On Oct. 25, the second day of defense witness testimony in the involuntary manslaughter trial of Dr. Conrad Murray commenced. And as Murray’s defense continued in their case to prove that the late pop icon Michael Jackson was to blame for his own death, jurors heard testimony from nurse practitioner, Cherilyn Lee, who claimed that Jackson believed propofol was safe with monitoring and begged her for the drug.
According to USA Today, Lee, who specializes in nutritional therapy, began treating Jackson in February 2009, providing him with vitamin C, amino acids and other natural substances to combat his fatigue and low energy. On April 12, Easter Sunday, Jackson began to complain that his main problem was sleeplessness and according to records Lee kept of her visits, that is when he first explained that he needed unspecified “products for sleep.”
Lee testified to lead defense counsel Ed Chernoff that Jackson’s insomnia was likely due to his high intake of the heavily caffeinated drink Red Bull and penchant for trying to sleep in lighted rooms. However, the King of Pop’s requests for propofol steadily grew over time. Lee explained that Jackson told her that he’d received propofol for a surgery, years earlier. Having never heard of the drug, Lee asked a doctor about propofol and was advised that it was only used in hospital settings and should “absolutely not” be used at home.
However, Jackson continued to argue against Lee’s warnings about propofol.
“He told me that doctors had told him that it was safe,” she testified. “He said, ‘I just need to be monitored.'”
As her testimony continued, Lee was cross-examined by prosecutor David Walgren and explained to him that she continued to warn Jackson of the dangerous side effects of the drug, including dizziness, agitation, chills, delirium, shivering and memory loss.
“I knew I was working with a great entertainer, and said, ‘What if you started forgetting your lines?’ He said, ‘I would never forget all my lines.'”
Lee then told Jackson, “I understand you want to sleep, you want to be knocked out, but what if you don’t wake up?” Jackson replied, “I will be OK. I only need someone to monitor me, with the equipment, while I sleep,” she said before tearing up as she confirmed the statement.
Lee claims that she continually denied Jackson’s request for propofol. But In April 2009, Murray begin working with Jackson as his physician and shortly afterwards began providing the singer with the powerful anesthetic. According to several prosecution witnesses, Murray was egregiously negligent while caring for Jackson, most notably on the day of his death on June 25, 2009.
According to MTV News, During her testimony, Lee took a break from the stand after complaining of feeling dizzy and proceeded to breakdown into tears in the courtroom hallway. Once her testimony resumed, Walgren asked Lee if she recalled telling Jackson, “Nobody who cared or had your best interest at heart is going to give you this,” to which she replied that she did.
Stay tuned as the story continues to develop. –nicholas robinson
