Conrad Murray

Conrad Murray (born February 19, 1953) is a Grenadian-born American cardiologist who gained international notoriety as the personal physician to singer Michael Jackson , whose 2009 death he was convicted of causing through involuntary manslaughter.

Murray was born in St. Andrews , Grenada , to physician Rawle Andrews and Milta Murray, and raised in poverty by his grandparents in Grenada before moving to Trinidad and Tobago at age seven, where he became a citizen and worked various jobs including as a teacher, customs clerk, and insurance underwriter to fund his education. He immigrated to the United States in 1980, earning a Bachelor of Science degree magna cum laude in pre-medicine and biological sciences from Texas Southern University in 1983, followed by his Doctor of Medicine from Meharry Medical College in 1989. He completed medical training including cardiology fellowships at the University of Arizona and further specialization at institutions like the Mayo Clinic and Loma Linda University in California .

After becoming licensed to practice medicine in California in 1991, Nevada in 1999, and Texas in 2005, Murray established a successful cardiology practice focused on underserved communities, opening Global Cardiovascular Associates in Las Vegas in 2000 and expanding with the Acres Home Heart and Vascular Institute in Houston in 2006. Despite financial challenges, including a 2002 bankruptcy filing due to unpaid debts and taxes from providing care to low-income patients, he built a reputation as a dedicated physician with multiple children from different relationships and two marriages, to Zufan Tesfai (1984–1988) and Blanche Bonnick.

Murray first encountered Michael Jackson in December 2006 while treating the singer's daughter Paris in Las Vegas , leading to his hiring in May 2009 by concert promoter AEG Live as Jackson's full-time physician for $150,000 per month ahead of the singer's planned "This Is It" residency in London . On June 25, 2009, Jackson died at age 50 from acute propofol intoxication, a surgical anesthetic Murray had administered off-label as a sleep aid in Jackson's Los Angeles home, alongside other sedatives like benzodiazepines; Murray delayed calling 911 for approximately 20 to 30 minutes after finding Jackson unresponsive, during which he made other phone calls and attempted CPR.

Arrested in February 2010 and charged with involuntary manslaughter , Murray's high-profile trial in Los Angeles revealed his failure to monitor Jackson properly and lack of proper medical equipment, culminating in his conviction on November 7, 2011. He was sentenced to the maximum four years in prison on November 29, 2011, but served approximately two years due to overcrowding, and was released on parole in October 2013; his conviction was upheld on appeal in January 2014, though he has continued efforts to overturn it. The case led to the revocation of his medical licenses in California , Texas , and Nevada . Following his release, Murray published an autobiography in 2016 and, as of 2023, opened the DCM Medical Institute in San Juan, Trinidad and Tobago , resuming clinical practice there.

Conrad Robert Murray was born on February 19, 1953, in St. Andrew Parish, Grenada , to parents Rawle Andrews, a physician, and Milta Murray. His father, originally from the Caribbean region, abandoned the family when Murray was young, leaving his mother to raise him amid significant financial difficulties. Murray's early years were marked by his mother's efforts to provide for the family while seeking better opportunities, as she spent much of her time working in Trinidad and Tobago .

Murray was primarily raised by his maternal grandparents, who were subsistence farmers, in Grenada during his first seven years, immersing him in the rural Caribbean culture and the realities of poverty .