Jackson trial put on hold until wednesday

The trial of Michael Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray was suspended for two days on Monday to allow his defense team to assess a new report on what was in the singer's stomach when he died. Judge Michael Pastor agreed to give Murray's lawyers the time to discuss the medical examiner's report with their own experts, saying the trial will resume at 8:30 am (1530 GMT) on Wednesday. Murray, who has been charged with involuntary manslaughter, is accused of giving Jackson an overdose of propofol while trying to help him sleep. If convicted, he faces up to four years in prison. The forensic toxicology report two years ago found the cause of death to be acute intoxication of propofol, an anesthetic, but also noted the anti-anxiety drug lorazepam was in the singer's system. Defense lawyers have portrayed Jackson as a desperate addict and at first suggested he could have given himself an extra dose of propofol while the doctor was out of the room. But in a surprise move they later dropped that claim and focused instead on the theory that a fatal cocktail was produced when the late singer administered himself some extra lorazepam. Prosecutor David Walgren told the judge on Monday that the defense's theory that Jackson swallowed eight two-milligram lorazepam pills was "totally inconsistent" with evidence in the new report, which has not yet been shown at trial. Defense lawyer Ed Chernoff, calling for the delay, insisted that Murray's team "have to have the ability to address" the issue before the trial resumes. The trial in Los Angeles Superior Court is expected to last five weeks, until the end of October