Murder trial begins for Phil Spector

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Jury selection began on Monday in the murder trial of pioneering rock producer Phil Spector, who came to court in Los Angeles sporting a new blond, Beatles-style shag and smiling broadly as he made his way past photographers.

The trial gets under way more than four years after B-movie actress Lana Clarkson was killed at Spector's faux castle outside Los Angeles on February 3, 2003, and it promises to be the biggest celebrity court case since pop star Michael Jackson's 2005 acquittal on child molestation charges.

A smiling Spector, 67, arrived at court like one of the 1960s rock stars he made his name producing -- escorted by lawyers and beefy bodyguards. He was greeted by a throng of photographers, his once-wild hair newly styled into a blond moptop reminiscent of the Beatles.

Opening statements are still more than a month away, following a lengthy jury selection process in which Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler and the lawyers will pick 12 jurors from a pool of 300 people.

Spector, best known for his innovative "Wall of Sound" recording technique and work with The Beatles, The Ronettes, The Righteous Brothers, Tina Turner and Cher, left at the noon break and was not expected to return on Monday.

The judge has ruled that the trial can be broadcast live, making it the biggest celebrity case to be televised from Los Angeles since O.J. Simpson was acquitted of murder in 1995, bringing scorn on the city's legal system. Fifty news organizations asked for seats.

Prosecutors and defence lawyers both say Clarkson, 40-year-old star of such films as "Amazon Women on the Moon" and "Barbarian Queen," met Spector the night before her death while working as a waitress at a Sunset Strip rock club.

There is no dispute that the actress was killed early the next morning by a single shot from a .38-calibre revolver in the foyer of Spector's mansion, which was designed to resemble a castle.

But the two sides disagree on the fundamental question of who pulled the trigger: Prosecutors say it was Spector, who according to pre-trial hearings owned a dozen guns and had pulled them on women in the past.

Defence lawyers say Clarkson put the gun in her mouth and shot herself. It was not clear whether Spector, who has said he hates being in the public eye, would take the stand.