Raymond Baguma And Agencies
7 July 2009
Kampala — MICHAEL Jackson was finally laid to rest yesterday in a public cemetery in Los Angeles' Forest Lawn Cemetery during a function attended only by close family members. He was however buried without his brain as tests continue to determine the cause of his death.
The fallen star lay in a $25,000 gleaming, custom-made solid-bronze coffin with a hand-polished 14-carat gold plate finish, and a blue velvet-lined interior. The coffin known as The Promethean was the same model in which the singer James Brown alias the Godfather of Soul, was buried.
Doctors at the Los Angeles coroner's office had by yesterday not completed tests on Jackson's brain. The bereaved family were advised that he would be buried without the brain, unless they wished to wait.
Specialists explained that the pop star's inert brain must "harden" for at least two weeks before doctors can conduct the tests. Jackson died from an apparent cardiac arrest on 25 June. Though his body was released the next day to relatives, his brain was not. There have been suggestions that link Jackson's death to powerful painkillers. Also, medical examinations on the brain will reveal unknown diseases, evidence of alcohol abuse or whether Jackson has suffered drug overdoses in the past. Removing the brain is the "only way to carry out the tests," the UK's Mirror reported. "The tissue has to be examined. I cannot tell you how long it is going to take." Jackson, 50, was laid to rest in the south section of the massive Forest Lawn Memorial cemetery, which is also the resting place for several fallen Hollywood stars.
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