Robyn Beck-Pool/Getty ImagesUPDATE 11:45 a.m.: Once again, court has adjourned early for the day. The prosecution will get the weekend to prep their cross-examination of White, which will begin Monday morning.
UPDATE 11:30 a.m.: Dr. White performed a demonstration in court of how to draw propofol, saying it "takes some effort," while going on to show how Jackson could possibly have self-administered the drug. He then rejected the notion that a propofol IV drip—aka "the suspension method"—set up by Murray could have been the star's cause of death, saying, "You would need some mechanism to deliver the drug to the patient. You would need a mechanism to hold this large bottle of propofol. This handle that was found at the crime scene had not been used until Mr. Walgren opened it in the courtroom." He also said that he had never heard of anyone using the method described in court and noted that there was "zero evidence of an infusion." He concluded that it would have to have been a self-injection of propofol that killed the star.
UPDATE 10:15 a.m.: Judge Michael Pastor explained the delay in the prosecution's cross-examination of Dr. White, which he is clearly not thrilled about. "I indicated my concern, once again losing valuable time."
When testimony resumed, White spoke about the safety of small doses of propofol, saying they "have very translucent effects. This is a dose that might be used to produce a little bit of anxiety relief, a little bit of sleepiness."
He then countered the testimony of prosecution's key witness Dr. Steven Shafer, saying, "With the average patient, they would probably be dead. At the very least, they would be comatose for a number of hours. It represents an enormous amount of lorazepam. I can't imagine anyone who would not be asleep after receiving 40 mg of lorazepam over a five-hour period."
UPDATE 8:55 a.m.: Unlikely support network alert: Rick and Kathy Hilton have joined the Jackson family for today's testimony, sitting alongside Joe and Randy Jackson in the first row of the courtroom. Kathy was a longtime pal of Michael's and the familys often spent time together. Who knew?
Kathy told E! News: "I am here to fight for justice for Michael and his family. And to support my family."
The day we thought we'd never see is here at last: the final witness set to take the stand in the Michael Jackson involuntary manslaughter trial is due to testify for the defense today.
Dr. Paul White, a propofol expert, is expected to regale the jury with an explanation of how exactly, as Conrad Murray's defense has been claiming, Jackson could possibly have self-administered the fatal dose of the anesthetic while the doctor was out of the room the morning of June 25, 2009.
However, no matter how soon the defense is done with White, his testimony will nonetheless continue through to Monday—which will mark the start of the trial's sixth week—as the judge granted the prosecution's request to delay cross-examination to allow them to more adequately prepare their questioning as the defense only recently shared information regarding the witness.
As for today, E! Online will, as always, be livestreaming today's proceedings from the courthouse, starting at 8:45 a.m. PT.
(Originally published on Oct. 28, 2011 at 8:40 a.m. PT)