Conrad Murray Trial Recap: Defense Expert Admits To Giving Propofol To 'Animals'
May 28 2018, Updated 10:10 a.m. ET
By Jen Heger - RadarOnline.com Legal Editor
Dr. Paul White, a defense expert in the Michael Jackson death trial, admitted in court on Thursday to giving Propofol orally to 'animals', RadarOnline.com is reporting.
Dr. Conrad Murray has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the King of Pop's death.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Dr. Conrad Murray's defense team commissioned a study on Beagle dogs to determine how much Propofol would have to be orally ingested to cause Michael Jackson's death. The defense was forced to abandon that theory after tests proved it would be impossible for someone to die from orally ingesting Propofol.
Dr. Murray's lawyer, Michael Flanagan asked Dr. White what tests he did in this case. "We performed tests on animals. We did this study, and didn't publish the results. The results were negative, and there was no effect....None of the animals were harmed by putting Propofol in their stomachs," Dr. White asserted. Flanagan never specified which animals were tested, but RadarOnline.com has confirmed the tests were done on Beagle dogs.
PETA (the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals organization), filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Monday alleging "cruel drug toxicity tests on beagles commissioned by the defense team of Dr. Conrad Murray, the physician now on trial for his alleged role in Michael Jackson's death.
“PETA asserts that if attorneys from Flanagan, Unger, Grover & McCool did commission the tests for the drug propofol - the toxic effects of which have been extensively studied in dogs and humans - those tests were likely conducted in violation of the federal Animal Welfare Act's prohibition against tests on animals that duplicate previous experiments. PETA has filed a complaint with the State Bar of California as well,"the organization said in their complaint.
Read PETA's Letter To The USDA
The animal rights organization is also requesting that the California State Bar investigate "how and why these cruel and archaic tests on beagles were allowed and, should violations of the law be found, to punish those responsible."
Read PETA's Complaint To The California Bar
Dr. Paul White is expected to wrap up his testimony on Friday and closing arguments could be heard as early as Monday. If convicted of involuntary manslaughter, Dr. Murray could face up to four years in state prison.
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