AEG-Michael Jackson wrongful death trial

The jury in the Michael Jackson case found that Dr.

The lawsuit filed by the singer’s mother and three children blamed the concert promoter for his fatal drug dose.

A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday found that concert promoter AEG Live was not liable for the death of Michael Jackson, capping a marathon civil trial that laid bare the troubled singer’s health problems, struggles with drugs and fateful attempt at a comeback tour.

Entertainment giant AEG Live scored a major win in the Michael Jackson case after a Los Angeles jury unanimously decided that the concert promoter was not liable in the singer’s death.

High on drama and filled with sensational testimony about Michael Jackson’s colorful yet erratic life, jurors Thursday afternoon were handed a wrongful-death case in which the pop star’s mother and three children could be awarded tens of millions of dollars.

In a final push before the case goes to jury, an attorney for Michael Jackson’s family on Thursday said that entertainment powerhouse AEG cared little about the pop star’s career and used him only to make money.

After listening to testimony since spring, jurors in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial are expected to be handed the case Thursday and asked to decide whether entertainment giant AEG Live is liable for the pop singer’s overdose death.

The attorney for AEG Live told jurors Wednesday the concert promoter never hired the doctor who was treating Michael Jackson as he prepared for a comeback tour, never had a contract with him and had no idea the doctor was giving the singer the powerful anesthetic that killed him.

A claim by the family of Michael Jackson that it be awarded damages up to $1.5 billion for the pop star’s death is “ridiculous,� an attorney for entertainment powerhouse AEG told jurors Wednesday Marvin Putnam, the lead attorney for AEG, said an expert witness for the entertainment firm determined that the potential economic damages resulting from Jackson’s death were closer to $21 million.

Attorneys for AEG are set to give closing arguments Wednesday in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial, and the case could be in the jury’s hands by the end of the week.

An attorney for Michael Jackson’s family told jurors Tuesday that concert promoter AEG Live hired the doctor who administered the fatal dose of a powerful anesthetic and that the company now should pay for the singer’s death.

Final arguments in the nearly five-month Michael Jackson wrongful death trial began Tuesday in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom where jurors will be asked to decide whether one of the country’s most powerful entertainment firms is responsible for the pop star’s drug overdose death.

Tensions between Marvin Putnam, who represents AEG, and Brian Panish, who was hired by the pop star’s family, have flared in and out of court.

Quoting from Abraham Lincoln, the Book of Exodus and internal emails from AEG Live, an attorney for Michael Jackson’s family told jurors Tuesday that the concert promoter hired the doctor who gave Jackson a fatal dose of a powerful anesthetic and now should have to pay for the pop star’s death.

After nearly five months of testimony, much of it focused on the mental and physical health of one of the world’s most celebrated entertainers, the Michael Jackson wrongful death case moved closer to a verdict Monday as the judge read her instructions to jurors.

A close friend and doctor who treated Michael Jackson for more than 25 years testified Thursday that the desperate singer asked him for an anesthetic to combat his insomnia a little more than two months before his death.

Jurors in the long-running Michael Jackson wrongful death trial are expected to be shown video testimony Wednesday from a physician who allegedly arranged for the singer to be given a powerful anesthetic during a mid-1990s concert tour.

After more than four months of testimony, the Michael Jackson wrongful death case could finally go to the jury later this month.

The judge dismisses the case against Randy Phillips and Paul Gongaware because they were acting on behalf of AEG.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge made a tentative ruling Monday throwing out the case against two AEG executives who were promoting Michael Jackson’s ill-fated “This Is It� comeback tour.

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Michael Jackson’s ex-wife Debbie Rowe smiled -- and at times sobbed -- as she testified Thursday about her memories of her former husband, offering one of the most intimate looks at the intensely private pop star during a 3½-month trial focused on his death.

A man who worked security for Michael Jackson testified Wednesday that he introduced the singer to Conrad Murray, the doctor who later administered the fatal dose of the anesthetic propofol to the singer more than two years later.

