LOS ANGELES — Michael Jackson’s doctor will face the singer’s distraught family and ardent fans one more time when he returns to court for sentencing in the death of the superstar from an overdose of an operating-room anesthetic he was receiving to battle insomnia.

Dr. Conrad Murray’s sentencing today for involuntary manslaughter is the final step in the criminal case launched within days of Jackson’s unexpected death in June 2009.

Additional Photos

Dr. Conrad Murray, above, could serve the maximum four-year term for involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson, below, if a judge agrees with prosecutors' recommendation at Murray’s sentencing today. Photos by The Associated Press

Anne Hathaway, Adam Shulman The Associated Press

Tobey Maguire The Associated Press

Prosecutors want a judge to sentence the 58-year-old Murray to the maximum four-year prison term. Defense attorneys counter that Murray already faces a lifetime of shame and diminished opportunities and should receive probation.

How long Murray might stay behind bars depends on the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, which would base the decision on good behavior and other factors.

Even without overcrowding and a new state law that will send Murray to county jail rather than prison, a four-year term could be cut in half by good behavior.

It remained unclear Monday whether Jackson’s family will speak during the sentencing hearing. His mother, Katherine, and several siblings routinely attended the six-week trial that ended with the conviction Nov. 7.

Prosecutors portrayed Murray as an incompetent doctor who administered propofol — an extremely potent anesthetic normally used during surgery — in Jackson’s bedroom without adequate safeguards and botched his care when things went wrong.

Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor, who will determine the sentence, had harsh words for Murray on the day he was convicted.

“Dr. Murray’s reckless conduct in this case poses a demonstrable risk to the safety of the public,” Pastor said before the Houston-based cardiologist was led from the courtroom in handcuffs.

Murray’s attorneys are relying largely on statements from his former patients to portray Murray in a softer light and win a lighter sentence.

“There is no question that the death of his patient, Mr. Jackson, was unintentional and an enormous tragedy for everyone affected,” defense attorneys wrote in their sentencing memo. “Dr. Murray … walks around under a pall of sadness since the loss of his patient, Mr. Jackson.”

Hathaway, actor boyfriend engaged

LOS ANGELES — Anne Hathaway has signed on for a new role: Fiancee.

A spokesman for the 29-year-old actress said Hathaway is engaged to boyfriend and fellow actor Adam Shulman.

Publicist Stephen Huvane revealed no other details.

Hathaway is among the stars of the anticipated Batman movie “The Dark Knight Rises.” She was nominated for an Academy Award for 2008’s “Rachel Getting Married” and hosted the 2011 Oscars with James Franco.

Maguire folds ’em to settle poker lawsuit

LOS ANGELES — Tobey Maguire has decided to settle a lawsuit over his winnings from a convicted con man during high-stakes Hollywood poker games.

The “Spider-Man” star agreed to pay $80,000 to settle the suit filed over more than $311,000 he was paid by a convicted Ponzi scheme operator in Texas Hold ‘Em matches that included celebrities, businessmen and others, court documents state.

If approved by a judge next month, Maguire will pay the money to a bankruptcy trustee who is trying to recoup money that former hedge fund operator Bradley Ruderman bilked from investors to finance his lavish lifestyle.

The money will be used to repay victims of the scheme, which Maguire and other players were unaware of.

Court records show that 14 of the 22 people sued to recoup poker winnings have settled their cases. Howard Ehrenberg, the bankruptcy trustee who sued the group, said Monday that Maguire’s payout to resolve the case is in the same range as others who agreed to settlements.

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