Jurors set to get roadmap of Jackson civil trial

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The most complete account of Michael Jackson's final months is about to unfold in a cramped Los Angeles courtroom nearly four years after the pop superstar's death.

Lawyers for Jackson's mother will attempt to convince a jury that the company promoting the pop superstar's 2009 comeback concerts is responsible for his untimely death. The attorneys will try to prove that AEG Live hired and controlled the doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter over Jackson's demise.

AEG Live denies any wrongdoing and contests that they hired the physician who for months was giving Jackson doses of a powerful anesthetic in the singer's bedroom to help him sleep.

Opening statements on Monday will provide a roadmap for a case that will delve into Jackson's addiction struggles and issues previously unexplored in court. Many of those in the singer's orbit — family, famous friends, doctors and his teenage children — may testify during the months-long trial.

Some of the stars listed on the witness list include Quincy Jones, Diana Ross, Lou Ferrigno and Spike Lee. Both of Jackson's ex-wives, Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe, are also listed as potential witnesses.

Katherine Jackson sued in September 2010, claiming AEG failed to properly investigate her son's doctor, Conrad Murray. All but one of her claims has been dismissed, but millions and possibly billions of dollars are at stake. The trial pits the family of a global superstar against AEG Live, a private company that as part of the Anschutz Entertainment Group has helped spark the revitalization of downtown Los Angeles with its venue, the Staples Center.

Unlike the 2011 trial that ended with Murray's conviction, the civil trial will explore the troubled finances of both men — a situation that Katherine Jackson's attorneys say created a conflict of interest for Murray that AEG should have been aware of.

The Houston-based cardiologist was deeply in debt when he agreed to serve as Jackson's personal doctor for a series of 50 concerts in London dubbed "This Is It." The doctor had liens and owed back child support when he began working with Jackson, expecting a $150,000 a month salary. Jackson died of acute propofol intoxication before the contract was fully signed.

The trial is expected to include detailed testimony about other doctors' treatment of Jackson, a subject that was largely off-limits in the criminal case. Unlike Murray's trial, which was broadcast live, the civil case will play out without cameras in a courtroom with only 45 public seats.

AEG denies they hired Murray, and have contended he should be considered an independent contractor, a designation many hospitals deem surgeons and other physicians.

Katherine Jackson's attorneys, Brian Panish and Kevin Boyle, have repeatedly cited emails sent by top AEG executives referencing Murray's pay and his obligations to get Jackson to perform.

Marvin S. Putnam, an attorney for AEG who was not available to comment, has said the company could not have foreseen the circumstances that led to Murray's administration of propofol to Jackson as a sleep aide.

AEG has said in court filings that Jackson's family is seeking $40 billion in damages, but Panish denies that's the figure he's seeking.

"We've never asked for $40 billion," he said. "The jury is going to decide what the loss is."

The high figure, Panish said, is the company's attempt to "prejudice everybody against the Jacksons." He says the case isn't about money.

"It's about getting the truth," he said. "We'd like to get out all the evidence. The evidence is going to speak for itself that AEG had a lot of involvement and they completely deny responsibility."

Jackson's three children, Prince, Paris and Blanket are also listed as plaintiffs on the case.

Asked whether he and the Jacksons are concerned about the image of the "Thriller" singer that will emerge in court, Panish said the trial will show a different side of the superstar. "Mrs. Jackson and her grandchildren suffered a tremendous loss and AEG has never recognized that and continues to deny responsibility," he said. "The other side of the story hasn't been told."

A jury of six men and six women has been selected to decide the case.

Monday's remarks by Panish and Putnam will provide the jurors' their first true insight into the evidence they will likely hear, and once again pull back the veil of Michael Jackson's private life.

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Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

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Michael Jackson wrongful death trial set to get underway Monday

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The civil trial over the death of Michael Jackson is set to get formally underway next week after jury selection was completed on Tuesday in the $40 billion case that pits the pop star's mother against concert promoters AEG Live.

Six alternate jurors were chosen on Tuesday following the selection a day earlier of a jury of six men and six women for what is expected to be an emotional three-month trial.

