Spector Free as Jury Fails to Reach Verdict

Sept. 27, 2007 — -- Legendary music producer Phil Spector walked out of a Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday after a judge declared a mistrial in his murder trial in the death of actress Lana Clarkson

"There is deep regret that we were unable to reach a unanimous verdict," a juror said.

After 12 days of deliberations, two of the jurors could not be persuaded. The jury met for about 44 hours, according to The Associated Press.

"We will seek the court's permission to retry the case and begin immediately to prepare for a retrial," District Attorney Steve Cooley said in a statement, according to the AP.

An Oct. 3 hearing is set to decide whether Spector should be retried for the 2003 murder of Clarkson.

Spector-Clarkson Back Story

Clarkson died the same night she met Spector at her job as a nightclub hostess. The 40-year-old went home with Spector and died in his mansion's foyer. A gunshot wound to the mouth killed her. The gun belonged to Spector.

A 911 phone call by Spector's then-driver Adriano De Souza recorded the panic.

De Souza: "I think my boss just killed somebody."

911 Operator: He killed somebody?

Da Souza: Yes, sir.

The gun that killed Clarkson had no fingerprints on it and afterward, Spector, whose producing credits are a who's who of rock 'n' roll history, was charged with the murder.

Bizarre Trial

Almost as soon as the trial began, it was marked by bizarre moments, punctuated by Spector's seemingly ever-changing hairstyles.

A slew of women testified that Spector had terrified them with guns previously. "He pointed a gun at my head," said witness Devra Robitaille.

On the witness stand, Kathy Sullivan also spoke about her experience with Spector. "[I] don't know if it was a rifle or not, but it was a big gun," she said.

The defense combated such testimony with its own group of witnesses, which included high-profile experts who said Clarkson had committed suicide — most likely because her career was on the skids.

"A lot of people thought the defense was foolish in even arguing that and undermined its own credibility," said Loyola law professor Stan Goldman. "And yet apparently that argument was persuasive with the jurors who voted for not guilty."

Spector never took the stand in his own defense.