Last Thursday's Class

We had an interesting class debate last Thursday (9/3) about the Michael Jackson homicide ruling and whether Dr. Conrad Murray should be charged with manslaughter, murder or no crime at all.

Those who felt he should be convicted of commiting a crime argued the "pro" position; those against were "con." Students faced off, two at a time, at the front of the class and argued their position for two minutes each while a monitor kept track of the time.

At the beginning of class, 10 out of 12 students were firmly in the "pro" camp. Giselle, Tricia, Fiorella, Denisse, Edu and Magali were among those who felt that Dr. Murray deserves to go to jail for involuntary manslaughter.

Dr. Murray's culpable errors include not calling 911 immediately when he found Jackson dead; administering Propofol outside of a hospital; and mixing Propofol with bennies and other sedatives. Those acts directly caused Jackson's death even if the doctor did not intend to murder the singer, the "pro" side argued.

Claudia was the first to argue for the defense. Michael Jackson is the only person to blame for his death, she argued. Claudio mentioned Jackson's long history of drug abuse and his ties with multiple doctors who supplied him with prescription drugs. Even if Dr. Murray had refused to give Jackson Propofol that night, said the defense, Jackson would have found some way or another to get it. And Dr. Murray did not administer Propofol in amounts over the legal limit, she added. Jackson's death is not attributable to anything that Murray directly did.

The debate turned a corner when Francisco decided to argue that Jackson's death was murder -- planned by someone other than Murray. Murray was used as the "fall guy" for the plot, Francisco said, a sure-fire way to divert attention from the behind-the-scenes murderers since it is very hard to convict a doctor of "grossly criminal negligence." At the most, Murray would be sentenced to a few years in prison -- and then be released to enjoy some of the spoils snagged by beneficiaries of the estate.

Various members of the class shot down Francisco's argument, noting that it was all speculation. But the doubts had been raised, and we all began to wonder if there wasn't something to the idea that greed had engineered Jackson's homicide.

Was it so far-fetched to imagine a murder plot being carried out?

Murder, Manslaughter and Michael Jackson: A Class Debate

This coming week, August 31--September 4, the Conversation Class will focus on the death of Michael Jackson and the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD)'s pending criminal case against Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray (see photo, left).

On Tuesday, September 1, class members will make short group presentations about topics related to Jackson's death: What happened on the night and morning before Jackson died? (Group 1); What drugs did Dr. Conrad gave to Jackson and what their dangers and effects? (Group 2); What are you supposed to do someone stops breathing? (Group 3); and, What other drugs was Jackson addicted to and what doctors gave him these drugs? (Group 4).

(See class handout from Thursday's class here, which includes links to recommended stories to help in your research. Click here for tips on making a good group presentation.)

I will explain the difference between "murder" and "manslaughter" and how these terms are used by police departments and courts of law in the state of California, where Jackson was killed.

The media is speculating that Dr. Murray will be charged with the crime of manslaughter, an event that will probably make the news this week. But members of the Jackson family, including Michael's sister LaToya, have said that Murray and other doctors should be charged with murder. The Jackson family's lawyer Brian Oxman told reporters in July that Michael Jackson was afraid of being murdered. As reported in the Boston Globe (July 1):

The pop superstar was reportedly terrified of being murdered for his money
or the music publishing rights he owned, which included his own work and
over 200 songs from the Beatles back catalogue. The rights are estimated to
be worth over £600 million.

On Thursday, September 3, we will have a class debate: Is Dr. Conrad Murray guilty of killing Michael Jackson or are other people guilty as well? If Dr. Murray is guilty, what crime should he be charged with, manslaughter or murder?

Note: If you missed class on Thursday, you are in Group 4 and need to present on that topic. Email me to coordinate with the other members of your group.