Phil Spector was a legendary record producer of the 70s and 80s. He was a Grammy winner, a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, and scored a spot on Rolling Stone‘s list of the greatest artists in history. He’s also a convicted murderer. So where is Phil Spector now?
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The slaying of actress Lana Clarkson occurred on February 3, 2003, when she was found dead from a gunshot wound to the mouth in Spector’s mansion in Alhambra, California. He claimed that Clarkson’s death was an accidental suicide, but evidence and testimonies suggested otherwise.
After a lengthy legal process—it took authorities a year to press charges—Spector’s first trial in 2007 ended in a mistrial due to a hung jury. However, he was retried and in 2009, he was found guilty of second-degree murder. He was sentenced to 19 years to life in prison. Clarkson’s story is the subject of LA Homicide, a true crime docu-series from Dick Wolf.
Where is Phil Spector now?
Phil Spector died behind bars on January 17, 2021, after complications due to COVID-19, per the New York Times. The 81-year-old had been serving his sentence at California State Prison in Corcoran, though due to his declining health, he was moved to California Health Care Facility in Stockton in 2014. He is survived by his partner, Janis Zavala, and daughter, Nicole.
The events that led to his eventual conviction include four years of denial, weird claims, and bizarre court appearances. The prosecution alleged that, in the early morning of February 3, 2003, Spector’s chauffeur Adriano DeSouza was sitting in the producer’s black Mercedes outside the Pyrenees Castle.
DeSouza testified he heard a popping sound, after which Spector appeared, a gun in his hand, and said, “I think I killed somebody.” Spector would later tell friends that Clarkson’s death was an “accidental suicide,” even telling Esquire in 2003 that, “she kissed the gun.”
Authorities didn’t buy Spector’s story and the day after Clarkson’s death, he was arrested. Angered by the indictment, he told reporters that, “The actions of the Hitler-like DA and his stormtrooper henchmen are reprehensible, unconscionable and despicable,” per CBS News.
Spector’s first trial for the murder of Clarkson began in 2007. The prosecution argued that Spector had a history of threatening women with guns when they tried to leave him and that he had shot Clarkson in a fit of rage. His defense suggested she’d killed herself. The trial ended in a mistrial on September 26, 2007, due to a hung jury, which was deadlocked 10-2 in favor of conviction.
A year later, Spector was retried. The prosecution presented fresh evidence, including new witnesses who testified about Spector’s previous threats with guns. The defense maintained the suicide theory. On April 13, 2009, Spector was found guilty of second-degree murder.
On May 29, 2009, Spector was sentenced to 19 years to life in prison, with eligibility for parole after serving 19 years. He was also ordered to pay $16,811 in funeral costs and other fees. Spector’s legal team filed several appeals, all of which were unsuccessful. The conviction was upheld by the California Court of Appeal in 2011 and by the California Supreme Court later that year.
“Lana Clarkson was a warm, compassionate, kind, loving woman who would be 58 years old now. Her energy, brightness, and love of life have sustained her family since her murder 18 years ago in 2003,” Clarkson’s mother, Donna Clarkson, said in a statement at the news of Spector’s death, per AP.
LA Homicide is available to stream on Netflix.
