For MICHAEL JACKSON's physician, DR. CONRAD MURRAY, the apple apparently doesn't fall far from the tree!
His doctor dad was dragged into court for prescribing dangerous drugs without proper monitoring — the same blunder that led to Dr. Murray being charged with involuntary manslaughter in the pop star's death.
Court documents obtained by The ENQUIRER show that in 1994 the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners ruled Dr. Murray's late father, Dr. Rawle Andrews, violated the state's Medical Practice Act of Texas by prescribing “controlled substances without adequate indication.”
While Dr. Murray, 58, was on trial, prosecutors claimed his reckless use of the surgical anesthetic propofol led to Jackson's death.
“Dr. Murray's father basically did the same thing he did,” a family friend divulged. “They both prescribed dangerous drugs to patients without monitoring the medications properly.”
Born poor in St. Andrews, Grenada, Dr. Murray was raised by his maternal grandparents while his mother worked in Trinidad and Tobago to support him, said the source.
Meanwhile, his father opened a practice in Houston, Texas, devoted to serving the poor. For years, he never knew his son.
“In 1978 when he was 25, Conrad flew to Houston to introduce himself to his father,” the source revealed. “Two years later he enrolled in Texas Southern University, where he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in pre-medicine and biological sciences.”
Following in his father's footsteps, Dr. Murray enrolled in Meharry Medical College, an African-American institution in Nashville, Tenn.
While his cardiologist son built his own medical practice, Dr. Andrews was ordered to appear in front of the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners in January 1994.
Documents show that he was accused of prescribing “controlled substances and substances with addictive potential to two patients” for “extended periods of time without adequate indication” they needed the drugs.
That April, after finding him guilty as charged, the Board ordered Dr. Andrews to enroll in a treatment-of-drug-abuse course and restricted his medical license for five years.
He was also required to “maintain accurate, legible medical records on all patient visits,” and his ability to write prescriptions was limited and monitored.
The orders were terminated in January 1999. Dr. Andrews died at age 75 in 2001.
“Even though Conrad was not raised by his father and the two weren't close, he wanted to be just like him because he saw how his father's patients looked up to him,” the family friend said.
“Unfortunately, Conrad also picked up his father's bad habit of prescribing drugs carelessly.”
