American Morning
Lawyer: Jackson case now manslaughter probe
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/07/23/callan.paul.cnn.art.jpg caption="Paul Callan calls the search at Dr. Conrad Murray's office a 'major development.'"]
Detectives searched the Houston, Texas, medical office of one of Michael Jackson's doctors on Wednesday for "evidence of the offense of manslaughter," the doctor's lawyer said.
The search warrant at Dr. Conrad Murray's office "services part of the ongoing investigation into the death of Michael Jackson," Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Gus Villanueva said.
Murray was the doctor who was at Jackson's home when the pop star died on June 25.
Paul Callan is a former New York City homicide prosecutor and is currently a criminal defense attorney. He joined Kiran Chetry on CNN’s “American Morning” Thursday.
Kiran Chetry: Again, this was confirmed by the attorney for Conrad Murray and they're saying that they raided the clinic looking for evidence of manslaughter. How significant is this?
Paul Callan: This is a major development in the case. I mean here we have Conrad Murray’s attorney admitting that there's an ongoing manslaughter investigation. And we know that a Los Angeles judge has issued a search warrant. Now judges can only issue a search warrant where there's probable cause to believe a crime has been committed – in this case, manslaughter – and there's probable cause to believe that evidence of that crime is at Dr. Conrad Murray's office. So I think we can safely say that authorities are looking at him probably as a suspect. They're certainly hostile to his position at this point.
Chetry: What's the difference between looking for evidence of an accidental overdose – if you're dealing with drugs or if you're dealing with prescription medication that was given – what is the difference in terms of whether or not it crosses that line and turns criminal?
Callan: Well there's a major difference here because we know from the attorney's statement that they're looking at this as a manslaughter. So we would have to assume that if a doctor – and in this case if it were Conrad Murray – prescribed the drug, he prescribed it in a reckless or grossly reckless manner, knowing that it might cause the death of the patient. That's where it crosses the line. I mean you can have ordinary negligence where a prescription drug is given to a patient and the patient gets hurt. That's a medical malpractice case. But where it's gross or reckless conduct it crosses the line into criminality.
2009: A different kind of Gary
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/07/08/palace.gary.art.jpg caption="(Getty Images) The marquee at the decaying Palace Theater advertises the Jackson Five July 7, 2009 in Gary, Indiana."]
By Stephen Samaniego – Producer, CNN's American Morning
After spending a few days in Gary, Indiana one thing is clear: this is not the same town Michael Jackson grew up in. When Michael was born back in 1958, Gary was a thriving steel town with a population of almost 180,000 people.
When I was speaking with Gladys Johnson, the former principal of Garnett Elementary School where Michael attended, she spoke of a place where new schools were being constructed, people were buying land and building new homes, and people had good paying jobs that afforded them a decent life.
Today, things are different. Jackson’s elementary school has been torn down, most of the houses built are now crumbling and the unemployment rate is in the double digits.
Driving through the streets of Gary, I could see the shell of what it once was. Gordon Keith, the former owner of Steeltown Records, told me about the exploding music scene that Gary hosted. While driving around with Gordon, he would point out an abandoned building, a pile of rubble or even an empty lot that used to be a music club or watering hole that would showcase local talent.
I stopped by Mr. Lucky's, the bar where the Jackson Five performed when they first formed. It was shuttered and appeared to have bullet holes through the front door and part of the roof had collapsed into the front of the former bar.
It is clear that Gary, Indiana has seen better days but the people that remember its glory days are still there and remember what it used to be.
LAPD chief: "You're better off staying home"
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/07/07/intv.bratton.art.jpg caption="Chief William Bratton says non-ticket holders won't get within several blocks of the area."]
Later this morning, members of Michael Jackson’s family and their closest friends will be saying their final good-byes at a private service at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles. Then they will be heading to the Staples Center for the public farewell. Thousands are expected to show up with or without a ticket. Crowd control is a concern for the LAPD.
Chief of the Los Angeles police department, William Bratton spoke with CNN’s Kiran Chetry Tuesday
Kiran Chetry: You've been chief here since 2002. You guys have had to prepare for many huge events. How does this rate today as you guys prepare for what could be hundreds of thousands coming out to try to get close to this memorial service?
Chief William Bratton: This is probably the largest event we've planned for since the 1984 Olympics in terms for a planned event. We have no idea how many people are going to show up here other than those who have the tickets inside the event inside of Staples. So we've ramped up pretty significantly and we'll ramp down significantly if we don't get the crowds anticipated.
Chetry: The interesting thing is this was put together meticulously given the short time frame. If you don't have one of these bracelets that we’re all talking about you can't get here. In this situation, you have to close off the areas around here to make sure but it’s up in the air as to whether or not people will decide to come out here anyway. What are the biggest concerns if indeed huge crowds do congregate outside of this area?
Chief Bratton: We have a number of exits off the freeway that run adjacent to the Staples Center that were closed down by the California highway patrol. We have closed a multi-block perimeter around this area that you cannot get in without credentials of some sort. We have no idea how many people might plan to come down here just to be in the area. They're better off staying at home. Then you'll be able to see the event itself. If you're down here, there’s not going to be much to see. You won't get within several blocks of the area.
Chetry: You are the police chief of the second largest city so I imagine not much surprises you in terms of what you've seen. Was the huge outpouring of adoration and people who want to come out here for Michael Jackson surprising?
Jackson remembered: 1958-2009
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/07/07/mj.performing.singing.art.jpg caption="(Getty Images/AFP/Thierry Salliou )Michael Jackson performs during his first date in Great Britain at Wembley Stadium on July 30, 1992."]
He was lauded and ridiculed. He broke down barriers and built them around himself. He soared to heights unimaginable with his music, and he made the ignominious front page of gutter tabloids worldwide.
For Michael Jackson, the spotlight was always present, and the rest of the world followed.
Even his passing has played out in the spotlight: Thousands are expected to swamp Los Angeles, California, to mourn him today at the Staples Center.
Jackson fans flock to L.A. for memorial
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/07/07/staples.long.line.art.jpg caption="(Getty Images) Fans wait to sign a large banner in memory of pop star Michael Jackson at Staples Center on July 5, 2009 in Los Angeles, California."]
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) - They poured in to Los Angeles from places far-flung, an army of Michael Jackson fans hoping to collectively mourn their idol in a massive ceremony at the Staples Center downtown Tuesday.
Police put up concrete barriers around the center, allowing only fans with tickets to the star-studded event to enter - beginning at 6 a.m. (9 a.m. ET).
Parking lots in the area raised their prices, some as high as $30. Airports in Southern California saw a spike in bookings. And several movie theaters in the area announced special screenings of the event, which will also be carried live by some television networks and Web sites.
"I guess the crowd estimate is the $64,000 question that everybody is wondering about, and we are as well," Jim McDonnell, assistant police chief for Los Angeles, said Monday.
"I anticipate the crowd here will be well-behaved. It will be a crowd that gathers for the right reasons and keeps the reason they're there in mind."
Police would not say what kind of security measures they have put in place. The cash-strapped city has said it will foot the bill for law enforcement.
Until the last minute, the Jackson family remained tight-lipped about where the singer will be buried, but signs pointed to Hollywood Hills Forest Lawn cemetery.
Several carloads of people, Michael Jackson's sister La Toya among them, came and went from the heavily secured cemetery after sunset Monday. But it was not immediately clear whether they were there for a private viewing.
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