The Sultan Of Sleaze Has Left the Building

Phoenix-47 year-old David Hans Schmidt was found dead in his townhouse of an apparent suicide. Schmidt was a reporter, turned publicist, turned wheeler-dealer, turned admitted extortionist who began his current career in earnest when he represented disgraced Olympic skater Tonya Harding helping her sell her own raunchy honeymoon video.

Schmidt liked to stay close to TV reporters and such always looking for a fast buck for information. Soon the reporters I know distanced themselves from Schmidt and his nefarious merchandise.

Too often Schmidt’s schemes had an extortionate odor to them as he made or tried to make deals with various celebrities such as O.J. Simpson, Paris Hilton, and Hugh Grant. Schmidt would try to “sell” the star's salacious and embarrassing items such as photos and videos he’d somehow gain control over.

Schmidt got a lot more than he anticipated when he tried to sell Mr.& Mrs. Tom Cruise copies of their own private wedding photographs. He was tethered to an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet while out on on a hefty bail. That along with an impending stretch in federal prison proved too much for Schmidt to handle.

Schmidt was no stranger to jail cells after his last marriage brought serious spousal abuse and contempt of court allegations.

One thing for sure, the Sultan was definitely one of the more unforgettable characters I have met. Perhaps there is a lesson here for others that wish to compete for Schmidt’s Sultan's title.

The Sultan’s website still can be found right here.

Did The L.A. County DA Violate Phil Spector’s Rights?

During the Phil Spector trial testimony we all learned that the normal investigative procedure for the L.A. County Coroner’s Office was obstructed by the District Attorney’s office. Lana Clarkson suffered a fatal intra-oral gunshot wound and based on early statements made by Phil Spector that this was an “accidental suicide” a standard psychological autopsy was both warranted and needed. The goal of such post-mortem examinations is to learn the true manner and cause of death with the history of the decedent’s alcohol, drug abuse and depression issues.

There was no psychological autopsy because DA’s office officials conspired with L.A. Coroner’s Office officials to engage in a cover-up to hide this crucial evidence from the defense, Superior Court, Grand Jury and ultimately any trial jury. This was a case of deliberate obstruction of justice rather than a simple mistake. It was done in an effort to frame the suspect Phil Spector on a bogus murder charge.

Phil Spector has the option of bringing an action in either federal or state court for the violation of his civil rights. The immediate impact of such a lawsuit would be the removal of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office from further proceedings because a conflict of interest would be established. Instead a special prosecutor would have to be named by the court to retry Phil Spector for murder.

The ultimate legal question I have is could this also force an end to further attempts to prosecute Phil Spector? Another question is also raised about the ability of Judge Larry Paul Fidler to hear this case. That’s because Judge Fidler may well have become a co-conspirator after he ruled against much of the psychological evidence produced by the defense from being disclosed to the jury.

Spector’s New Defense Team For Yet Another Trial

I’ve known a lot of criminal lawyers in my time and have worked with the Some of the best anywhere. Unfortunately there are a large number of media hounds that make high profiles for themselves as their clients go to prison.

I put some serious thought into who should be the new lead lawyer for Phil Spector. As the readers of this blog know, I sincerely believe Philip Spector is an innocent man. I would not wish on Spector any more of the headline grabbers or legal pundits.

My first choice would be Bay Area lawyer Gerald Schwartzbach who won a not guilty verdict for actor Robert Blake. Schwartzbach is brilliant, charming and has a great style. For a second chair I’d go with appellant lawyer, Dennis Riordan who was a late entry to the old team.

Spector had lots of great experts but lacked a needed firearms expert like author, Massad F Ayoob who’s been on the right side of some nearly impossible cases.

For investigators I can recommend myself to work with a little gal Schwartzbach used for Robert Blake’s case.

The defense can't be run by TV personalities but rather great speakers that will fill the empty defense holes like why Spector relied on the limo driver to call for help and the inexcusable 40 minutes that went by before police responded. Both of these things were used against Spector and were easily explained.

Mistrial Declared in Phil Spector’s Case

The vote was 10-2 in favor of a murder conviction against the legendary record producer Phil Spector. Judge Fidler did all that he could to unfairly lead the jury to a conviction. Under these circumstances the mistrial is a huge defense victory.

Further court action including dealing with the L.A. District Attorney’s announced decision to try this case again has taken place. The involved lawyers will get whatever feedback the jury will give them and use it to formulate their game plans. The lawyers will be back in court next Wednesday for further proceedings. Judge Fidler had what could only be described as a sour grapes facial expression as he announced the mistrial. Prosecutor Alan Jackson has tears in his eyes.

I suspect that prosecutors will have an even more difficult time with their witnesses as they forget the lies they told during the first trial. Of course the parade of bimbos from the ranks of Spector’s old bedmates may well be reluctant to face cross-examination again. I know the defense has some new questions for these ladies based on brand new information.

