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Phil Spector trial delayed again
Murder case won't head to court until after the four-year anniversary of shooting death of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson.
Phil Spector--and his permed-out Wall of Hair--won't be heading to court until March 2007.
Phil Spector in court in 2005.
The renowned rock producer's long-delayed murder trial has been postponed yet again, this time to allow his attorneys additional time to finish scientific and forensic testing. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Larry P. Fidler granted his attorneys' request to move the trial from January 16 to March 5, 2007, according to the Los Angeles District Attorney's office.
It's the fifth delay in the case, which stems from the February 2003 shooting death of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson. The 66-year-old Spector has pleaded not guilty to one count of murder in the case and remains free on $1 million bail.
The case has been previously delayed by scheduling conflicts by the prosecutor and the judge, Spector's decision to change attorneys, and subsequent requests to allow more time for discovery and evidence analysis.
That means that Spector will not go trial until more than four years have passed since Clarkson died at his home. Spector, famed for his Wall of Sound recording technique, has claimed Clarkson committed suicide, saying the 40-year-old star of Barbarian Queen, "kissed the gun" in the early morning hours on February 3.
But prosecutors will likely base their case on Spector alleged apology for accidentally killing Clarkson. Prosecutors have also been given permission to introduce evidence of Spector's past misbehavior involving his firearms collection, including pulling guns on artists like Leonard Cohen and the Ramones in the studio.
The delay means that Clarkson's family's wrongful death civil suit against Spector will also be delayed, as attorneys in that case are hoping to use evidence introduced in the criminal case in their own proceedings.
Aside from the criminal and civil cases stemming from Clarkson's death, he was slapped with a $5 million sexual harassment lawsuit in March by a former personal assistant, Michelle Blaine. That complaint was in response to Spector's 2005 suit against Blaine, claiming she embezzled thousands of dollars from him over the years.
In a related case in June, a Los Angeles judge threw out part of a suit filed against Blaine by Spector's accountant, David Neste, accusing her of fraud and mishandling funds.
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