Rachelle Spector (Los Angeles Times) |
LOS ANGELES -- Phil Spector's wife is speaking out about her husband's second-degree murder conviction, saying he's innocent and that she will stay by his side.
Rachelle Spector told KTLA that she believes actress Lana Clarkson accidentally shot and killed herself at Spector's Alhambra mansion in 2003. She says despite her husband's conviction, she still believes he has not been proven guilty.
"I want to stand up for what I believe in and I believe in his innocence. I have since I met him, since day one and up until this point almost six years later, I believe in his innocence" she said.
The 29-year-old was a constant presence at her 69-year-old husband's murder trials, the first of which ended in a hung jury.
During both trials, five women testified that Spector had pulled guns on them when he was drunk. From her seat in the front row of the courtroom, Rachelle Spector listened to their testimony and dismissed them.
Rachelle says she believes the women may have been motivated by money and that it was "just another scheme for the prosecution."
Phil Spector is currently serving 19-years-to-life in prison. He will not be eligible for parole until 2028, when he is 88.
A gag order barred Rachelle from speaking to the media, but with his sentencing, that order vanished.
Rachelle is now coordinating her husband's appeal and is serving as chief financial officer of his multimillion-dollar music businesses.
The former waitress and aspiring singer from Beaver Falls, Pa. met Spector some six years ago in a West Hollywood restaurant. She admits she didn't know who he was at first and that she had never heard of the "Wall of Sound" style that brought Spector renown four decades before.
But, she says, when she got to know him, she fell hard.
"I've always been attracted to older men and, I mean, when you meet him you just fall in love with him," she said. "He has an amazing sense of humor, I mean so funny it's unbelievable. And he's witty and so intelligent and, I mean, he is just a wonderful person... I just fell in love with him."
Rachelle knows their 40-year age difference and the fact that they wed while under indictment in 2006 make many doubt the sincerity of their relationship.
When asked if she's a so-called "gold-digger," Rachelle responded, "That's ridiculous and preposterous but, you know, people are going to think what they want to think and believe what they want to believe, and not everyone is going to like me."
She has also admitted the two were intimate 'all the time.'
Spector spent millions on his defense, and will spend more on his appeals. Rachelle lives alone in the heavily mortgaged Alhambra mansion where Clarkson was shot and would prefer to sell it. But, her husband wants to keep the residence.
In the foyer where Clarkson lost her life, a bouquet of roses are now seen with a message to Rachelle reading: "My dearest Rachelle, Although I am in prison, I am your prisoner of life. Love, Your loving husband, Phillip."
Rachelle insists that scientific evidence can still prove her husband's innocence, specifically blood spatter patterns on his shirt that she says are inconsistent with a homicide. She vows to do whatever she can to convince the public that her husband should not be in prison.
"It's like this poor, little man and he should be home and retired and enjoying his accomplishments that he worked so hard for and came from nothing."
Rachelle says life without her husband at home is "very lonely" and "depressing." But, she says, she remains realistic and realizes she's fighting "an uphill battle" as she works to get her husband home as quickly as possible.
Rachelle Spector told KTLA that she believes actress Lana Clarkson accidentally shot and killed herself at Spector's Alhambra mansion in 2003. She says despite her husband's conviction, she still believes he has not been proven guilty.
"I want to stand up for what I believe in and I believe in his innocence. I have since I met him, since day one and up until this point almost six years later, I believe in his innocence" she said.
The 29-year-old was a constant presence at her 69-year-old husband's murder trials, the first of which ended in a hung jury.
During both trials, five women testified that Spector had pulled guns on them when he was drunk. From her seat in the front row of the courtroom, Rachelle Spector listened to their testimony and dismissed them.
Rachelle says she believes the women may have been motivated by money and that it was "just another scheme for the prosecution."
Phil Spector is currently serving 19-years-to-life in prison. He will not be eligible for parole until 2028, when he is 88.
A gag order barred Rachelle from speaking to the media, but with his sentencing, that order vanished.
Rachelle is now coordinating her husband's appeal and is serving as chief financial officer of his multimillion-dollar music businesses.
The former waitress and aspiring singer from Beaver Falls, Pa. met Spector some six years ago in a West Hollywood restaurant. She admits she didn't know who he was at first and that she had never heard of the "Wall of Sound" style that brought Spector renown four decades before.
But, she says, when she got to know him, she fell hard.
"I've always been attracted to older men and, I mean, when you meet him you just fall in love with him," she said. "He has an amazing sense of humor, I mean so funny it's unbelievable. And he's witty and so intelligent and, I mean, he is just a wonderful person... I just fell in love with him."
Rachelle knows their 40-year age difference and the fact that they wed while under indictment in 2006 make many doubt the sincerity of their relationship.
When asked if she's a so-called "gold-digger," Rachelle responded, "That's ridiculous and preposterous but, you know, people are going to think what they want to think and believe what they want to believe, and not everyone is going to like me."
She has also admitted the two were intimate 'all the time.'
Spector spent millions on his defense, and will spend more on his appeals. Rachelle lives alone in the heavily mortgaged Alhambra mansion where Clarkson was shot and would prefer to sell it. But, her husband wants to keep the residence.
In the foyer where Clarkson lost her life, a bouquet of roses are now seen with a message to Rachelle reading: "My dearest Rachelle, Although I am in prison, I am your prisoner of life. Love, Your loving husband, Phillip."
Rachelle insists that scientific evidence can still prove her husband's innocence, specifically blood spatter patterns on his shirt that she says are inconsistent with a homicide. She vows to do whatever she can to convince the public that her husband should not be in prison.
"It's like this poor, little man and he should be home and retired and enjoying his accomplishments that he worked so hard for and came from nothing."
Rachelle says life without her husband at home is "very lonely" and "depressing." But, she says, she remains realistic and realizes she's fighting "an uphill battle" as she works to get her husband home as quickly as possible.
