The music producer's reputation for mixing guns and alcohol could hurt him. Jury selection begins Monday.
Phil Spector never denied he wagged a pistol at a member of the Ramones or fired off a shot during a studio session with John Lennon. The music industry loves edgy characters, especially when they churn out chart-topping hits as the influential music producer once did. But now, with his murder trial approaching, his reputation for drunken gunplay is coming back like a vicious ricochet.
"He always had that habit of showing off guns when he was drinking; it's what he did, it was his thing," said Larry Levine, the recording engineer who sat next to Spector in the studio for years. "And now, well, all of that is going to be part of this trial. I don't know what happened on that night, but the jury will have to figure it out."
Many fascinating details here from the Los Angeles Times.