Jackson murder trial starts

A chilling photo of Michael Jackson lying on a hospital bed was shown to jurors at the opening of the trial of Conrad Murray, the doctor accused of killing the King of Pop.His pale body was seen lying on a gurney after he died from a drug overdose. Tape or tubing can be seen over his face.Deputy district attorney David Walgren told the court: The evidence will show that Michael Jackson literally put his life in the hands of Conrad Murray. Michael Jackson trusted his life to the medical skills of Conrad Murray.The evidence will show that misplaced trust had far too high a price to pay, it cost Michael Jackson his life.He said he would detail what happened in the final hours of the singers life, from the time he left rehearsals to the time that paramedics were summoned to his rented mansion.Jackson died of an overdose of the powerful anesthetic propofol.A number of Jacksons family members were in the courthouse in Los Angeles, including his father Joseph, mother Katherine, sisters LaToya and Janet, and brothers Jermaine, Randy and Tito.LaToya Jackson carried a sunflower, Michaels favorite flower. Dr Murray arrived holding hands with his mother.Dr Murray has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and he and his lawyers have denied he gave Jackson anything that should have killed the pop superstar.The trial opened with a bit of star power and the one thing the King of Pop enjoyed throughout his life, a worldwide audience.Proceedings will be televised and broadcast online. More than a dozen satellite trucks and news vans were parked within a block of the courthouse.Much of the testimony will focus on propofol, which is normally administered in hospital settings. Authorities contend Dr Murray administered a lethal dose of the drug along with other sedatives, and lacked the proper lifesaving equipment to revive Jackson.Defence lawyers will present an alternate theory, that Jackson ingested or somehow gave himself the fatal dose.