself with propofol, and that he liked doing it. If jurors believe Murray, that validates the defense theory that Jackson gave himself the drug. Also, Murray said he wanted an autopsy; the defense could say at closings “why request an autopsy if you had something to hide?” Here’s the rub: these statements support the defense only if the jury believes Conrad Murray.

On the tapes, Dr. Murray was soft-spoken and self-assured, a seemingly kindly doctor who did everything to help his patient. In fact on many occasions he said he loved Jackson, and wanted to do all he could to help him; he even teared up in court as these words rang out. Dr. Murray may be a nice man, but what counts here is whether this doctor did a bad thing. How will the jury hear these tapes? We’ll find out when the verdict is in.

The prosecution will play the remainder of the tapes on Monday. What did you think of them so far? Let me know on twitter: @RyanSmithTV.

Posted by: In Session/HLN anchor, Ryan Smith