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Post by Emerald City on Nov 12, 2004 17:27:25 GMT -5
By Joal Ryan
Phil Spector stands accused of murder--and not being famous.
Prosecutors in Los Angeles argued Wednesday that the release of grand jury testimony wouldn't bias potential jurors against the rock innovator on account of nobody remembers who he is anyway. (We paraphrase--but only a little.)
"Nearly all of the hit records [Spector] produced were made in the 1960s and 1970s," a brief written by L.A. County Deputy District Attorney Doug Sortino said. "It is likely that most people who came of age after that period have no idea of who he is and no current interest in what he has done."
Spector, 64, is best known--by those who know him--as the producer of "Unchained Melody," "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," the now oddly appropriate "To Know Him Is to Love Him" and dozens of other classic singles. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee engineered hits for the Beatles, the Ramones, the Righteous Brothers and the Ronettes, among others. In our next Phil Spector tutorial, we'll discuss the "Wall of Sound," and its impact.
Spector was indicted Sept. 27 for the murder of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson (Barbarian Queen). The 40-year-old Clarkson was found shot to death in the music mogul's castle-style Alhambra, California, home in February 2003. Spector has maintained Clarkson killed herself. Police and prosecutors have maintained the death was no suicide.
In a court hearing Wednesday, Spector's defense took exception to the argument that the record producer was formerly famous.
While he may not be as recognizable as celebrity defendants past (O.J. Simpson) and present (Robert Blake ), Phil Spector, attorney Roger Rosen said, is nevertheless "a musical icon all over the world."
Spector's team was adamant about their client's star status because they claim that the release of grand jury transcripts would titillate all of Los Angeles County and taint the jury pool.
Also, defense attorney Bruce Cutler said the document is "full of lies."
"This is poison," Cutler said of the transcripts, featuring testimony from witnesses and law enforcement.
In the end, Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler ruled the transcripts can be released in 10 days, barring a likely appeal.
Spector is free on $1 million bail. His trial could start as soon as Dec. 16. His fame lives forever. Or possibly not.
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Post by Emerald City on Jan 7, 2005 17:32:38 GMT -5
Phil Spector Admitted Shooting L.A. Actress-Police
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Famed music producer Phil Spector at first told police he accidentally shot B-movie actress Lana Clarkson to death at his home in February 2003, contrary to his later claim that she committed suicide, newly released transcripts of grand jury testimony show.
Five volumes of grand jury testimony were released late Thursday after the Los Angeles Times and other news organizations mounted a successful legal challenge against defense efforts to keep them sealed
Beatrice Rodriguez, a police officer dispatched to Spector's mansion in a Los Angeles suburb, said that when she arrived, the 64-year-old music producer said, ".... I didn't mean to shoot her. It was an accident."
Spector's driver, Adriano De Souza, told the grand jury that about three minutes after he heard a shot inside the house and called police, Spector came out holding a gun and told him, "I think I killed somebody."
He said that when asked for more details, Spector shrugged his shoulders and did not say anything.
Three women also testified that in various circumstances, ranging from a house party to a visit to his home, Spector had threatened them with a gun.
Spector, famed for his "Wall of Sound" productions for such stars as the Beatles and Ike and Tina Turner (news), is charged with murdering Clarkson, 40, on Feb. 3, 2003 after picking her up at the Los Angeles nightclub where she worked as a hostess. Now free on $1 million bail, he faces life in prison if convicted.
He has subsequently claimed in an Esquire magazine interview that Clarkson shot herself to death. The actress died of a single bullet wound to her head.
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Post by Diamond Girl on Jan 12, 2005 13:37:05 GMT -5
Sounds like Phil does not have a fan in the judge :hmmmm:
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Post by Emerald City on Mar 15, 2005 16:05:20 GMT -5
The latest.....
Spector Past Gun Use Motion Unsealed
Prosecutors are hoping all a jury will remember during Phil Spector's upcoming muder trial is the image of the music man firing a gun.
A Los Angeles prosecutor recently asked a judge in a motion, unsealed Monday, to allow the yet-to-be-chosen panel to hear about the famed music producer's love affair with firearms via numerous past run-ins with the law on gun-related charges.
