Speculating About Spector’s Fate

May 27 is the next courtroom stop on Spector’s appointment calendar. That’s when Judge Larry Paul Fidler pronounces his fate for what could very well be the rest of his life.

Spector, who now faces a mandatory life sentence but could be released on parole after serving 18 years, sat quietly through the trial and showed no obvious reaction to the verdict, although the Los Angeles Times reported that his mouth “gaped slightly.” Seated in the spectators’ gallery, his 28-year-old wife Rachelle broke into tears.

Spector was also found guilty of using a firearm in committing a crime.

It is the grand finale for a man who created the “wall of sound” technique that drove records to the top of the charts. Starting in the 1950s when Spector wrote and produced “To Know Him Is To Love Him” by his high school group The Teddy Bears, Spector would amass a string of hits producing recordings for just about anybody who is now somebody in pop’s annals, including Connie Francis, The Ronettes, Ike & Tina Turner, The Beatles and The Ramones.

Despite his success, Spector also had a dark side, and prosecutors in both trials argued he had a history of threatening women with firearms. The first trial resulted in a deadlocked jury that was 10 to 2 in favor of conviction. Yesterday’s second-degree conviction did not require a unanimous verdict.

At the core of the case was whether Spector or Clarkson pulled the trigger. Although the star of the 1985 cult classic “Barbarian Queen” died of a gunshot wound to the mouth, Spector’s lawyers argued that the actress pulled the trigger while prosecutors claimed it was another episode of Spector being Spector – talking tough while brandishing firearms. Unfortunately for Clarkson, he went too far.

Neither side disagreed about the events leading up to Clarkson’s death. With her acting career in limbo, Clarkson was working as a hostess in West Hollywood at the House of Blues’ private Foundation room when she met Spector on February 3, 2003. The couple talked for a while and agreed to go to his Alhambra mansion for drinks. Hours later she was dead from a gunshot wound in the mouth.

Through both trials, defense lawyers argued that the 40-year-old Clarkson committed suicide, but when it came time to decide Spector’s fate, jurors in the second trial delivered the verdict that the producer was ultimately responsible for the actress’ death.

Clarkson’s mother and sister were in the courtroom, but declined to speak to the press because the family is pursuing a wrongful death civil action against Spector. However, the family’s attorney did address reporters, saying, “The family is pleased that the jury rejected distortions of Lana Clarkson’s life.”

To say prosecutors are also pleased with the verdict would be an understatement. High-profile murder trials resulting in acquittals for celebrities, specifically football legend O.J. Simpson and actor Robert Blake, made it appear that L.A. justice worked differently for the famous than it did for common folk.

Said Deputy District Attorney Alan Jackson: “It feels fantastic, this is the type of day prosecutors live for.”

Click here for the Los Angeles Times article.

Click here for Associated Press’ coverage of the verdict.