Conrad Murray Trial

Rest in peace, Michael Jackson.

UPDATE 8:00 PM PT: The Jackson family has still not arrived ... the service was scheduled to begin an hour ago. Some of the guests arrived around 6:30.

UPDATE: Lisa Marie Presley -- Michael's ex-wife -- just arrived. Corey Feldman is there too.

The star-studded crowd is arriving at Michael Jackson's funeral -- Liz Taylor, Barry Bonds, Macaulay Culkin, Mila Kunis, Chris Tucker, Al Sharpton and more...

Meanwhile, the family has still not left their Encino compound.

UPDATE -- 7:30 -- the cops are getting into position ... it looks like they might finally leave the house... we're holding our breath...

UPDATE: -- 7:19 -- The Jackson family is making Liz Taylor wait. Liz Taylor!!! She showed up on time ... and now she has to sit there waiting ... stop making Liz Taylor wait!!!!

UPDATE: -- 7:13 -- the funeral was supposed to begin 13 minutes ago, and the Jackson family has not left the damn house yet. Barry Bonds doesn't like to wait.....

UPDATE: -- 6:41 -- a bunch of people keep walking around trying to look important .. they keep opening and closing the gate ... we have no idea why they haven't left yet ... it takes more than 20 mins to get from Encino to Glendale ...even with a police escort.

UPDATE: -- 6:31 -- The gate is closed.... they're going to be late...

UPDATE -- 6:30 -- THE GATE IS OPEN!!

UPDATE: The Phantoms are all inside the gate, getting ready to head towards the cemetery.

UPDATE: THE PHANTOMS ARE ON THEIR WAY!!!!!!!

UPDATE: The Phantoms are parked at a hub a few miles from the house. They will be leaving shortly.

German broadcaster RTL says they created the video and posted it with the purpose of showing "how easily users can be manipulated on the internet with hoax videos."

The video wasn't even shot in L.A. -- but Cologne, Germany.

The L.A. County Coroner has just officially announced the cause of Michael Jackson's death -- Acute Propofol intoxication.

The report says "other conditions contributing to death: Benzodiazepine effect." Benzodiazepines are a group of drugs (see below) used to treat anxiety and insomnia.

The manner of death is ruled: "HOMICIDE."

The Coroner did not release the full autopsy report -- just a press notice. It goes on:

The drugs PROPOFOL and LORAZEPAM (Ativan) were found to be the primary drugs responsible for Mr. Jackson's death.

Other drugs detected were: Midazolam (Versed), Diazepam (Valium), Lidocaine (topical anesthetic) and Ephedrine (used to treat hypotension associated with anesthesia).

The final Coroner's report, including the toxicology report, will remain on security hold, per the LAPD.

The Jackson family just released a statement:

"The Jackson family again wishes to commend the actions of the Coroner, the LAPD and other law enforcement agencies, and looks forward to the day that justice can be served."

The L.A. County Coroner will release Michael Jackson's cause of death in the next hour or so.

We're told the Coroner will not release the autopsy report, but we will learn what the Coroner believes killed Michael Jackson ... and what conclusions the Coroner has drawn from the death -- i.e., homicide, death at the hands of another.

Come back to the site and you'll see it when it breaks.

UPDATE: A source connected with the case tells TMZ the "tar heroin" was tested -- and the results showed it was not heroin of any kind. This is not reflected in the warrant.

A search warrant affidavit just released from the search of Michael Jackson's home says the Jackson family notified L.A. County Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter that they found "tar heroin in a bag" in Jackson's bedroom. Chief Winter notified LAPD detectives of the found evidence.

The search also turned up two baggies of "marijuana."

Cops also found Benoquin in the master bathroom. Benoquin is a bleaching cream.

The affidavit also says surveillance cameras at Jackson's home captured Dr. Conrad Murray arriving at 1:00 AM the day Jackson died.

As for what else was found during the search -- an empty bottle of Lorazepam, an empty bottle of Diazepam, a baggy with the medical label with the name Dr. Conrad Murray, 2 cigarette packs, 1 cigarette paper, 4 pill bottles and 1 shaving case.

Detective Orlando Martinez wrote, "Conversations with family members lead me to believe that there may be additional medications and/or narcotics at the location as well as the necessity to confiscate these items for the safety of the minor children."

Story developing...

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ the L.A. County Coroner cannot pinpoint the time of Michael Jackson's death ... but paramedics say when they arrived they believed he was dead for at least an hour and maybe longer.

Dr. Conrad Murray's statement to LAPD detectives lays out a timeline in which Dr. Murray administered Propofol at 10:40 AM and then ten minutes later (10:50) he walked out of the room, went to the bathroom and returned two minutes later (10:52) to find Jackson was not breathing. He did not have anyone call 911 until 12:21 PM ... approximately an hour-and-a-half later.

Sources say cops are suspicious of Dr. Murray's account. They say when Dr. Murray was interviewed by them two days after Jackson died -- his lawyer by his side -- the doctor's account seemed "scripted."

So when did Jackson really die? Rigor mortis typically doesn't set in for at least 3 hours, and often longer. If rigor mortis has not set in, the only way to approximate time of death is by body temperature. Once a person dies, their temperature eventually rises or falls to the temperature of the environment. For example, if Jackson were in a 70 degree room, his body temp would drop to 70. The body temperature typically drops a degree to a degree and a half per hour, but it's dependent on the ambient temperature.