The attorney hired by AEG to draft Conrad Murray’s contract for Michael Jackson’s ill-fated “This Is It� tour testified Thursday that the the doctor had requested a CPR machine and a back-up physician.

An AEG Live executive testified Tuesday that the firm offered Michael Jackson’s estate a guarantee of $60 million over 10 years in a deal that included a Las Vegas theatrical show based on the pop star’s songs.

Michael Jackson’s mother is slated to take the stand Friday for the first time in the wrongful-death suit she and her late son’s three children brought against the company that was promoting the singer’s ill-fated comeback tour.

Following a blow-up outside the courtroom between two attorneys in the Michael Jackson wrongful death suit, the judge warned the attorneys in chambers that they could be sanctioned if the feuds continue and prohibited them from speaking to reporters about the case near the courtroom.

In an appearance sure to bring out the paparazzi, the groupies and the just plain curious, Michael Jackson’s eldest child, Prince, will testify Wednesday in a wrongful death suit, just a day after the fourth anniversary of the singer’s fatal overdose.

Katherine Jackson testified Monday that her pop star son denied he was using prescription drugs when she asked him about rumors she had heard.

As she moved from the emotion of her earlier testimony to specifics Monday, Michael Jackson’s mother come across as a contentious and forgetful 83-year-old who contradicted herself while trying to defend her son.

About a dozen fans of Michael Jackson gathered Friday outside the downtown Los Angeles courtroom where Katherine Jackson was set to testify in her family’s wrongful-death lawsuit against AEG.

An emotional Katherine Jackson testified for the first time Friday in her lawsuit against entertainment giant AEG Live over her son Michael’s death, saying she wanted to know “what really happened to my son.�

This post has been corrected, see note at bottom for details.

The next person scheduled to testify in the Michael Jackson wrongful-death lawsuit is his mother, Katherine Jackson, who is to take the stand Friday.

The promoters of Michael Jackson’s highly anticipated comeback concerts were interested in pursuing a 3-D version of a “Thriller� movie and a TV special of one of his sold-out concerts at the O2 arena in London, an accountant testified Tuesday.

Michael Jackson would have earned $1.1 billion to $1.5 billion if his ill-fated “This Is It� concerts in London had turned into a worldwide tour, an accountant with decades of experience working with pop music acts testified Monday in downtown Los Angeles.

Michael Jackson’s nephew Taj Jackson was on the witness stand Thursday afternoon when a defense attorney inquired about Grace Rawaramba, the onetime nanny for the pop star’s three children who was eventually fired.

Michael Jackson’s eldest nephew testified Thursday that his uncle was a father figure to him and his brothers who helped them not only with their music, but with life lessons.

The director of Michael Jackson’s ill-fated “This Is It� concert series in London broke down on the witness stand Wednesday as he read an email he wrote five days before the singer died in which he described Jackson’s deteriorating physical and mental condition and suggested the performer needed to see a therapist.

A doctor who traveled on Michael Jackson’s 1993 worldwide “Dangerous� tour testified that he gave the singer a shot of Demerol and a 24-hour intravenous morphine drip while they were in Thailand and that he told a ranking AEG executive that the singer was a drug addict.

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Michael Jackson’s hairstylist, makeup artist and longtime friend testified Friday that she was concerned about the star’s aggressive “This Is It� tour schedule, saying she worried it didn’t give him enough time to “recuperate� between shows.

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In an attempt to give his kids a chance at a normal childhood, pop singer Michael Jackson had his kids wear masks when they were in public with him so they wouldn’t be recognized, Prince Jackson testified Wednesday.

Prince Jackson testified Wednesday that when he arrived at the hospital where his father had been rushed, the pop singer’s personal physician met him and his siblings.�

Michael Jackson’s eldest son testified Wednesday that during rehearsals for Jackson’s anticipated “This Is It� comeback tour, his father told him, “They’re going to kill me, they’re going to kill me.’�

Michael Jackson’s eldest child, Prince, will testify Wednesday in the King of Pop’s wrongful death suit.

