Reports: MJ Was ‘A Mess’

Today's front page NYDaily News

AEG Live's lawyer warned jurors that "we're going to show some ugly stuff" as he began the defense's opening statement in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial Monday.

The concert promoter has no choice to reveal Jackson's "deepest, darkest secret" because the company must defend itself from the accusation from Jackson's family that it is responsible for the pop icon's death, Marvin Putnam said.

CNN Reports the trial, which could last several months, that promises dramatic revelations and legal fireworks. With opening statements delivered, the Jackson's call their first witness Tuesday morning -- Orlando Martinez, the Los Angeles Police detective who investigated Jackson's death.

AEG Live executives are "ruthless guys" who ignored Michael Jackson's health problems and his doctor's ethical conflicts, which led to the pop icon's death, a Jackson family lawyer argued Monday.

Jurors earning $15 a day will decide whether one of the world's largest entertainment companies should pay Jackson's mother and three children billions of dollars for its liability in the pop icon's death.

AEG executives knew that Jackson was emotionally and physically weak, a Jackson family told jurors.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Yvette Palazuelos denied CNN's request to televise the trial.

The central issue is simple: Did AEG Live, the company promoting Jackson's comeback concerts in 2009, hire or supervise Dr. Conrad Murray, the physician convicted of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's June 25, 2009, death?

Jackson died two weeks before his "This Is It" comeback concerts, organized by AEG Live, were to have debuted in London.

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