Dr. Conrad Murray Verdict: Jackson Family Calls Guilty Verdict a 'Victory'
Relatives of international pop superstar Michael Jackson were overjoyed yesterday as a guilty verdict was delivered in the case of Dr. Conrad Murray, as were the thousands of fans that showed up outside of the courthouse Monday afternoon to show support for the late singer.
"Wonderful, absolutely justice was served, Michael was watching over us," LaToya Jackson said to Reuters as she made her way out of the courthouse.
"Michael I love you and I will continue to fight until ALL are brought to justice!" she later tweeted.
Murray, who was hired as Jackson's personal physician to oversee his care during what was to be his last world tour, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and faces up to four years in prison, in addition to a revocation of his medical license.
The doctor allegedly injected Jackson with 100mg of Propofol, four times the amount that a person may ingest safely, in order to help the pop star sleep. The prosecution contended that not only was Conrad wrong to administer the anesthetic drug, which is only meant to be used in a hospital setting, but also that he is responsible for Jackson's death because he was not properly monitoring the star's condition and delayed making a 911 call for 20 minutes after realizing Jackson was not breathing.
Jermaine Jackson tweeted, "Strong victory in court! Thank you all for your love and support. Step one has been accomplished! We are ready for next!!"
The family also briefly commented on the verdict to HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell as they left the courthouse.
"Thank you so much," said sister Rebbie Jackson. "I'm just happy it's over with. Nothing will bring him back, but I'm happy he was found guilty."
Latoya said, "Thank you America. Thank you all the fans. Prosecution team, you were great. Everyone was wonderful...Michael loves everyone in the court here, and he was in the courtroom, and that is why justice was served."