The jury at the trial in the wrongful-death suit filed by Katherine Jackson and her grandchildren -- Prince, Paris and Blanket -- found Wednesday that AEG Live LLC was not liable in the death of the pop superstar.

A Harvard sleep expert testified in the Michael Jackson wrongful death case Friday that the singer suffered from almost total sleep deprivation that resulted from his use of the anesthetic propofol.

An alternate juror in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial has been dismissed from the panel because of financial hardship.

A retired music executive testified Monday in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial that it would be “highly inappropriate� and “highly unusual� move for a concert promoter or producer to hire a physician for an artist.

Michael Jackson’s anticipated “This Is It� comeback tour was largely fueled by his desire to provide his children a home of their own, AEG Live’s chief executive testified Wednesday.

While Michael Jackson’s mother and three children are suing AEG Live for what they say is the company’s role in the pop singer’s death, four of his brothers will perform this month at a festival the entertainment giant is producing and promoting.

The chief executive of AEG referred to his own boss as a “paranoid scrooge� in an email exchange when the entertainment firm was preparing to promote Michael Jackson’s anticipated comeback tour in 2009.

AEG was paying Michael Jackson’s manager $100,000 a month, an arrangement that an attorney on Tuesday suggested was unusual and possibly a conflict since managers were typically supposed to represent their clients.

The Los Angeles County Superior Court judge presiding over the Michael Jackson wrongful-death suit admonished AEG Live’s chief executive Monday to answer the questions the Jackson family’s attorney asks him.

Confronted with emails he wrote five days before Michael Jackson’s death, the chief executive of AEG Live admitted Monday his characterizations of Conrad Murray, the doctor who gave the singer the fatal dose of the anesthetic propofol, were wrong.

At the same time people involved in rehearsals for Michael Jackson’s London concerts were saying he needed therapy, his business manager was asking the concert promoter for a $1 million advance for the cash-strapped singer and the chief executive of AEG Live thought Jackson might be preparing to breach his contract by not rehearsing.

Two people who were helping Michael Jackson prepare for his planned London concerts said the singer seemed to be deteriorating and in need of psychological help, according to emails shown to the jury Thursday at the singer’s wrongful-death civil suit.

Despite the apparent suicide attempt by Michael Jackson’s daughter, testimony resumed Wednesday in a wrongful death case brought by the pop singer’s children and mother against entertainment titan AEG.

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AEG Live’s chief executive testified Tuesday that he thought the wrongful death suit brought against the company by Michael Jackson’s mother and children was an extortion attempt.

The AEG Live executive who negotiated the salary for Michael Jackson’s doctor said Tuesday he knew of no document that said his company’s payments to Conrad Murray were actually part of a loan to the pop singer.

The AEG executive in charge of Michael Jackson’s London concerts testified Monday that he had never heard of Conrad Murray — the doctor who gave the singer a fatal dose of the anesthetic propofol — until Jackson told him he wanted the physician to accompany him on his comeback tour in England.

This post has been corrected. See below.

An AEG executive testified Monday in the Michael Jackson wrongful death civil trial that he offered Dr.

Michael Jackson lost $26 million on the first leg of the HIStory tour in the mid-1990s and was in debt for sound, lighting and other expenses, according to testimony Friday in the wrongful death suit his family has filed.

The attorney for Michael Jackson’s family in its wrongful-death lawsuit said Thursday a doctor testified in a deposition that he injected Jackson with morphine while the singer was touring Asia and that he told a current AEG executive Jackson was a drug addict.

About six weeks after Michael Jackson’s death, an AEG executive told a producer for the “This Is It� documentary to delete footage of the singer looking too “skeletal.�

An email from a ranking AEG executive that was shown in court Wednesday could be among the most telling pieces of evidence in answering a central question in the Michael Jackson wrongful death suit: who employed Dr.

Three months before Michael Jackson died, a top executive of concert promoter AEG Live wrote an email to another company executive saying, “We need to pull the plug now.

