Phil Spector's lawyer Robert Shapiro has told the Associated Press that police jumped the gun (so to speak) when they denied rumours that the actress Lana Clarkson may have died through 'accidental suicide', rumours which exonerated Spector of responsibility for her death. He told reporters yesterday: "I am convinced that the thorough and accurate investigation of the evidence by the Los Angeles sheriff's department, its criminalists and the county coroner will prove that Phil Spector is innocent of any crime."
LA police sheriff Frank Merriman earlier this week denied reports that their finding was likely to be 'accidental suicide' after emails circulating around friends of the producer, and apparently one from Spector himself, suggested such a conclusion was upcoming. He told reporters no one in his department had talked about suicide and that it was his opinion the e-mail was meant to plant seeds of doubt in potential jurors.