The Conrad Murray Trial
Even in death, Michael Jackson knew how to draw a crowd. The superstar's memorial service — held a week after he died in his rented Los Angeles mansion on June 25, 2009 — drew a global TV audience of an estimated 1 billion people, one of the largest broadcast audiences ever. And even in death, the various setbacks and scandals that plagued his career proved inescapable. In September, Jackson's personal physician Conrad Murray went on trial for his role in the death, accused of having inappropriately prescribed the sedatives that directly contributed to Jackson's demise. The trial spawned a media circus, complete with details about Jackson's battles with addiction, tearful testimony from Jackson's nurses and a haunting audio recording of a slurring, drug-addled King of Pop confessing to his doctor about his "lost childhood." In the end, Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to four years in prison.