A high-ranking AEG executive testified Tuesday that he had known for years that Michael Jackson was taking painkillers but wasn’t aware he was abusing them until the pop singer abruptly canceled his Dangerous world tour in the early 1990s to enter rehab.

An AEG executive sent an email shortly before Michael Jackson died, saying the firm had requested a meeting with his doctor “to remind him that it is AEG, not MJ who is paying his salary.

A few months before Michael Jackson’s death, AEG executives were told that the performer had passed a medical exam “with flying colors,� an in-house attorney for the company testified Wednesday.

Michael Jackson tour director Kenny Ortega wrote in an email to the president and chief executive of AEG Live that the singer “could have hurt himself,� according to court testimony.

In the days before Michael Jackson’s death, AEG executives were still attempting to secure a life insurance policy on the performer who had been acting erratically at rehearsals for his comeback tour, according to testimony and emails revealed in court Tuesday.

A lawyer for Michael Jackson’s family said they offered to settle their wrongful-death suit against concert promoter Anschutz Entertainment Group, but that they never got an answer.

The promoter and producer putting on Michael Jackson’s ill-fated “This Is It� concert series was paying his manager $100,000 a month, the only time entertainment giant AEG made such an agreement, a company lawyer testified Monday.

A professional concert tour director testified Friday in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial that a doctor’s demand for $5 million to serve as the singer’s tour physician “raised a red flag.�

Once a key defender of Michael Jackson in his sexual molestation trial, Wade Robson on Thursday alleged that the pop star abused him as a child for seven years, forcing him to perform sex acts, and until now he has been unable and unwilling to understand what happened to him was sexual abuse.

Emails written by Michael Jackson’s longtime manager will be turned over to the attorneys involved in an ongoing wrongful death case filed by the pop singer’s mother and his three children.

The choreographer for the “This Is It� tour testified Tuesday that he had no doubts about Michael Jackson’s ability to perform in the series of comeback concerts after seeing the singer at rehearsal in the days before his death.

Michael Jackson sometimes sang during concerts accompanied by his own recorded vocal track to help him perform the most physically strenuous numbers, the choreographer for what was to be his comeback shows in London testified Monday.

A choreographer on Michael Jackson’s doomed “This Is It� concert series testified Monday she was frustrated the singer was missing rehearsals but that her concerns were swept away during the last two preparation sessions for his anticipated “This Is It� comeback concerts in London.

The costume designer who worked with Michael Jackson was alarmed by the music legend’s frail figure during his last days, a makeup artist testified Friday.

Eight years after he testified in the Michael Jackson molestation trial that the pop star never touched him, an Australian choreographer has filed a claim against the singer’s estate alleging “childhood sexual abuse.�

A producer of Michael Jackson’s “This Is It� concert series said the singer was so gaunt, she feared he was dying, she testified in court.

A vintage video of Michael Jackson’s hair catching on fire during the third take of a 1983 Pepsi commercial was played for jurors Thursday as a makeup artist testified about the devastating migraine headaches the pop singer endured because of the injuries.

An Australian choreographer who is now apparently claiming he was molested by Michael Jackson as a child previously testified under oath that the pop star never touched him.

A lawyer for the Michael Jackson estate is blasting a choreographer’s claim that he was molested by the pop star, noting the young man has stated repeatedly in the past that nothing occurred.

A makeup artist testified Friday that before a concert in Bangkok, Michael Jackson was having a hard time walking, seemed to be in a daze and stumbled over a potted tree in his dressing room before finally being led on stage to perform.

As his anticipated comeback tour approached, Michael Jackson appeared to have lost weight and had failed to show up for rehearsals, an associate producer of the “This Is It� concert series testified Wednesday.

Michael Jackson’s doctor showed warning signs that should have led concert promoter AEG to raise serious questions before letting him sign on as the singer’s physician for an anticipated comeback tour, a cardiologist testified Tuesday.

A cardiologist testified Tuesday that Michael Jackson’s doctor gave his famous patient incorrect treatment when he noticed the singer had stopped breathing as a result of a powerful anesthetic the physician had administered.

This post has been corrected. See note at bottom for details.