Conrad Murray likely won't testify

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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Dr. Conrad Murray's lawyers declined to say if he would take the stand in the defense phase of his manslaughter trial in Los Angeles.

Murray, Michael Jackson's onetime personal physician, is accused of contributing to the singer's death from an overdose of a powerful anesthetic.

The defense begins its case next week, and legal analysts say they doubt Murray will testify, particularly after the jury had just heard detailed technical testimony from the prosecution's experts.

"There is just so much out there now, from his statement and these experts, and for him to get up there, I just think the prosecution would have a field day," said J. Christopher Smith, a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney who has been following the case.

The Times said this week's testimony painted a picture of Murray behaving negligently and possibly misleading police investigators about the events surrounding Jackson's sudden death in 2009.

"They've got the defense in a trick bag," Smith added. "Whichever way they go, it seems like the prosecution is going to have a comeback."

A former member of Murray's legal team, Long Beach attorney Joseph Low, told the newspaper the evidence of Murray's use of propofol, which is meant to knock out surgical patients, was not as reckless as the prosecution claimed.

"Just because he used propofol differently than its original use doesn't make it … manslaughter," Low said.