Plans for Michael Jackson's funeral remain unclear for now

Ref : http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2009-06-28-mjackson-news_N.htm?csp=34

Plans for Michael Jackson's funeral remain unclear for now


MICHAEL JACKSON 1958-2009

Obit: King of Pop dies at 50

Story: The many faces of Michael Jackson

Video: The latest details

Graphic: A look back at Jackson's chart-topping hits

Story: Spontaneous remembrances of Jackson erupt

Lifeline Live: Stars' reactions

By Maria Puente, USA TODAY

How will his family memorialize Michael Jackson— a small private service, a huge public funeral, a series of splashy public celebrations around the globe or some combination? The arrangements are as unclear as the cause of the pop star's unexpected death four days ago.
Jackson's father, Joe Jackson, said Sunday that the family was still working on funeral arrangements and had nothing to announce yet. "I'm glad this is happening now," the elder Jackson said as he arrived on the red carpet for the BET Awards in Los Angeles, "but (the world) should have saluted him when he was living."


JACKSON'S ESTATE: It could take years to sort it all out
HEALTH PROBLEMS: They dogged Jackson for years

If the Jacksons opt for a public funeral, it could become one of the most-watched sendoffs in American entertainment history. With scores of celebrities in attendance and modern technologies at hand, the event is certain to be covered and followed live around the world.

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who plans to eulogize his friend at a memorial service Tuesday at New York's Apollo Theater, says he's helping the Jacksons decide what to do about the funeral.

FIND MORE STORIES IN: Michael Jackson | Al Sharpton
Sharpton says Jackson's family is upset that so much of the news coverage of Jackson's death has focused on the negative — his trial and acquittal on child molestation charges and his possible abuse of prescription drugs — and wants to shift the focus.

People around the world have been sending Sharpton ideas about how to memorialize Jackson in different cities. A flurry of upbeat events would show the world, especially Jackson's three children, that he was a musical force, Sharpton says.

"Michael Jackson was a genius; he wasn't a freak," Sharpton says.

Meanwhile, Jackson's friends, admirers and imitators are paying public tribute to the King of Pop in their own ways. The BET Awards became a memorial to Jackson and his career — Beyoncé, dressed in flowing white, sang Sarah McLachlan's Angel— and stars such as Aretha Franklin have been dedicating their performances to him or asking for moments of silence during concerts.

The cause of Jackson's death is still undetermined, despite two autopsies and police interviews with Conrad Murray, the cardiologist who was with him when he collapsed at his rented estate in a posh neighborhood of Los Angeles. According to the Associated Press, Murray denied reports that he injected Jackson with a powerful painkiller shortly before the 50-year-old star was stricken.

Murray, hired by Jackson in May to accompany him on his concert tour, met with investigators for three hours Saturday, accompanied by Houston criminal defense attorney Edward Chernoff.

Jackson still had a faint pulse and his body was warm when by chance Murray found him in bed and not breathing, Chernoff told the AP. While Murray performed CPR, paramedics were called; they spent 45 minutes trying to revive Jackson. He was pronounced dead later at UCLA Medical Center.

In meeting with police, Conrad "helped identify the circumstances around the death and clarified some inconsistencies," Murray's spokeswoman, Miranda Sevcik, said in a statement. She said investigators consider him a witness, not a suspect.

The cause of Jackson's death will not be determined for several weeks following more tests, but prescription drugs were found in his system, according to the coroner's autopsy on Friday. A second autopsy, by a private pathologist requested by Jackson's family, had begun, said attorney Londell McMillan, who accompanied Joe Jackson to the BET Awards.

Contributing: Bill Welch and Kelley L. Carter

in Los Angeles, The Associated Press