Michael Jackson's Autopsy Report Imminent

Not only did the Drug Enforcement Agency, along with Houston Police and two members of the LAPD, conduct a raid on the Houston medical offices of Dr. Conrad Murray Wednesday morning, but Michael Jackson's medical records have been taken from other sources as well. Los Angeles County Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter has been a busy man the past couple weeks, picking up Michael Jackson's medical records from the offices of dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein, homeopathic nurse Cherilyn Lee, and anesthesiologist Dr. Randy Rosen. Winter has been gathering evidence to make a final determination on the cause of the death for the final autopsy report.

Dr. Arnold Klein and Dr. Conrad Murray have both indicated that they were being less than cooperative with the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office. In the four weeks since the death of Michael Jackson, the two doctors had not turned over all the medical records requested by the Coroner's office for the investigation into the King of Pop's death. The Coroner's Office was also waiting for the results of a toxicology screen to help in the autopsy report's determination of cause of death as well.

Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter obtained Michael Jackson's medical records from Arnold Klein last week. TMZ's sources believe that Winter became aware of Dr. Randy Rosen of the Spalding Pain Medical Clinic in Beverly Hills after going over Klein's records. Sources also indicate that Dr. Rosen is not directly involved, but that Dr. Arnold Klein performed procedures at the clinic, which Rosen founded, a few years ago. Rosen turned over the records willingly.

Along with the records of Klein and Rosen, Winter paid a visit to homeopathic nurse Cherilyn Lee, who was the first person to apprise investigators of the possible involvement of Propofol, the powerful sedative that is so strong that it is normally administered only in a hospital setting. According to CNN, Winter picked up her medical records involving Michael Jackson Wednesday in a scheduled meeting.

The raid on Dr. Conrad Murray's medical offices in Houston, which legal experts state was done under sealed warrant because the agents were looking for evidence that might point to manslaughter. Dr. Murray's lawyer released the statement: "The coroner wants to clear up the cause of death; we share that goal. Based on Dr. Murray's minute-by-minute and item-by-item description of Michael Jackson's last days, he should not be a target of criminal charges."

But part of the statement was more pertinent: "The search warrant authorized law enforcement to search for and seize items, including documents, they believed constituted evidence of the offense of manslaughter."

And Conrad Murray might be the target of criminal charges. Manslaughter takes on several forms in the state of California, but they all involve the unpremeditated unlawful act of killing another human being without malice. Although it is believed that Michael Jackson's death was not murder, there is a widely held belief that the singer died due to circumstances that could or should have been avoided. The raid on Dr. Conrad Murray's offices and the gathering of medical records at other locations points to possible charges of manslaughter.

It is unclear if Dr. Arnold Klein might also be considered for criminal charges as well. His association with Dr. Rosen's clinic could point to a Propofol connection as well.

Some sources have suggested that the L. A. County Coroner's Office has already received the toxicology results and, using them as a reasonable cause to search and seize, mounted the raid that was conducted on Dr. Conrad Murray's offices. Murray's lawyer stated that they were surprised that a raid was deemed necessary and that they were to have a meeting with the LAPD next week. Murray cancelled a meeting with the LAPD last week, one where the L. A. County Coroner's Office was to be represented. It is unknown why Murray cancelled.

The autopsy report is expected to show Michael Jackson's cause of death to be either caused by or at least facilitated by the drug Propofol. The final autopsy report is expected this week.

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Sources:

The Scoop
TMZ.com
CNN Television