Mistrial declared as Phil Spector murder case deadlocked
LOS ANGELES (AFP) — A mistrial was declared in the murder trial of legendary music producer Phil Spector on Wednesday after jurors said they were deadlocked, despite a clear majority believing he was guilty.
Judge Larry Paul Fidler discharged jurors at Los Angeles Superior Court after they said they were hopelessly stuck at 10-2 in favor of a conviction after 12 days of deliberations in the five-month-long hearing.
Prosecutors said they would seek a fresh trial for Spector, who is accused of shooting dead B-movie actress Lana Clarkson at his mansion-like Los Angeles home in February 2003.
"We are disappointed the jury was unable to reach a verdict," the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office said. "We will seek the court's permission to re-try the case and begin immediately to prepare for a re-trial."
Spector, 67, sat impassively as the mistrial was declared, flanked by his high-powered legal team. He was later ushered from the court protected by a bodyguard without commenting to a scrum of media.
John Taylor, an attorney for Clarkson's family, said he was in favor of a retrial. "We will not rest until justice is done," Taylor said.
A member of the jury who spoke to reporters after the trial said he was adamant that Spector was guilty, citing the producer's failure to call emergency services in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.
"In my opinion, he acted like a guilty man," he said.
Earlier, lead prosecutor Alan Jackson had consoled Clarkson's mother after the hung jury was announced. "I'm very, very sorry," he whispered to Donna Clarkson, who had attended the trial throughout.
Prosecutors had alleged that the reclusive Spector shot Clarkson as she attempted to leave his home after meeting him for the first time only hours earlier at the Hollywood nightclub where she worked.
Defense lawyers said Clarkson, 40, 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.
Spector is regarded as one of the most influential figures in rock-pop music history. In the early 1960s he was responsible for hits including "Da Doo Ron Ron," "Be My Baby, Baby" and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin.'"
Famed for his work with The Beatles, Tina Turner, The Righteous Brothers, The Ronettes and The Ramones, Spector faced 15 years to life in prison if he had been found guilty of second degree murder.
During the trial, prosecutors painted a picture of Spector as a gun-crazed eccentric with a "rich history of violence" towards women whenever they attempted to leave him.
No fewer than five female acquaintances testified that Spector had threatened them at gunpoint in incidents dating back to the 1970s.
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 to say: "I think I killed somebody."
Only weeks before Clarkson's killing, Spector had given a rare interview where he described himself as "relatively insane."
Defense lawyers however argued that there was no forensic evidence to convict Spector, pointing to the absence of gunshot residue on his hands and clothing.
Spector's trial was the latest in a series of celebrity cases in California that have failed to end in a guilty verdict, following earlier acquittals for O.J Simpson, "King of Pop" Michael Jackson and actor Robert Blake.
Legal analysts meanwhile said over-confident prosecutors had erred by gambling on an "all-or-nothing" approach to the case, failing to give jurors the option of finding Spector guilty of manslaughter.
"The prosecutors blundered by trying to specifically pinpoint how the victim was killed," said Jody Armour, a law professor at the University of Southern California. "They should simply have said he either 'Killed her with malice or he killed her accidentally -- but he definitely killed her'."
Michael Brennan, an expert in criminal defense at USC, said he doubted Spector's fame had played a part in the trial outcome.
"I don't think Spector's celebrity in itself was a factor. Most people had never heard of him until a few years ago. But indirectly it was a factor because he could afford extremely good attorneys to defend him."
Record producer Mogul Phil Spector murder case declared a mistrial
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Originally Posted by purecarnagge
