Gregory D.

Lee

Read Greg's bio and previous columns here

August 28, 2009

Why DEA is Involved With Michael Jackson’s Homicide Investigation

As a retired Supervisory Special Agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, I have received a lot of media inquiries lately about the role DEA is playing in the much-publicized death investigation of the “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson.

Based on the questions I am receiving from media outlets such as Access Hollywood, the Associated Press, TV Guide Channel and the Today Show, I thought it would be appropriate to take some of the mystery out of the Jackson investigation and explain why DEA is involved.

A lot of questions have surfaced since the Los Angeles County Coroner ruled Jackson’s death a “homicide,” but don’t jump to conclusions. A homicide is defined as death at the hands of another. All murders are homicides, but not all homicides are murder. Murder is the intentional killing of another human being. Manslaughter is also a homicide but the perpetrator lacks the intent to kill. A jury may ultimately decide if Jackson’s personal physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, is guilty of this crime.

DEA is involved because, under federal law, all health professionals entitled to dispense, administer or prescribe drugs, and all pharmacies entitled to fill prescriptions must register with the DEA. Registrants must comply with a series of regulatory requirements relating to drug security, records accountability and adherence to standards.

DEA “Drug Diversion” cases frequently involve physicians who sell prescriptions to drug dealers and or abusers and pharmacists who falsify records and subsequently sell the drugs. According to DEA, in Diversion investigations, the largest problem involves the criminal activity of physicians and pharmacy personnel.

Although individual states license physicians, DEA assigns “DEA Numbers” to doctors and pharmacies, which allow them to prescribe and fill controlled substance prescriptions. To maintain the DEA number, practitioners and pharmacies may not prescribe or fill prescriptions outside accepted medical treatment principles.

The Los Angeles Police Department, DEA and the California Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement (BNE) are conducting collateral investigations of Jackson’s death. LAPD is concerned with the homicide aspect, which may include manslaughter charges against his primary physician, the aforementioned Dr. Murray. DEA “Diversion Investigators” and special agents are focused on Dr. Murray and Dr. Arnold Klein, among other physicians, for the distribution of drugs that were prescribed “outside accepted medical treatment principles.” BNE is interested in California Business and Profession Code and Health and Safety Code violations. These investigations could very well lead to state and federal criminal charges against the doctor(s) involved in addition to numerous administrative actions against their registration numbers.

If a doctor has a patient who has chronic insomnia, should the doctor administer Propofol, a powerful drug designed to render a patient unconscious in order to perform surgery? I don’t think so, and neither does the DEA. Propofol is short acting and requires constant monitoring by a trained anesthesiologist, something Dr. Murray is not. If Dr. Murray gave Jackson Propofol shortly after giving him other potent sedatives, does this fall in the category of practicing medicine “outside accepted medical treatment principles?” If Dr. Murray asked others to destroy medical records of his ordering Propofol, is this obstructing justice?

In the Jackson case, DEA, LAPD and BNE are simply following the evidence and seeing where it leads. If other physicians and pharmacies are identified as improperly prescribing and dispensing drugs, so be it. Investigators show little discretion. They follow the leads and report the facts. The Los Angeles County District Attorney and the United States Attorney will be the decision makers on the appropriate charges, if any, in the case of the individual physicians and pharmacies.

Will police arrest Dr. Murray at any moment? The police probably won’t arrest anyone until the investigation is completed, which could take months. Once an arrest is made, the clock starts to tick on trial matters. Prosecutors would be at a disadvantage if they brought indictments prematurely.  

If a doctor’s patient insists on receiving numerous unnecessary drugs for a variety of reasons, there is no exception for a doctor to go outside standard medical practices, even if his patient is Michael Jackson.

Gregory D. Lee can be reached through his web site: www.gregorydlee.com.    

© 2009 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

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