Jackson's doctor to surrender

Michael Jackson's doctor has agreed to surrender to authorities Friday to face a criminal case stemming from the singer's death, his lawyer said Thursday.

Attorney Ed Chernoff said Dr. Conrad Murray agreed to turn himself in following discussions with the prosecutor handling the case. Details about how he would surrender were still being worked out.

"You tell us where; we'll be there," Chernoff said in a Thursday night posting on his website.

It was not immediately clear when Murray would be arraigned. Los Angeles County Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said it would not happen Friday.

Word that Murray would surrender came after a day of haggling between prosecutors, defence lawyers and law enforcement officials over whether the physician should be arrested or allowed to turn himself in.

'No reason' for arrest

Sandi Gibbons, a spokeswoman  for the district attorney's office, could not immediately confirm Chernoff's assertion that Murray would surrender Friday.

"I cannot vouch for the truth of that statement," Gibbons said.

Chernoff told The Associated Press earlier Thursday that an arrest would be purely for the benefit of news cameras.

"It's a waste of time, it's just a show," Chernoff said. "There's no reason to handcuff a guy, drag him downtown so you can take a photo when he's been sitting here for a week waiting to turn himself in."

Jackson, 50, died June 25 at his rented Los Angeles mansion while under the care of Murray, a cardiologist with practices in Houston and Las Vegas.

Three law enforcement officials have told The Associated Press prosecutors plan to charge Murray with involuntary manslaughter, alleging he gave Jackson the powerful anesthetic propofol to help him sleep but that instead led to his death.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the case.