Phil Spector trial: Day 9

The chauffer who drove Phil Spector around Los Angeles the on the night of actress Lana Clarkson's death was cross-examined on the witness stand today (May 16).

Adriano DeSouza, a Brazilian immigrant, testified earlier that on the night of Clarkson's death, he heard Spector say, "I think I killed somebody."

This statement has become key to the prosecution's case that Spector murdered Clarkson on February 3, 2003 at his Los Angeles mansion. The defence contends that Clarkson accidentally killed herself.

During today's cross-examination, defence attorney Bradley W Brunon questioned DeSouza's understanding of English and his immigration status, reports the Los Angeles Times.

"Ever misunderstand him?" Brunon asked.

"Yes," DeSouza replied.

DeSouza also admitted that Spector is soft-spoken, and that their relationship was strictly professional.

During the driver's testimony, he described seeing Clarkson slumped in her chair with blood on her face. He also said that after seeing Spector emerge from his house holding a gun, he fled the scene in Spector's Mercedes.

Once he was outside the grounds, he called Spector's assistant, Michelle Blaine, and left a message saying that his boss had killed someone. He then called police and told them his version of the events.

A recording of DeSouza's phone call to the California Highway Patrol was played for the jury.

"I think my boss just killed somebody," DeSouza said on the recording.

"You think your boss killed somebody?" the official responded incredulously.

DeSouza then described hearing a gunshot, seeing a woman on the floor and Spector with a gun in his hand.

DeSouza's cross-examination will continue on Monday (May 21), when the trial resumes.

--By our Los Angeles staff.
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