Jackson Doctor’s Defense Challenges Key Expert

Attorney Ed Chernoff cross-examined Dr. Steven Shafer, who previously testified that the only plausible explanation for the death was that Jackson had been hooked up to an IV drip of the anesthetic propofol then left alone by Dr. Conrad Murray.

“That’s a bold claim, isn’t it,” Chernoff asked.

“It’s an honest statement,” Shafer replied.

Chernoff also questioned the Columbia University researcher and professor about his IV demonstration for jurors on Thursday.

The defense attorney suggested Shafer had drawn conclusions that weren’t necessarily supported by the evidence. Chernoff said the type of IV line that Shafer used in the demonstration was never found at Jackson’s house.

Murray has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter. He could face up to four years behind bars and the loss of his medical license if convicted.

Shafer was expected to be the last witness called by the prosecution. After Shafer’s testimony ends, defense attorneys will begin presenting their case.

Shafer, an expert on propofol, told jurors Thursday that his explanation was supported by items found in Jackson’s bedroom, the singer’s autopsy results and Murray’s lengthy statement to police.

Using charts and his own experience, Shafer said Jackson likely stopped breathing because of the propofol and without someone to clear his airway. The propofol would have kept dripping into the IV tube, with gravity carrying it into the singer’s body, he said.

Shafer also rejected any theory that Jackson could have given himself the fatal dose of the anesthetic or sedatives.

In a development outside the presence of jurors, Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor set a Nov. 16 hearing to determine whether he should find a key defense expert, Dr. Paul White, in contempt for talking to a reporter on Thursday in violation of a gag order.

E! Entertainment reported Thursday on its website that White called the prosecutor a “scumbag” and spoke about Shafer.

White said in court that he didn’t recall making the statement.

He told Pastor that he had talked to Deputy District Attorney David Walgren after the prosecutor pulled a tab from the side of a bottle of propofol that was recovered at Jackson’s mansion.

He said he told Walgren it was “inappropriate to tamper with evidence found at the scene.”

White and Shafer are colleagues at Columbia University and have known each other for nearly 30 years.

Pastor previously ordered Chernoff’s partner, Matt Alford, to appear at a contempt hearing over comments made during a network TV interview.