Phil Spector ~ 19 years to Life

Phil Spector now has a minimum of 19 years to contemplate what happened between himself and Lana Clarkson on February 3rd, 2003. Judge Fidler handed down the mandatory 15 years to life for the Murder 2 conviction and then gave Phil an additional 4 years for the use of a gun in the commission of the crime. He could have chosen 3, 4 or 10 years for the gun enhancement, but went along with the prosecution's recommendation. I am not going to detail out what happened during the brief hearing yesterday because it's been written up thoroughly and much better than I could on other sites. For instance, check out Sprocket's Trials & Tribulations. She was there in the courtroom and was blogging in real time, giving her readers a moment by moment description of what happened in the courtroom. Go here and scroll down to the bottom of the post, then read back up towards the top.

If you want to see his face as Judge Fidler pronounces the sentence, here's a video for you:

Note that at the end of the hearing when everyone stands as the judge exits, Phil stays seated until a bailiff directs him to stand and leave the room. Phil never looked over his shoulder at his trial bride, his son nor his supporters who showed up. He also seemed to have trouble keeping his eyes open for what was going on. Speculation is that he was under pain medications still since he'd had a surgery on Wednesday to remove polyps from his throat. One has to wonder how many surgeries he's had for those polyps in the last year or so. There were two delays in the trial due to medical treatment on his throat, and now it's reported that he was at UCLA having the surgery just this week! Interesting, huh?

Phil's attorney, Doron Weinberg practically begged for Judge Fidler to order Phil's transfer into State custody as soon as possible and to have his medical records travel with him. The Judge refused to put an "order" on the record and stated that he was sure that the Sheriff would be giving Phil over to the State without much delay. Later, I found an article by Harriet Ryan in the LA Times where Weinberg "explained" why they wanted the transfer hurried up.

Spector's lawyer said his client was focused on his appeal and eager to get through with the sentencing so he could move to a prison facility nicer than the jail where he has been held since the conviction.

"Nicer"? He thinks a prison facility is going to be "nicer" than jail? Ok... I'll be interested to see which facility Phil's going to be staying in for the next 20 or so years. Not that it's likely that he will be paroled at the end of his "19 years" because parole boards usually expect a prisoner to face up to what they've done and show some remorse. Does anyone think Phil Spector is going to ever admit to what he did that morning back in February of 2003?

Rest in peace, Lana. Your murderer is now beginning his penance for the crime he committed.

Something Different; Yuba Dam

I'll leave you with some humor today.. But first I'll tell you how I found it. I was reading a newspaper article in the local paper's website that talks about a problem that is going on with one of the old cemeteries in the area. Apparently there is a huge conflict going on between the powers that be in the city of Marysville and the volunteers that are trying to restore the old cemetery. The whole story is a mess and it comes down to the city locking the volunteers out of the cemetery after the city workers destroyed some of the volunteers work while they "mowed the lawns". One of the comments below the article mentioned an old poem called "Yuba Dam" and I got curious. Good old Google found the poem for me among the books that Google has digitized. The book is "Poems" By Charles James which was printed in 1903. (By the way, the city of Marysville is in Yuba County.. Hence the reference to "Yuba Dam".. lol)

YUBA DAM

The sun was shimmering all the West,
And gilding all the yellow main,
And casting shadows from the crest
Of gilded mountains to the plain,
As laboring up a water course
A traveler pricked his weary horse;
When all at once upon his sight
Burst a fair village, clean and bright.

He asked a miner whom he met,
If he could give its name: "You bet!"
Pray do, my friend and do not sham."
The miner answered, "Yuba Dam."

"Kind. gentle friend, do not abuse
My ignorance; I cry a truce
To thy bold wit; come tell me true,
I would not ask it if I knew,
But I, dear sir a stranger am."
Quick roared the miner, "Yuba Dam!"

Disheartened, on the stranger pressed,
And overtook a mincing dame,
With flaxen hair and silken vest,
And begged of her the village's name.
She oped her sweet lips like a clam
And simpered gently, "Yuba Dam."

On tore the stranger, nearly wild,
And came upon an artless child;
She had a satchel on her arm,
While o'er her face stole many a charm.
"Where have you been?" the stranger said;
The maid uplifted quick her head
And answered with the ready truth
And open frankness of her youth
"At school." "Who keeps it?" "Uncle Sam."
"What is this place, sweet?" "Yuba Dam."

"Alas!" he screamed, in frantic grief,
"Will no one come to my relief?
Will no one tell me where I am?"
The school boys shouted "Yuba Dam!"
And on the bridge, as he did slam
The planks re echoed, "Yuba Dam."

"Perdition seize the place!" he cried,
As through the streets he swiftly hied.
Yet ere he went to bed that night,
From something told him by a wight,
He found that he himself had shammed,
And that the Yuba had been dammed.

Hmm.. I suppose you'd have to know a bit about this area in order to understand how the Yuba was "dammed"... lol..