Phil Spector Trial

  TORONTO - "Late Show" bandleader Paul Shaffer says his friendship with convicted murderer Phil Spector has not wavered in the wake of the music producer's incarceration. The late-night TV sidekick said Friday that he even plans to visit Spector in prison as soon as he gets the chance, noting they've been friends for 20 years. "We went out to hear jazz together and I got to be in the recording studio with him watching him work," Shaffer said during a brief stop in Toronto to promote his recently released memoir, "We'll Be Here for the Rest of Our Lives." "I think of all ... Read Full Story

Music producer Phil Spector, surrounded by his defense team, looks back to the gallery during closing arguments in the retrial murder case of Spector at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center on March 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Spector, 67, is accused of fatally shooting 40-year-old Lana Clarkson in February 2003. The first trial for this murder was declared a mistrial in September 26, 2007. (Photo by Lawrence K. Ho-Pool/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Phil Spector, (Getty Images) more pics » Music producer Phil Spector has been sentenced to 19 years to life in prison for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson ... Read Full Story

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Music producer and convicted murderer Phil Spector says life behind bars is driving him "insane". "This 24/7 lockdown life is slowly driving me insane and killing (me)," Spector, 69, wrote in a letter to a fan that was posted online on Friday. Spector, who revolutionized pop music in the 1960s with his "Wall of Sound" production technique, was convicted in April of the 2003 murder of actress Lana Clarkson and later sentenced to a minimum of 19 years in prison. In the letter written in July to a fan that was obtained by pop culture website Gawker.com, Spector complained that ... Read Full Story

Music legend and convicted murderer Phil Spector, who complained recently about his prison quarters but later said he wanted to stay put, is being moved to make room for inmates requiring outpatient mental health treatment, a corrections spokeswoman said Tuesday. "It's not about Spector. It's about getting services to other inmates," said California Department of Corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton. Spector and other prisoners will be going to Pleasant Valley State Prison in Coalinga, where the other most notorious prisoner is Erik Menendez, convicted with his brother Lyle of murdering their millionaire parents in 1993. Spector, 69, has been at the California Substance Abuse Treatment ... Read Full Story

Music producer Phil Spector's transfer to a different prison has been halted, but the prison and Spector's wife are giving different reasons for the reversal. Spector and his wife said Friday that they made special appeals based on his physical ailments to keep him from being moved to Pleasant Valley State Prison. They believe officials heeded their pleas. But a prison spokesman, who confirmed speaking with Spector's wife, says the action was business as usual, and that the prison system moves its inmates around daily. Spector, 69, is serving 19 years to life for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson. For the time being, ... Read Full Story