Supreme Court rejects Phil Spector

22 February 2012

by Shannon Andreucci

Phil Spector’s latest fight for freedom has failed, after the US Supreme Court rejected the renowned music producer’s appeal against his murder conviction.

Spector, 72, who was found guilty of actress Lana Clarkson’s death in 2009, argued that his constitutional rights were infringed when Los Angeles Superior Court Judge, Larry Paul Fidler, shared his opinion about an expert’s testimony, essentially making himself a witness for the prosecution.

Defence attorney Dennis Riordan submitted the same argument that the prosecution’s use of the trial judge’s videotaped comments was a breach of his client’s right to a fair trial to state appellate justices.

However, the court declined to review the case and Spector will continue to serve his original sentence of 19 years to life in prison.

This is not the first time Spector’s legal team has launched an appeal against the verdict handed down three years ago. In 2010, it was unsuccessfully argued that five testimonies given by women who alleged Spector threatened them were improperly used during the trial, and most recently, the California Supreme Court denied a similar request this month to review the case over a claim of violated due process rights.

The rock music impresario was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 and was responsible for creating the Wall of Sound recording technique, which he used in producing the work of artists such as; The Beatles, The Ramones, The Ronettes and the Righteous Brothers.

Watch an interview with Spector in 2005, conducted before his conviction

Spector also produced He Hit Me (But It Felt Like A Kiss) by The Crystals.