The good news here is the conviction train has come to a halt at least for now. It’s time for Judge Fidler to recuse from this case. I hope the next jury is sequestered by a new judge and there is at least an attempt at fairness.

New Spector Jury Deadlock Announcement @ 1:30 PM today

The jury and Judge Fidler communicated with each other this morning. The clerk announced that the jury ended deliberations and the Judge will have a court session at 1:30 PM.

We will again hear the word MISTRIAL!

This can only mean a final deadlock. Perhaps we will soon know the current split of the jury's vote and its direction. Of course Judge Fidler will be unhappy and may try again to force a conviction with some new scheme.

Was Judge Larry Paul Fidler threatened?

Los Angeles County Sheriff's officers have launched an investigation into a MY SPACE posting under Phil Spector's young wife's name today. That posting has since vanished from the site.

It’s no secret that I’m no fan of Judge Larry Paul Fiddler’s handling of Phil Spector’s murder trial. The judge has consistently ruled to make conviction a sure thing. He’s allowed the prosecution unusually wide leeway of what they could use against Spector. I hate Fidler’s actions because they threaten every American’s rights.

I met the judge nearly five years ago when he and that attractive Court TV reporter/lawyer, Beth Karas gave a seminar that I attended at the Investigative Reporters and Editor’s conference in San Francisco. Judge Fidler was as nice a fellow as I’ve ever met. Fidler struck me as knowledgeable, glib, articulate, and a fun kind of guy. Fidler seemed very fond of news reporters.

When Phil Spector was indicted I came to the courtroom and saw a not so small but opinionated army of reporters and Phil Spector book authors. Some went out of their way to share sordid stories and gossip about Phil Spector along with their theories of his absolute guilt. This seemed like an open and shut case to me but that changed, as the government’s case just did not add up to me.

I know that many of these reporters and authors had conversations with Judge Fidler who quickly learned what the popular media accepted conclusions were of Phil Spector’s guilt.

I’m not sure what influenced Judge Fidler to so aggressively attach himself to the prosecution side of this case. Fidler’s not wavered in his slant and effort to destroy Phil Spector’s life. Judge Fidler's actions did not fail to anger lawyers, friends and family members.

Nobody has the right to threaten anyone including a rogue judge. There are however thinly veiled threats that powerless people make against others. “If, you weren’t an old man, I’d knock you down” is one that comes to mind. Wishing or suggesting someone deserves to die or should die may be really ugly but is protected speech under the First Amendment.

Did Rachelle Spector threaten Judge Fidler on a My Space page? Do the words, “The evil judge should die!” constitute a threat? I notice that no judge was identified or singled out by name. Just who is the “evil judge”? If that statement qualified as a threat against Judge Fidler then the author of the threat has to be determined and that may not be so simple. Occasionally judges are murdered in America and some people don’t need much of a reason to kill others. Accordingly it’s the sworn duty of the L.A. Sheriff’s officers to error on the side of caution to keep our judges safe.

One thing for sure no matter what side of the Phil Spector case you’re on, emotions are running very high and some people are saying things they should not be saying. I’d like to think that all Americans would want a valid and just end to the trial of Phil Spector rather than a verdict based on hate and vague theories.

Can Phil Spector Be Retried For Murder?

The murder trial of Phil Spector can be called nothing but a pseudo-legal train wreck. Judicial abuses and excesses designed to do anything but grant Spector a fair trial appeared at every opportunity. The damage done to Spector’s due process rights under our constitution is now well established.

From the abuse of judicial discretion by bringing in alleged witnesses claiming Spector engaged in gunplay in unreported and uncharged,long past events well before many of the jurors were born. Another huge problem I have is their stories are all exactly tailored to fit articles published well before the women came forward. When witnesses testify and use identical words, gestures and phrases it’s always a sure sign of perjury. That’s what happened here..

Today it’s obvious that the jury is deadlocked, evenly divided 5-7 because half the jury saw through the hate and lies. Half chose to simply stick with the scientific physical evidence. I hope damage done to Phil Spector by Judge Fidler’s agenda will never cause this jury to surrender to this judicial miscreant. The problem with judges is that sometimes they gain mind control over a jury the same as Charles Manson gained control over his murderous family. The results and verdicts tainted by this kind of judicial influence can turn out to be very unjust.

Just recently many of our most renowned law experts from our most prestigious law schools have not minced words about Judge Fidler’s “new” jury instructions that contain much more than the very strong odor of jury tampering.

The prosecutorial misconduct began with the government’s cover-up of Lana Clarkson’s mental state by derailing a normally mandated medical examiner’s psychological autopsy of this deeply troubled woman. That along with the ever-growing list of biased and prejudicial rulings from Judge Larry Paul Fidler damaged this internationally broadcast murder trial far beyond repair. No second trial can free itself from the sensational and permanent taint applied by a publicity hungry and rogue jurist.