Spector, 65, is set to face the music Sept. 16 for the shooting death of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson, who was killed Feb. 3, 2003 at his Alhambra estate outside Los Angeles.
Among the items the prosecution would like the jury to hear, according to the motion, are several gun-themed Spector incidents, some dating back to 1972, some recent.
In one from November 2003, Spector allegedly screamed "I'm gonna go get my gun and blow you away" to an unsuspecting Starbucks coffee patron who recognized the producer at a South Pasadena franchise and asked if he wished to join his table.
The first legal ramifications of the U.K.-born Spector's love affair with firearms can be traced to 1972, per the motion, when the producer pled guilty after he was arrested for carrying a loaded gun in a public place.
The music man also pled guilty in 1975 for an incident in which he flashed a gun at the posh Beverly Hills hotel, according to the document. Spector took home a misdemeanor brandishing of a firearm charge for that incident.
"Spector has a long history of gun-related violence, much of it directed against women," Deputy District Attorney Douglas Sortino wrote in the motion. "It begins in 1972 and continues to the present."
While it looks probable the judge will admit past gun charges and usage in the trial, it remains to be seen whether or not he will admit five abusive encounters Spector allegedly had with women.
Per the 58-page motion, Spector allegedly pointed his pistol at five different women between 1988 and 1999.
Three of those women helped put Spector away last year when they testified before a grand jury, which indicted Spector in September.
"The similarities between the uncharged assaults and the Clarkson killing are striking," Sortino asserts.
For his part, Spector has publicly stated that he had nothing to do with the death of the 40-year-old Clarkson; he claims the Barbarian Queen star "kissed the gun" in front of him inside his suburban Los Angeles mansion.
Spector, who is currently free on $1 million bail, will face murder charges in Los Angeles this September.
The September trial date isn't the only thing on Spector's docket. Clarkson's mother, Donna Clarkson, filed a lawsuit last month--on the two-year anniversary of her daughter's demise--charging Spector with wrongful death.
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Post by Motown Honey on Mar 17, 2005 18:42:38 GMT -5
:whoops:
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Post by Emerald City on May 26, 2005 17:38:41 GMT -5
The prosecution in Phil Spector's murder trial scored an early victory on Monday, when Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler cleared the way for four women -- all of whom claim the record producer threatened them with gun violence -- to take the witness stand in the music legend's upcoming murder trial.
Each of the four women claim that, while out on dates with the producer, Spector waved or pointed guns at them, according to The Associated Press. Spector is charged in the 2003 shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson; he was arrested 10 months after her body was discovered at his Alhambra, California, mansion.
The four alleged incidents occurred between 1988 and 1995; Fidler refused to allow six other alleged incidents to be introduced.
Prior to making the ruling, Judge Fidler acknowledged that allowing such evidence was "a dangerous path to go down," but agreed with Deputy District Attorney Doug Sortino's argument that the incidents seemed to demonstrate Spector's recurrent use of guns to threaten or intimidate people, reports the AP.
Outside the courthouse, Spector -- who pleaded not guilty to the charge and is currently free on $1 million bail -- maintained his innocence, and insisted he "never pulled a gun on these women."
Spector's defense attorney Bruce Cutler dismissed the allegations as contrived, calling the women celebrity-chasing "acolytes and gold diggers" out for publicity, the AP said.
Fidler would not permit evidence from two cases, dating back to the 1970s, which led to criminal charges against Spector. The producer pleaded guilty in 1972 to a misdemeanor charge of carrying a loaded firearm in a public place, and received a one year probationary sentence. Three years later, he entered a guilty plea on a misdemeanor count of brandishing a firearm, and was handed two years probation.
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Post by Emerald City on May 26, 2005 17:43:16 GMT -5
I'm sure some of you have seen the recent pictures of Phil....and he really does look like needs serious help!
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Post by Motown Honey on May 26, 2005 17:43:23 GMT -5
You kiddin' me  |
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Post by Diamond Girl on May 28, 2005 15:28:47 GMT -5
I'm sure some of you have seen the recent pictures of Phil....and he really does look like needs serious help! Sad to say ((Hits)) He really does :idunno: So many talented individuals seem to have reality issues |
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