Mistrial in Spector murder case

Legendary rock producer Phil Spector will probably face a new trial in spring for the alleged murder of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson, his lawyer said Thursday. A judge declared a mistrial this week as jurors failed to reach a verdict. Clarkson died at Spector's California mansion in 2003 from a gunshot inside her mouth. The defense said it was an accident, or suicide.

What does it take for a celebrity to get convicted in L.A.? said Miki Turner on MSNBC.com. “O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake basically wore signs around their necks asking the jury to convict them,” and “Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and Nicole Richie all take turns taunting the legal system.” And now Spector gets a mistrial? It’s almost as if “the judicial system here intentionally blows these cases because it makes for better screenplays.”

It wasn't Spector's fame that spared him, said Henry Weinstein in the Los Angeles Times, it was his money. You know that Righteous Brothers song, “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin”? “Every time the song is played on the radio, producer and co-writer Phil Spector makes money.” Not to mention all his other hits. And the best investment he ever made with all that cash was his lawyer, Dennis Riordan, who played a major role in putting together jury instructions that led to a deadlock.

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Spector isn’t off the hook yet, said Daniel Kreps in RollingStone.com. The jury split 10-2 in favor of conviction, and the prosecution would have nailed him if it had gone for manslaughter instead of a second-degree murder conviction. If they aim lower next time, the smile will disappear from Spector's face. “He better make sure all his flamboyant suits are pressed and cleaned, as the curtain will rise on Act Two of this trial in the near future.”