The conclusion of the month-long search for a jury set the stage for opening statements to begin in Los Angeles Superior Court on Monday.

Jackson's 82-year-old mother, Katherine, is suing AEG Live, the promoters of his never-realized series of 2009 London comeback concerts, for the wrongful death of her son.

The lawsuit alleges AEG Live was negligent in hiring Dr. Conrad Murray to care for the singer while he rehearsed for a series of 50 shows.

AEG Live contends that it did not hire or supervise Murray and that Jackson was addicted to prescription drugs for years before he agreed to do the "This Is It" London concerts.

The concert promoters also argue that they could not have foreseen that Murray, who was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death, posed a danger to the singer.

Jackson, 50, died in Los Angeles on June 25, 2009, from a lethal dose of the surgical anesthetic propofol that Murray was administering for sleep problems. Murray, who is not being sued, formally appealed against his criminal conviction on Monday.

Potential witnesses in the civil trial include Jackson's mother, his two oldest children, Prince, 16, and Paris, 15, as well as Murray, singers Prince and Diana Ross, and Jackson's ex-wives, Lisa Marie Presley and Debbie Rowe.

Katherine Jackson and her son's three children are seeking some $40 billion in damages from privately held AEG Live for loss of the singer's earnings and other damages. The final amount will be determined by the jury should it hold AEG Live negligent.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Eric Beech)

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Alternate jurors selected in Michael Jackson case

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Six alternate jurors have been selected for a civil trial over Michael Jackson's death, setting the stage for opening statements next week.

The entire panel was sent home after the alternates were chosen on Tuesday.

The four men and two women alternates were selected after attorneys for Jackson's mother and concert giant AEG Live questioned them for several hours.

On Monday, the jury of six men and six women was chosen.

Jackson's mother filed the wrongful death suit against AEG, claiming it was responsible for hiring the doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the singer's June 2009 death.

The case may last for more than three months.

Dozens of people who weren't chosen to hear the case cheered after being dismissed.

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Judge: No more excuses for would-be Jackson jurors

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Los Angeles jury selection in Jackson case resumes

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The pool of potential Los Angeles jurors to hear a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Michael Jackson's mother has grown to 35.

The group has been given a 24-page questionnaire assessing their knowledge and opinions on Jackson, his family and concert giant AEG Live.

Katherine Jackson is suing AEG claiming the company failed to properly investigate the doctor convicted of involuntary manslaughter for her son's June 2009 death.

More than 180 potential jurors have been screened, but less than three dozen have enough time to serve on the trial, which may last three months.

Jury selection resumes Thursday afternoon.

AEG has denied wrongdoing and says it never hired former physician Conrad Murray to care for Jackson.

Jackson's family is seeking $40 billion, although jurors would have to determine any damages.

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Michael Jackson civil case jury selection begins

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jury selection has begun in a lawsuit that Michael Jackson's mother has filed against the promoter of his planned comeback concerts.

Potential jurors began filling out questionnaires on Tuesday in advance of the trial, which may last up to three months.

The case centers on Katherine Jackson's allegations that concert giant AEG Live failed to properly investigate the physician who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter after the singer's 2009 death.

Up to 70 prospective jurors are expected to undergo initial screening Tuesday.

In addition to being able to serve for the length of the trial, jurors will be asked about their knowledge of the case and the pop superstar's life.

AEG has denied wrongdoing.

Jackson's family is seeking $40 billion, but jurors will determine any damage amounts awarded.

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Anti-gun Democrat shoo-in to replace Jackson Jr.

CHICAGO (AP) — Former Illinois legislator Robin Kelly captured the Democratic nomination Tuesday in the race to replace disgraced ex-U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., after a truncated campaign season where she got a boost from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's super PAC.

The nomination all but assures that Kelly will sail through the April 9 general election and head to Washington, because the Chicago-area district is overwhelmingly Democratic.

