Jackson family welcomes homicide ruling

The family of Michael Jackson said it looked forward to justice being served following a ruling of homicide in the singer's death.

The Los Angeles County Coroner said the King of Pop's death was the result of "acute propofol intoxication" in a move that could lead to criminal charges being made against his personal physician, Dr Conrad Murray, who is known to have administered the powerful sedative.

Dr Murray's lawyer responded to the ruling by claiming that the timing of the release smacked of police "gamesmanship" adding that he would not comment on the findings until the release of a full toxicology report.

According to the coroner's report, the main cause of death was an overdose of the the anaesthetic propofol.

The effect of the psychoactive drug benzodiazepine also contributed to Jackson's demise, it stated.

Alongside propofol and the benzodiazepine lorazepam, investigators found a cocktail of other drugs including diazepam and ephedrine in the singer's system.

The findings follow revelations in documents released earlier this week that Dr Murray administered several drugs to Jackson to help him sleep in the days and hours leading up to his death.

These included propofol, which he administered via an intravenous line.

Dr Murray told officers that during the morning of Jackson's death, he tried to induce sleep without the use of propofol.

But after giving the singer a cocktail of other drugs, he turned to propofol following persistent requests from Jackson himself.

The last time Dr Murray administered the medication was 10.40am on June 25 - just hours before Jackson's heart stopped.

Court reports suggested the physician left Jackson's side soon after giving him the drug, claims he has since denied.

The coroner's ruling raises the possibility that criminal charges will be made in relation to the case

Under US law, homicide could refer to murder or negligent or reckless manslaughter.

In a brief statement released last night, the Jackson family commended the actions of the coroner, the Los Angeles Police Department and other law enforcement agencies

It added that the family "looks forward to the day that justice can be served".

In his response, Dr Murray's lawyer Ed Chernoff said the official verdict was nothing new given "leaks out of the coroner's office".

He added: "One has to wonder why the coroner felt compelled to release anything at all if the police investigation is not yet complete.

"In any case, this has all the earmarks of police gamesmanship, and we will not be responding until we get a full autopsy report, including the entire list of drugs found in Mr Jackson, their quantities, and all other data that would allow independent medical experts to analyse and interpret."

The full results of toxicology tests have been withheld on the request of law enforcement agencies, the coroner said.

Dr Murray, who was at Jackson's side when he died, has increasingly become the focus of the police investigation into Jackson's death.

To date, two offices and a pharmacy connected to Dr Murray have been searched by police, as has his home.

Earlier this month officials from the Drug Enforcement Administration walked away from a raided Las Vegas pharmacy with evidence that showed Jackson's personal physician purchased propofol.

In the two months since the singer's death, Dr Murray has been interviewed twice by officers involved in the case.

The doctor has not been named as an official suspect, but court records have identified the 51-year-old physician as the subject of a manslaughter investigation.