Word: jacksonism
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What kind of charges might physicians implicated in Jackson's death face? "The most serious charge that they might be able to do would be involuntary manslaughter, which is an unintentional killing with criminal negligence," says Jean Rosenbluth, a clinical associate professor at USC Law and former federal prosecutor. "Now, there can be criminally negligent homicide if there is such gross recklessness. Theoretically, I suppose you could file some sort of second-degree murder charge, but it's hard for me to imagine that they will be able to show that kind of recklessness. But none of us know...
...pictures of the life and times of Michael Jackson on LIFE.com...
Lesser charges could be filed against doctors who may have overprescribed medication to Jackson or used aliases to do so, which seems to have been the practice of some medical professionals in the past. Documentation and photographs from a police raid of Jackson's Neverland Ranch after he was charged with child molestation show an array of drugs, some with the names of Jackson employees. (See pictures of a young Michael Jackson...
Attorney Brian Oxman, who helped represent Jackson during the molestation trial, says dozens of drug vials, including Zoloft, Percocet, Vicodin and Demerol, were found at the time. Oxman told TIME: "Instead of pursuing the evidence which was staring them right in the face really - overprescription by doctors, overprescription by employees who were providing him with their drugs - instead of pursuing that which was an obvious, easily proved case they went after the molestation...
Some of the drugs, like Demerol, Percocet and Vicodin, which Jackson may have continued to abuse, are covered by the Federal Controlled Substances Act - and their misuse can carry criminal penalties of up to 40 years in prison, says Rosenbluth. However, she cautions that sentencing is determined by many factors, such as the amount of the drug, whether the crime was a first offense and whether the administration of such drugs led to death. "Certainly the penalties are more severe if death occurred. Generally people who are first-time offenders though don't get anywhere near the statutory maximum," says...