Dr. Conrad Murray is reportedly hoping to be home for Christmas.
The 58-year-old physician was sentenced to four years in Los Angeles County Jail yesterday after being convicted of the involuntary manslaughter of Michael Jackson.
But now RadarOnline are claiming that Murray could be released in the coming weeks and it is possible he could even be out by the holidays to serve the remainder of his time on house arrest.
Judge Michael Pastor said in his ruling that he imposed the maximum sentence possible to Murray but because of a new California law, Murray would not be sent to state prison and would instead serve his time in county jail.
His sentence was automatically halved and Murray is eligible for house arrest because he is deemed a non-violent felon.
“Dr. Murray’s lawyers are actually relieved that Judge Pastor didn’t sentence him to community service,” an insider told the site. “They didn’t want him doing manual labour at the morgue like Lindsay Lohan is doing.”
“That would have been an absolute nightmare for him, as he would certainly be mocked and it wouldn’t have been safe for him to be picking up trash on the freeway or cleaning up graffiti. Judge Pastor actually did Murray a favour by maxing him out.”
Whether Murray spends the majority of his time in jail or on house arrest is up to Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca.
“The Sheriff will determine when Dr. Murray will be released on house arrest,” the source added. “Dr. Murray is hoping that he will be released by Christmas. His lawyers have told him that it is a real possibility.”
Deputy District Attorney David Walgren who prosecuted the case said on The Today Show this morning that he believes Murray got what he deserved.
“I think he certainly deserves the full weight of the punishment and he certainly deserves the full four years,” Walgren stated. “How much time he actually serves at the end of the day will be up to the sheriff.”
Walgren also added that Murray should never have appeared on The Today Show himself because his “complete lack of remorse” made him look guiltier.
Murray is expected to appeal his conviction in the next 60 days.
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