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Spector Jurors Try Out Victim’s Chair

Panel role plays in field trip to producer’s mansion

By Heather McPherson, Newser User

Posted Aug 10, 2007 1:37 PM CDT

(Newser) – Jurors in Phil Spector’s murder trial got the full re-enactment experience in a trip to the record producer’s house yesterday, slumping back and playing dead in a replica of the chair where actress Lana Clarkson died. The field trippers asked permission to explore the case’s fine points firsthand, the Washington Post reports; the judge denied them makeshift gun pops.

They also sat in a sheriff's Crown Victoria parked near a gurgling fountain to see whether it seemed plausible that Spector’s chauffeur was mistaken when he thought he heard the accused say, “I think I killed somebody.” The defense claims the fountain confused the driver. Spector and his fourth wife stood by as the jurors scrutinized the scene.

[Images (6)]

[Videos (1)]

Linda Deutsch, an Associated Press special correspondent and designated court pool reporter, middle, briefs the media with a report of a visit to the home of music producer Phil Spector by a panel of... (Associated Press)

Alhambra Police Cpl. Sean Heckers stands outside the back gate of the mansion of music producer Phil Spector, as a panel of jurors visits the home Thursday, Aug. 9, 2007, in Alhambra, Calif. Spector,... (Associated Press)

Dr. Jan Leestma mimics the position of the body of Lana Clarkson as he testifies during Phil Spector's murder trial Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2007, in Los Angeles. Spector, 67, is accused of fatally shooting... (Associated Press)

Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler, overruling defense objections, says Thursday, Aug. 9, 2007, in Los Angeles that he will allow a woman to testify that music producer Phil Spector threatened her... (Associated Press)

Music producer Phil Spector attends his (Getty Images)

Music producer Phil Spector, left, listens to his defense attorney Christopher Plourd, during his murder trial Thursday, Aug. 9, 2007, in Los Angeles. Spector, 67, is accused of fatally shooting actress... (Associated Press)

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Spector Jurors Try Out Victim’s Chair