Single drug a key to Jackson probe

LOS ANGELES — With the investigation of Michael Jackson's death zeroing in on what drugs the pop singer took and who provided them, an upcoming toxicology report is key to whether anyone is criminally charged.

It's already known propofol, a powerful anesthetic not meant for home use, was among the drugs found in Jackson's rented mansion. The Los Angeles Police Department, working with the Drug Enforcement Administration and California attorney general's office, is trying to determine how the medications got there.

The coroner's toxicology report and the full autopsy results are not expected until the week after next. It will provide two important facts: whether propofol and any other drugs were present in the 50-year-old singer when he died June 25, and whether the levels were toxic.

"The quantity is key here," said Lawrence Kobilinsky, head of forensic science at John Jay College in New York. "Not only the presence, but the amount that has to be interpreted to see if it contributed to the death."

Kobilinsky sees propofol as "a smoking gun."

"There is no reason it should have been available to him. If it is a contributing factor to his death, then I think there would be criminal charges," he said.

The district attorney's office is in contact with police — a common practice during an investigation — but no evidence has been presented for possible charges, prosecutors' spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said.

Police have said very little publicly. Chief William Bratton has said detectives are scrutinizing Jackson's prescription history and the doctors with whom he dealt, and haven't ruled out anything.

"Are we dealing with homicide? Are we dealing with an accidental overdose? What are we dealing with?" Bratton said last week.

Investigators obtained a search warrant and removed several bottles of propofol from Jackson's home, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation. The person is not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity.

Federal drug agents have contacted a major maker of propofol, Teva Pharmaceuticals, and drug distributor AmerisourceBergen Corp. Authorities asked AmerisourceBergen for sales data on propofol and its brand-name counterpart Diprivan to doctors, pharmacies and hospitals, company spokesman Michael Kilpatric told The Associated Press.