Broken foot halts Spector trial

Spector, 68, faces a minimum of 15 years in prison if convicted

The first day of testimony in US music producer Phil Spector's murder retrial was cancelled on Thursday after an alternate juror broke his foot.

The juror fell in the court's parking lot. An alternate juror replaces a regular juror who unexpectedly becomes unable to complete the trial.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler said he was reluctant to lose an alternate juror this early in the case.

Mr Spector denies shooting actress Lana Clarkson at his mansion in 2003.

The first scheduled witness, retired New York City police detective Vincent Tannazzo, was in court on Thursday ready to testify.

He was ordered to return on Monday when proceedings will resume. The court is not in session on Fridays.

'Sinister and violent'

The retrial opened on Wednesday with an opening statement from Spector's lawyer, Doron Weinberg, casting the shooting of Lana Clarkson as a probable suicide.

Prosecutor Alan Jackson, meanwhile, pledged to show jurors "the real Phil Spector" - a woman-hater who could become "very sinister, very violent and very deadly".

Clarkson was found dead in the foyer of Spector's Californian home with a gunshot through her mouth in February 2003. There were no witnesses to the shooting.

Spector's first trial was declared a mistrial a year ago when jurors failed to reach a decision.

The producer, known for creating the "Wall of Sound" recording technique, faces a minimum of 15 years to life in prison if he is found guilty of second degree murder.

The new trial is expected to last four months.

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