THIS IS IT: Medics try to revive Michael Jackson & (right) his final rehearsal

Michael Jackson to give evidence from beyond grave..for the defence

IN THE DOC: Conrad Murray

POP legend Michael Jackson will make the ultimate comeback... by giving evidence at his OWN death trial as the star witness for the DEFENCE.

Lawyers for Doctor Conrad Murray want to use old video footage of spaced-out Jacko to demonstrate the depth of his drug habit.

Personal physician Murray is set to stand trial on an involuntary manslaughter charge for delivering a fatal drug cocktail overdose to the megastar in June last year.

VIDEO: Jedward do Jacko

His legal team hope Jackson's appearance from beyond the grave - which sounds like something straight out of his famous zombie video Thriller - will show Murray can't be guilty.

Addiction

Instead, they will suggest that the King of Pop knew how to self- administer and battled pill addiction for over 17 years.

And in another wacko twist in the courtroom drama, Murray's legal team will also call two of Jacko's three CHILDREN to the stand.

They want Prince, 12, and 11-year-old Paris to discuss how their father constantly complemented Murray and claimed that he was "making him better".

Key videos will include footage of frail Jacko during his This Is It rehearsals and a 2007 court deposition where he discusses his pain medication.

The defence will also show images from 2004 where he slurs his words and appears drunk in rehearsals for a film role at his Neverland home library. Jackson's sister La Toya is furious that Murray is contesting any charges - and has urged cops to push for a murder case.

A legal source close to Murray, who will be charged in an LA court tomorrow, said: "Murray's legal team have quietly but steadily been building a robust defence case.

"A key element will be on-camera interviews Michael Jackson gave where he discusses and admits his drug use and others where he appears to be intoxicated.

"In effect, Michael Jackson himself will be the defence's star witness as they set out to prove he was a seasoned and habitual user and knew how to self-administer.

"The interviews and other evidence aim to show that Jackson had been addicted to prescription drugs for at least 15 years.

"They will try to prove that Jackson was in poor health and therefore the build-up of drugs and the effects of further doses were increased tenfold because of a weakened system.

"For these reasons, they will say Murray is not culpable and should therefore be found not guilty."

The News Of The World revealed last year how Murray claimed Jackson, 51, was an expert in running IV drips, including one for the drug Propofol - which he overdosed on.

Jacko's dependency on painkillers started in 1984 after pyrotechnics used in filming his Pepsi advert set his his hair on fire. He also took Valium, Xanax and Ativan after a civil lawsuit from alleged child abuse vistim Jordan Chandler in 1993.

Despite a rehab stint, he was back on the drugs, which were found by cops who raided the Neverland ranch in 2004.

In his last year Jacko was necking painkillers - Demerol, Dilaudid and Vicodin - all at the same time. The cocktail also included muscle relaxant Soma, anti-depressant Zoloft, anti- anxiety pill Paxil, sedative Xanax and heartburn tablet Prilosec. The singer's autopsy showed he had lethal amounts of anaesthesia drug Propofol in his system when he died, along with a mix of other prescriptions.

LaToya - who famously told us last July that she felt Jackson was murdered - spoke out after Murray returned to LA last week to surrender to cops.

She said: "He should be charged with murder, not manslaughter. It is terribly wrong."

Brother Jermaine, referring to Jackson arrest on child abuse charges, added: "Murray should be cuffed, he should be fingerprinted, he should have his mugshot just like they did my brother!

"It's all on the doctor. It could be first-degree murder, it could be whatever - Michael's not coming back, so where's the closure?"

Crypt

Last week Murray visited Jacko's crypt at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California.

He was seen walking up to the doors then sitting down on a wall outside as he paused for reflection.

A Jackson family insider said they were "shocked and upset" that Murray went to the star's final resting place.

The insider added: "It just seems like a calculated PR stunt before he's brought to trial."

Currently the LAPD and the district attorney are arguing over how Murray will enter court, either as a volunteer or in handcuffs. He is likely to be given $25,000 bail.

Sources say Murray could avoid a trial by plea bargaining a deal to a suspended sentence with a guilty admission.

Last night a spokesman for Dr Murray had no comment.