From a crowded field of Democratic contenders, Kelly emerged early as a leader on gun-control issues — a central theme during the race — which helped her win support from Bloomberg's super PAC, Independence USA. It poured more than $2 million into the race by airing anti-gun ads in her favor and against another Democratic front runner, former U.S. Rep. Debbie Halvorson, who unlike Kelly is against banning assault weapons.

"We worked really, really hard," the former state representative from Matteson, a south Chicago suburb, told The Associated Press. "We were on the right side of the issue and our message resonated."

Kelly also defended the financial support from Bloomberg, saying: "No one complains when the NRA was spending big money." In her victory speech she vowed to fight for gun control until "gun violence is no longer a nightly feature on the evening news."

Halvorson conceded Tuesday evening, saying the outside money certainly played a role.

"It shows, unfortunately, you can't go up against that big money. ...That's the problem with super PACs," Halvorson, who unsuccessfully challenged Jackson in a primary last year, told the AP. "There is nothing I could have done differently."

After casting her ballot earlier in the day, in the snowy weather that pelted the region Tuesday, Halvorson had warned that if the ads were successful, Bloomberg would try to "buy seats" across the country.

Another Democratic front runner, Chicago Alderman Anthony Beale, also took issue with the ads, saying people were "extremely upset" that someone from New York was trying to tell people in Illinois how to vote.

"That's what money gets you," he told the AP after conceding late Tuesday. "We earned every vote."

Bloomberg called Kelly's win an important victory for "common sense leadership" on gun violence, saying in a statement that voters nationwide are demanding change from their leaders. His PAC, launched weeks before the November election, has spent more than $12 million backing candidates nationwide.

Meanwhile, the race among the lesser known Republican candidates was too close to call two hours after the polls closed.

Guns were a leading issue at candidate forums and email blasts from candidates, even as Jackson's legal saga played out in court and frustrated voters who've seen two other congressmen in the office leave under an ethical or legal cloud.

Jackson resigned in November, after a months-long medical leave for treatment of bipolar disorder and other issues, then pleaded guilty earlier this month to charges that accused him of misspending $750,000 in campaign money on lavish personal items, including a Rolex watch and fur coats.

Jackson's exit created a rare opening in a district where he was first elected in 1995. The primary featured 14 Democrats, including former U.S. Rep. Mel Reynolds, who held the seat in the 1990s but served prison time after being convicted of fraud and for having sex with an underage campaign volunteer. There were four Republicans on the ballot.

Voters heading to the polls Tuesday indicated that guns, ethics and economic woes were on their minds. Attention to the gun-control debate came as Chicago experienced a spike in homicides last year and was reignited in the wake of the school shooting in Connecticut.

Mary Jo Higgins of south suburban Steger said she voted for Halvorson because the former congresswoman is "the only Democrat who believes in the Second Amendment."

But Country Club Hills minister Rosemary Gage said she voted for former state Rep. Robin Kelly because Kelly is "standing with (President Barack Obama) and trying to get rid of guns."

"It's really bad in Chicago and across the country," Gage said. "Too many children have died."

The issue of ethics was also on the minds of voters, particularly as Jackson's legal saga has been playing out in federal court. David Berchem, a retired painter, said he voted for Halvorson because he believes she would represent all residents of the district and was "as honest a person as you can find."

Beale voted at a school in Chicago, while Kelly voted early.

Beale touted his record as a job creator for the South Side ward he represents in Chicago's City Council. That's the reason Juanita Williams, who went to school with Beale, voted for him Tuesday, saying he helped bring a Wal-Mart to the area. The 47-year-old assistant teacher also said Beale has regularly provided school supplies and Christmas gifts to needy students.

Election officials in the three counties making up the district reported few problems at the polls, even though voters and poll workers had to contend with a blustery mix of snow and sleet. Chicago's Department of Streets and Sanitation deployed extra resources to keep polls accessible.

Turnout at the polls was low, with participating hovering near 10 percent in several areas of the district, according to early estimates. Election officials said the weather might have kept some voters on the fence at home.

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Associated Press writer Sara Burnett contributed to this report from Chicago.

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Sophia Tareen can be reached at http://twitter.com/sophiatareen.

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