Defense attorneys for Dr. Conrad Murray, the physician accused of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson, argued that the singer was responsible for his own death in opening statements at Murray's trial in Los Angeles yesterday.

Murray's lawyer, Ed Chernoff, told jurors that the singer took a lethal dosage of the powerful anesthetic Propofol in an attempt to get some sleep after Murray left him alone, and that there was nothing the doctor could have done to stop him. According to the defense, Jackson was desperate to get back into shape for his comeback concerts, and this led to self-destructive decisions that resulted in his death in 2009.

Photos: Michael Jackson Remembered
In yesterday's opening statements, prosecutor David Walgreen argued that Murray was a reckless and inept physician, and showed images of the singer's corpse on a hospital gurney.

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