Michael Jackson’s family ‘dumbfounded’ after ex Debbie Rowe hinted she stood by as doctor fed addicted star painkillers
MICHAEL Jackson's family has been left "dumbfounded" after his ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, hinted she feels partly to blame for the King of Pop's demise, sources have told The Sun.
The Sun exclusively revealed on Thursday how Debbie Rowe, 63, wept as she told a new documentary she could have done more when the doctor she worked for got patients like Jackson hooked on painkillers.
Insiders say MJ's mother, Katherine, 92, and brother, Randy, 66, are "bewildered" by Rowe speaking out now about her time as a nurse with late dermatologist, Dr Arnold Klein.
Rowe, who was a surrogate mom to Jackson's kids Prince, 25, and Paris, 24, confessed that she "sucked as a human being" for standing by while Klein dished out prescription drugs to patients.
She made the stunning confession on TMZ Investigates: Who Really Killed Michael Jackson, out Tuesday, September 6, 2022.
In the TV special, she fights back tears as she says: "I was basically as bad as [Klein]. I regret that. I will regret it. And I am so sorry that I participated in it."
Reacting to the comments, one Jackson family friend said: "Debbie's decision to speak to this show about what she knew about Dr Klein, given Michael's addiction issues, has dumbfounded some of the older Jackson family members and Michael's long-term aides.
"Debbie has not been this open with some of the brothers for sure, so for her to speak on a TV show is bewildering.
"Everyone is talking about the trailers and media coverage, baffled at why she would speak on these subjects, especially given how sensitive it is in family circles.
"The feeling always was that Debbie was there to help Michael as his nurse.
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"Now her comments have made some of them look at her in a different way.
"It is strange to appear on a show called Who Killed Michael Jackson talking about Klein and admitting she should have stopped his way of dealing with clients. It has deeply upset them.
"Katherine is very upset. She and her aides cannot understand why Debbie has decided after all these years to break her silence on that part of her life."
The source added: "It's no secret that there are strains between Debbie and some of Michael's brothers. But this brought many emotions and concerns about Michael's interactions with Klein back up again.
"While Debbie told producers she would not talk about Michael on the show specifically, it seems extraordinary to mention that Klein's treatment appeared to blame for some patients' deaths. It is very shocking and upsetting."
Thriller singer Jackson died of a cardiac arrest in June 2009 in Los Angeles.
At the time, he had enough of the powerful sedative Propofol in his system to "put down a rhinoceros," ex-LAPD coroner Ed Winter told the documentary.
Jackson's doctor, Conrad Murray, was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter for providing the dose of Propofol that killed him.
LAPD detective Orlando Martinez told the documentary it was "a lot more complicated than just Dr Murray," and other doctors had contributed to Jackson's demise.
Martinez said: "There are a lot of folks who are to blame that have never had a reckoning for his death."
'FEEDING JACKSON'S DRUG HABIT'
Rowe refused to talk about Jackson specifically in the documentary, choosing to focus instead on the general damage done to patients by Klein.
But she has spoken for decades about being Jackson's nurse and an assistant to Klein while he treated the star.
And during a civil trial over Jackson's death in 2013, she blamed her former boss for feeding Jackson's drug habit.
The Beverly Hills doctor gave Jackson the heavy-duty painkiller, Demerol, over the course of three decades and the star got hooked on the high.
Klein, who was nicknamed the Father of Botox and also known for treating other stars, such as Elizabeth Taylor, died aged 70 in California.
Jackson and Rowe married in 1996 after they first met 15 years before while Michael received treatment from Klein.
Rowe had been consoling Jackson following his split with Elvis Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie.
She has spoken candidly in the past about how the whirlwind marriage took place so Jackson could become a father.
Speaking in a 2003 TV special called Michael Jackson: The Footage You Were Never Meant To See, Rowe said: "I did it for him to become a father, not for me to become a mother.
"You earn the title parent. I have done absolutely nothing to earn that title. That is because Michael did all the parenting.
"I didn't do it to be a mother. I didn't change diapers. I didn't get up in the middle of the night; even when I was there, Michael did it all."
'VERY CHILL'
After MJ's death, his kids Prince, Paris, and Blanket, lived with their grandmother Katherine and had minimal contact with Rowe.
In 2013, a then 15-year-old Paris reconnected with her mom.
Last year, Paris gave a rare insight into her relationship with Rowe when she told Jada Pinkett Smith's show Red Table Talk: "It's cool, getting to know her, seeing how similar we are, getting into what kind of music she really likes.
"She really likes country and folk, so I sent her some of the stuff I'm working on.
"It's just cool having her as a friend.
"It's very chill, which I love, that's the perfect word to describe it."
The family source said: "At this moment Paris and Prince are staying silent.
"But the older family members will want to hear how they feel about Debbie's decision.
"In the past Paris has spoken about how she never really spent time with Debbie until she was 15.
"Prince does not talk openly about Debbie.";
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The Sun has reached out to representatives for Debbie Rowe, Katherine Jackson, and Paris Jackson asking for comment.
TMZ Investigates: Who Really Killed Michael Jackson, featuring exclusive and never-before-seen interviews, premieres Tuesday, September 6 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on Fox.
