As previously reported, the second Phil Spector murder trial kicks off in LA later today, and could run into the New Year.
Insiders say that we can expect the retrial to run much the same course as the original court hearing, certainly in terms of the prosecution's case, which will again be led by chief prosecutor Alan Jackson. They seem confident they can win this time, even though last time round two jurors could not be convinced of Spector's guilt, leading to a mistrial being called. The District Attorney's spokeswoman, Sandi Gibbons, recently told reporters: "The facts don't change. The evidence we'll be presenting is the same evidence as the first trial. We feel that we have a very strong case".
As much previously reported, Spector is accused of shooting dead former actress Lana Clarkson at his Beverly Hills home in 2003. He claims she shot herself.
If the prosecution's case runs the same course as last time, we can expect a lengthy description of the night Spector picked up Clarkson at the LA club where she worked, up to and including the testimony of the legendary producer's former driver who was parked outside Spector's mansion when Clarkson was shot, and who claims his former boss appeared at a door with a gun in his hand declaring "I think I killed somebody".
The prosecution will also bring forward various women who will claim that at some point in the past Spector threatened them with violence, normally gun based, while they were alone with him, normally late at night. At least five such women are expected to testify, including Diane Ogden, who may be presented as a witness for a second time despite dying shortly after the original trial - some say a video of her original testimony will be shown to the jury. All this will be followed up with a bunch of forensic experts who will claim that blood spatters and the like at the crime scene they inspected the night of Clarkson's murder suggest Spector held the gun.
On the defence side, Spector has a new team in place led by one Doron Weinberg, so it's not clear if the producer's defence will follow the same course as last time. First time out the defence said its forensics case - with experts saying the blood spatters in fact suggested Clarkson shot herself - was stronger, though that all got caught up in that side show regarding allegations the defence team removed what could have been a key bit of evidence (a bit of nail) from the crime scene. In the end the defence's star forensic expert Henry Lee didn't appear.
Spector's original defence also did much to paint Clarkson as a tragic depressive on the verge of suicide. It is unclear if that line will be pursued so aggressively this time, with Weinberg simply telling reporters "we intend to rely on the same basic evidence" adding that at the core of the case is the theory that: "she fired the fatal shot".
Both sides will provide opening remarks in LA today.