Legendary music producer Phil Spector guilty of murder

Legendary US music producer Phil Spector on Monday was found guilty of second degree murder in the shooting death of an actress at his mansion in Los Angeles six years ago. Spector, 69, who created the famed Wall of Sound recording technique during the 1960s when he worked with some of the biggest names in music, stared glumly as the verdict was read out. The diminutive producer, who had arrived at court to hear the verdict in a trademark long jacket bearing a lapel badge reading Barack Obama Rocks! could face up to 18 years in prison when he is sentenced on May 29. Despite protests from defense attorneys, Judge Larry Paul Fidler remanded Spector in custody until his sentencing hearing, stating that public safety and public protection are paramount. The six-man, six-woman jury began deliberating on March 26 after a five-month court case following his first trial in 2007 that ended deadlocked with jurors unable to reach a unanimous verdict. Prosecutors said Spector had shot dead former B-movie actress Lana Clarkson at his home in the early hours of Feb. 3, 2003 after meeting her only a few hours before at the Hollywood nightclub where she worked. Defense lawyers said the 40-year-old Clarkson, best known for her role in Roger Corman s 1985 cult classic The Barbarian Queen but whose career had stalled at the time of her death, killed herself. Clarkson s family thanked jurors and prosecutors Monday after the guilty verdict, accusing Spector s defense team of trashing the victim. We are pleased that the jury has rejected the distortion and trashing of Lana Clarkson s life by the defense in this trial, the last trial and the past six plus years, the family said in a statement. There is no joy today. This is tragic, but actions have consequences. The Clarkson family will now pursue a civil trial against Spector, which could see them awarded tens of millions of dollars in damages if successful. Jurors meanwhile described the deliberations as painful before settling on the guilty verdict. We listened to everything, we reviewed everything and could not have been more painful in our decision, said the jury forewoman, who declined to give her name. Spector is regarded as one of the most influential figures in pop music history. In the early 1960s, he scored hits including Da Doo Ron Ron, Be My Baby, Baby and You ve Lost That Lovin Feelin. But during his trials, prosecutors said Spector, who was famed for his work with The Beatles, Tina Turner, The Righteous Brothers, The Ronettes and The Ramones, had a sinister side. Prosecutor Alan Jackson painted a picture of Spector as a gun-crazed eccentric with a history of violence toward women who tried to leave him. Five female acquaintances testified that Spector had threatened them at gunpoint in incidents dating back to the 1970s. In his closing argument last month, Jackson said Spector had repeatedly pulled guns on women who wouldn t go to bed with him. A woman, alcohol, a loss of control, and Phillip Spector reaches for a gun. Click, the prosecutor told jurors repeatedly, displaying photos one-by-one of the five women who testified against him. February 3rd, 2003, Lana Clarkson – a woman, alcohol, a loss of control – and Phillip reaches for a gun. Pow! Lana Clarkson got the bullet. It s as simple as that, Jackson said. Spector s former chauffeur also gave damaging evidence, telling jurors that on the night of the shooting, his employer had emerged from a doorway clutching a pistol in a bloodied hand, saying: I think I killed somebody. Only weeks before Clarkson s killing, Spector gave a rare interview in which he described himself as relatively insane. Defense lawyers however argued there was no forensic evidence to convict Spector, pointing to the absence of gunshot residue on his hands and clothing. AFP