(Image source: CNN)

BY BRICE SANDER

Shocking new pictures and evidence bring the Michael Jackson murder trial into its third week.

The prosecution introduced this image of Jackson’s frail body, lying lifeless on the autopsy table. The LA Deputy Medical Examiner took the stand, saying he doubts Jackson could’ve given himself the fatal dose of Propofol. (Video source: The Daily Buzz)

Even if Jackson did self-administer, his death would still be ruled a homicide. As an anesthesiologist tells CNN, it all comes down to negligence.

“Any time you give anyone an anesthetic, you never leave the patient! You don’t say, 'Well, he self-administered, he drunk it, he went somewhere else,' because I’m always there in attendance to find out what’s going on. So you never abandon your patient.”

But NBC’s Matt Lauer plays devil’s advocate, arguing the evidence is damaging, but not damning.

ROBIN SAX: “You can’t get any more damaging than the official medical examiner -- the one who actually conducted the autopsy on Michael Jackson -- come back and say it is unreasonable that the Propofol was self-administered.”
MATT LAUER: “You could go into any manslaughter case and, no matter what, if you put a picture up on a screen of the deceased, you’re going to get an emotional reaction from the jury, but I’m not sure that’s what the law is about.”

But ABC reports -- police recordings of Dr. Conrad Murray explaining Jackson’s physical state before his death further complicate his defense.

CONRAD MURRAY: “Generally speaking, he was not a person, at well, he is very thin.”
JIM AVILA: “Dr. Murray tells police Jackson had the veins of an old man, punctures on his feet and in between his fingers, making it difficult for the doctor to administer IVs. Still, he gave Jackson Propofol -- which his patient called ‘milk’ -- because of its opaque white color on a nightly basis for 30 days straight, up until three days before his death.”

Finally -- a TruTV correspondent tells CBS there’s one hole in the case that could be Murray’s saving grace.

“The defense on the cross-examination really brought out (that) the L.A. coroner didn't test the stomach contents … So the defense is saying, 'Wait a minute -- Propofol didn't cause the death, Lorazepam did.' And Michael Jackson took the Lorazepam, but you couldn't put that as the cause of death, because you didn't test the stomach contents."

The prosecution will call one more witness -- an expert on Propofol -- to the stand before the jury heads into deliberation.

Transcript by Newsy.