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Music Legend Phil Spector Convicted of Second-Degree Murder
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Instead of an engineering a "wall of sound," legendary record producer Phil Spector will be living behind a prison wall. Spector was convicted today of second-degree murder in the 2003 shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson. Clarkson was found dead in Spector's mansion from a gunshot fired in her mouth. Spector's defense team claimed Clarkson committed suicide. The jury didn't buy it. According to reports, second-degree murder carries a penalty of 15 years to life behind bars. This was Spector's second trial. The first one deadlocked in 2007.
It's all very bizarre. Testimonies revealed Spector having a history of eccentric and violent behavior toward women. It's also been well-documented that past business associates and family members have believed him to be mentally disturbed. Indeed, Ronnie Spector, lead singer of the Ronettes, who was married to Spector from 1968-1974, wrote in her autobiography that he frequently pulled out guns and threatened to kill her.
Mental illness appears to run in Spector's family. According to singer Carol Connors who sang with Spector in the group the Teddy Bears during the late 1950s, Spector's father committed suicide and his sister was mentally disturbed. Connors has said that Spector's mother wasn't quite "right" either. Spector himself has acknowledged taking medication for mental illness. For whatever reason, however, a plea of mental insanity didn't appear to be an option.
This is a sad ending for a man whose productions by the Righteous Brothers, the Ronettes, The Crystals, Ike & Tina Tuner and the Beatles will endure forever.
Photo: Phil Spector at his trial in 2007 (Sydney Morning Herald)
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