LOS ANGELES: A judge has rejected a bid by Michael Jackson’s mother for a new trial in her lawsuit claiming the promoter of her son’s ill-fated comeback concerts was negligent in his death.
Superior court Judge Yvette Palazuelos ruled on Monday that jurors were given proper instructions and there were no errors in her trial rulings that would warrant a retrial.
A jury decided in October that AEG Live was not liable for Jackson’s June 2009 death despite hiring the doctor who was convicted of giving the superstar an overdose of a powerful anaesthetic.
Katherine Jackson’s lawyers argued that jurors were given an improper verdict form that was contrary to state law and didn’t allow them to consider all the issues in the case after five months of testimony last year.
AEG’s lawyers argued that there was no mistake in the verdict form and the motion for a new trial should be denied. Attorneys for the Jackson family matriarch say they will appeal to a higher state court.
Jurors decided the case on a question about whether evidence showed former cardiologist Conrad Murray was unfit or incompetent to serve as Jackson’s physician while he prepared for a series of 50 concerts at London’s O2 Arena.
The Guardian
