Los Angeles—Lawyers for both sides are setting the stage for the second trial of legendary record producer, Phil Spector on the charge of 1st Degree Murder. This is in connection with the tragic death of Lana Clarkson.Lana Clarkson a total stranger to Phil Spector, agreed to leave her job at the Hollywood House of Blues and go to Spector’s home spending the night.
Clarkson’s false eyelashes were left on a bathroom sink, and there is solid DNA evidence that she willingly engaged in sexual activity with Spector.
Sometime in the morning hours Clarkson who was addicted to and clearly under the influence of narcotic pain killers and alcohol suffered an intra-oral gunshot wound and expired in a chair.
The real question is, how did she get that way? I have extensively written about this case from the beginning and believe as does the defense that this wound was self-inflicted and not a crime. The absence of blood and tissue spray on either sleeve of Spector’s white dinner jacket tells the real story.
Some have painted a persona of Clarkson, a failed actress as angelic when the contrary was the case. Clarkson was a deeply troubled woman, who like most actors failed in Hollywood. Actor or not, substance abuse has never helped anyone’s career.
Clarkson was manipulative and conned her friends out of money as she raided their medicine cabinets in search of drugs for her addiction. On the night in question Clarkson seemed to be engaged in an act of sexual commerce with Phil Spector.
I suspect that Clarkson’s death was as a result of either suicide or her own drunken horseplay with a loaded gun. The horseplay angle makes the most sense to me personally.
In Spector’s life there were women, lots of them. Because Spector is a wealthy and famous record producer that attracted too often gold diggers, scam artists and many shady ladies. Spector has an absolute demonstrated weakness for the sexual power women enjoy over men.
That brings us to the Bimbo Parade. Over many decades Spector has had encounters with some women that were never worthy of sustained police investigation, prosecution or criminal conviction. These events did not cause any civil court to weigh in on claims against Spector. Some incidents led to unflattering articles in the gossip rags and unauthorized biographer's work products that cover Hollywood.
California passed a heavily lobbied law sought by prosecutors that’s been rejected by most other states. That led to the creation of 1101(b) in California’s evidence code. It allows prosecutor’s to bring in any testimony from anyone that alleges similar conduct involved in a current prosecution. There is no requirement of timeliness negating statutes of limitations, or any independent evidence.
1101(b) created a way for prosecutors to force defendants to stand trial for additional crimes never charged or that have never met the minimal required burden of Probable Cause. During the first trial these 1101(b) witnesses testified about accusations from more than 30 years ago. The most bizarre part of their testimony was that they were threatened by Spector with guns and continued to work for and sleep with him until Spector lost interest in their company.
Was being jilted or fired by Spector what’s really behind these claims? Perhaps it was the cash some received from tabloid publications that encouraged these women to disparage Spector’s character.
If the charge is murder I ask how a past event that did not even result in injury should now be placed into evidence as a suggestion of similar behavior to murdering? Judge Larry Paul Fidler allowed such material to taint, confuse and pollute the jury’s fact finding process.
One woman from the first trial, Diane Ogden has since died of a drug overdose and videotape of her former testimony will be played as the jury is kept in the dark about her drug use and mental condition we now know existed.
Spector’s lawyers have filed their strongest motion yet to eliminate this testimony that’s grossly unfair to Spector. The problem is that Judge Fidler has made nearly every court ruling he could against Spector and seems to do everything he can to convict the defendant. I don’t expect Judge Fidler will do the right thing now either.
Here is the 1101(B)related Defense motion now under consideration by the Judge:
GAWD, I love you.
ReplyDeleteSeriously.
You seem to say everything I'm thinking.
Whoa!
I'm not saying this a compliment to you, however.