Here's the problem -- when paramedics arrived the room was sweltering. So Jackson's body temperature could register in the 90 degree range, even if he were dead for a long time. But we're told paramedics did not get a read on his body temp because they were busy performing CPR.

Bottom line -- it's possible Jackson could have been dead much longer than Dr. Murray said. There's no scientific way of knowing.

According to the LiveLeak post: "I checked the license plate number and it looks like the King of Pop is jumping out of the same van, his dead body has been in. I got the original video tape from a trustworthy source. I know him for years. And I am sure it´s real and Michael is alive."

So ...

We got hold of the affidavit for the search warrant that allowed the DEA to raid Mickey Fine Pharmacy in Beverly Hills -- the pharmacy Dr. Klein often used to fill prescriptions for Michael Jackson, often using aliases.

According to the affidavit, records show Dr. Klein self-prescribed 27 times from March, 2006 through May, 2009. The prescriptions include "the medications hydrocodone (Vicodin), modafinil (Provigil), diazepam (Valium), and injectable midazolam (Versed). The prescriptions were filled at Mickey Fine Pharmacy in Beverly Hills.

According to California law, "No person shall prescribe, administer, or furnish a controlled substance for himself."

It is not known if Dr. Klein used the prescriptions for himself or possibly for Michael Jackson. We do know Dr. Klein often prescribed to Jackson using various aliases.

Interestingly, the affidavit states Dr. Klein's lawyer told the DEA that his client "has never self-prescribed."

TMZ has learned Michael Jackson's former manager Ron Weisner has been asked by Jermaine and Katherine Jackson to produce "Michael Jackson: The Tribute" in Vienna Austria on September 26.

Weisner tells TMZ he expects 100,000 people to attend. It will become a TV show. Weisner says he's reached out to some of the biggest stars in the world to perform ... no word yet on who's doing it.

It looked like the show wasn't happening because of a split in the Jackson family, but Weisner says Katherine is now on board and the show will go on.

Katherine released a statement about the tribute show, CLICK HERE to read it.

Several witnesses expected to take the stand today as lawyers for Michael Jackson's estate -- as well as lawyers for Katherine Jackson and Michael's kids -- give testimony about the proposed deal with AEG about a Jackson memorabilia tour.

***KEEP REFRESHING FOR THE LATEST***

UPDATE 7:21 PM ET -- The petition has been approved!!! The AEG deal is done, the memorabilia tour will happen. Finally. The three-city tour could earn as much as $6 million for the estate.

UPDATE 7:20 PM ET -- An attorney for Katherine wants more protections in the agreement to protect the estate and Michael's legacy.

UPDATE 7:14 PM ET -- The attorney for Michael's kids is in favor of the AEG deal.

UPDATE 7:07 PM ET -- And we're back!

UPDATE 5:50 PM ET -- The court has been closed again as one of the senior lawyers for AEG has taken the stand. Outside of court, Taj told reporters the family is more interested in protecting Michael's legacy than in making money. He also told Taj that he planned to do film after the London tour.

An official from the L.A. County Coroner's office has just returned to Dr. Arnold Klein's office in Beverly Hills to retrieve more files in the Michael Jackson case.

Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter just told our photog he was there for more MJ medical files.

UPDATE: Winter has left, but wouldn't comment on whether or not anything was taken from Klein's office.

Dr. Klein's lawyer briefly addressed the press after Winter left, saying a subpoena was served but Winter wasn't looking for documents -- instead he wanted more information about docs the coroner's office had already seized. Dr. Klein's lawyer said they cooperated fully with Winter's requests.

The video was shot last Wednesday in Houston and arranged by the publicist for Dr. Murray's lawyer. Yes, the publicist for Dr. Murray's lawyer. Welcome to Houston.

One of the attorneys for Michael Jackson's mother says the idea of filing a wrongful death lawsuit has "been floated" -- and the target would be Dr. Conrad Murray.

Burt Levitch said that Katherine Jackson is considering filing the suit because of the circumstances surrounding his death.

Murray has been the focus of an investigation into Jackson's death -- mainly whether he improperly administered the drug Propofol that is believed to be the cause of death.

As we first reported, paramedics found Jackson in Dr. Murray's room. The doctor had administered Propofol to Jackson while Michael was laid out on the bed.

When EMT workers arrived -- and subsequently when police came on scene -- there was no evidence that the doctor had been staying in the room. There was no luggage, no clothes of Dr. Murray's ... no signs he had been staying there.

Authorities believe Dr. Murray generally showed up in the evenings to administer drugs and left during the day. We're told the doctor had administered Propofol to Jackson in the room numerous times. Essentially the bedroom became a home clinic for Jackson, with drugs -- including Propofol -- hidden in the closet area.

As for where Dr. Murray was staying, law enforcement sources say they have evidence he was living in Santa Monica -- approximately eight miles from Jackson's Holmby Hills home. Interestingly, Nicole Alvarez -- the woman who bore Dr. Murray's 7th child -- lives in a Santa Monica apartment.