Homicide ruled for Michael Jackson death

Aug 28, 2009, 20:21 GMT

The Los Angeles County Coroner on Friday ruled the June 25 death of Michael Jackson a homicide and said that the pop star died of \'acute intoxication\' by the anaesthetic propofol.EPA/JOSHUA GATES WEISBERG

Los Angeles - The Los Angeles County Coroner on Friday ruled the June 25 death of Michael Jackson a homicide and said that the pop star died of 'acute intoxication' by the anaesthetic propofol.

'The manner of death has been ruled homicide,' the coroner said in a statement. 'Cause of death was established as acute propofol intoxication.'

The coroner report said propofol and Lorazepam were found to be primarily responsible for Jackson's death, and other drugs detected in his system were midazolam, diazepam, lidocaine, and ephedrine.

The homicide finding refers to death caused by another person, but does not necessarily mean criminal charges. However Jackson's physician Dr Conrad Murray, who administered the drugs to help Jackson battle insomnia, has already been identified in police documents as the target of a manslaughter investigation.

A search warrant unsealed this week quoted Murray as telling investigators that he administered a series of injections of the drugs listed by the coroner Friday in the hours before his death.

Murray, who was hired to be Jackson's physician ahead of the singer's 50 date comeback engagement in London, has been a focus of suspicion since the immediate aftermath of Jackson's death, when he disappeared for several days as the family sought answers about the incident. Police impounded his car and questioned him several times, but have yet to file charges.

The coroner's report came just days before Jackson's burial on September 4 at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale.

The Jackson family has repeatedly maintained that his death was a homicide and welcomed the release of the report.

'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 family said in a statement.