(Note about the graphic I used. That’s really a photograph of German Nazi Party Judge “Raving” Ronald Freisler That photo was taken as he presided over the trial and death sentences of the German Generals who plotted to assassinate Adolph Hitler in 1944. The resemblance of that monster to Larry Paul Fidler is uncanny.)

A Treat For Crimefile’s Readers

The joy of this blog is I can bring anything I want here. This is a welcome break from the very heavy things I’ve been writing about. I’m a fan of musical theater and enjoyed the music of one of my favorite plays for more than two decades now. I’ve also grown up with the songs of a great lady whose voice has never failed. Sit back and enjoy the next couple of minutes with the incomparable Petula Clark.

On second thought Les Miserables is anything but a "light" story! The music however is wonderful.

Judge Fidler’s “Wall Of Injustice” In The Phil Spector Case.

The jury in the Phil Spector murder trial deliberated for a week and they were deadlocked. The jury sent out the note and Judge Fidler polled them on the question of whether further instruction would help. Three jurors volunteered that it might help. But help change whose mind was my question? I suspect that those jurors wanted the other side of their battlefield instructed instead of their own.

Judge Fidler took the unusual step to remove an approved jury instruction that was somehow preventing the conviction of Phil Spector and replaced that with two new and convoluted instructions that beg the jury for anything but an acquittal.

To date, Judge Fiddler spent many months scheming to find ways to get a jury to convict Phil Spector. Judge Larry Paul Fiddler has been biased, abusive and feeding his own agendas. The ever-growing laundry list of judicial rulings are against fairness and any attempt for a neutral inquiry into the death of Lana Clarkson. Judge Fidler is more like a Mike Nifong in judicial robes.

Judge Fidler Backed Off His Compromise Verdict Scheme for the Deadlocked Spector Jury.

Judge Fidler saw the error of his way and reversed his dubious plan of instructing the jury to consider a new and lesser charge of Manslaughter. Had Judge Fidler reopened the trial to new evidence and new arguments it would have sent a message to the jury that the judge wants the jury to convict Spector on that new allegation. That would have been indefensible judicial mischief designed to convict a defendant at any cost.

Now it’s time to reread the not so easily understood instruction about Reasonable Doubt. Pinpoint instruction was ordered deleted as the judge will insruct the jury that other instructions cover this better. (That's really code for the prosecution that wanted this out and it will screw Phil Spector.)

The jury will be right back where they ended yesterday evenly divided and in their respective trenches. Let’s get this mistrial over and move on!

Second City Cop, The Internet And Free Speech

When I wore a police uniform there was no Second City Cop exploiting the Internet to expose the employment related injustices that plague the lives of too many hard working and dedicated cops.

Working as a Chicago cop has become less desirable every year. Micromanagement along with the likes of Black Panther Party members and other police haters running Chicago has demoralized rank and file officers that signed on improve the safety and quality of life. I have to say today that it would not enter my mind to waste some Saturday taking the civil service exam to be a Chicago policeman. Okay, I will surrender to political correctness just this once and say police officer!

Somewhere from the ashes came Second City Cop in the form of an interactive blog where bad management, incompetence and hazards to officer’s safety are exposed. Satire, gossip and fun have found its way into the mix too. Often it’s comments made by cops in the field that expose problems and at the same time give a voiceless cop an opportunity to vent about any issues..

Second City Cop has been able to resolve more crappy labor issues by accident than the FOP was able to do on purpose.

It’s not all serious because there are a lot of laughs sometimes at the expense of others such as the delightful looking, Sergeant Chris Hitney. Hitney has never failed to show up at history making events.

I began my blog after suffering a profound but temporary 7 1/2 month hearing loss and being somewhat inspired by Second City Cop. I have enjoyed being just another unpaid blogger. Second City Cop is a success and gift to every working cop.

Second City Cop, thank you, you’ve made a difference.

If you’ve not been to Second City Cop here is the link.

Judge Fidler Now Wants A Compromise Verdict Of Manslaughter Against Phil Spector.

Yet another judicial outrage today as Judge Fidler wants to give the deadlocked jury a lesser charge than murder to consider. This was settled before the jury retired but now the judge wants to have the jury compromise on something lesser which may sway those demanding acquittal to convict.

The jury is split seven to five and without knowing the direction of the split that’s nearly even and may have ended of this case. Judge Fidler being unhappy with any advantage given Phil Spector sent the jury home as he dreams up ways of keeping the prosecution railroad train moving over Phil Spector.

In the morning the jury will be brought back and pressured to victimize Phil Spector some more.

The three women on the jury seemed to think that additional instruction will help. There is no doubt in my mind that Fidler will interject the compromise lesser offense option. Look for no movement until Thursday or Friday as Judge Fidler helps the prosecution.