That is the best news I have heard in days. I feel sorry for his parents, who are convinced that Rachel killed their grandchild. I guess they have to believe it, the alternative is just to painful.
Kat | 06.25.08 - 3:39 pm | #

yes, yes, yes, yes! His parents are living in some sort of fantasy land I guess - just like him.
Blimeyhecks (UK) | 06.25.08 - 3:48 pm | #

The no witnesses tactic is so that the defenses suicide theory wasn't put thru cross examination. They simply stated their case in the closing arguments (including re-enacting their version of the crime) directly to the jury. Risky move meant basically to give a reasonable doubt (hey we have another theory!!!)

Glad to see justice prevail despite parental denial.
Beth | 06.25.08 - 4:15 pm | #

I guess they were hoping for some nut on the jury to identify with Entwistle and fall for the suicide BS, just like that wackadoo on the Spector jury did.
Nancy Collins | 06.25.08 - 5:09 pm | #

Huh? I thought Spector had a mistrial? There were only 2 holdouts for not guilty.

Isnt he being re-tried?
Melissa | 06.25.08 - 5:33 pm | #

I was hoping Entistle would grow balls. I mean kill your family then PLEASE show someone you actually cared. At least Benoit cleaned up after himself. I say tie Neil over a beam to Scott Peterson and let them figure it out.
kob | 06.25.08 - 9:18 pm | #

His mother told me the story behind Neil. Why didn't she hop on the witness stand if she had knowledge of Rachel's depression? BS. Enabler.

Melissa, I believe there was only one hold out in the Spector trial.
Diane | 06.25.08 - 9:46 pm | #

Given all the 'guilty until proven innocent' style publicity I'd seen about this case before the trial, I had been concerned about the lack of a fair trial for Entwistle. However, given the complete lack of defence that was presented, the 'fair trial' argument never really came into play. How the defence team have the nerve to suggest an appeal is beyond me - they have not offered up any evidence that casts reasonable doubt upon the prosecution's case.

Perhaps if Neil had not behaved in the way he did immediately after the crime, and had instead called the police and put forward his theory that Lilian had committed suicide there and then, there may have been a possibility that this defence might have worked. As it is, his story of wanting to protect Lilian's honour just looked feeble - especially when he's had so much time to come up with an alternative theory. If he really didn't want anyone to know she'd killed the baby and herself, he'd have been better off ransacking the house and claiming she'd been shot by burglars!

I feel terribly sorry for his parents, who understandably do not want to accept that their own son would commit such an horrific crime. However, I sincerely hope any future appeals are thrown out of court, and Entwistle remains in jail for life.
Sue | 06.26.08 - 8:49 am | #

There was a juror from the Spector trial on Courttv recently, said there was one male hold-out.
During the Entwistle trial his male lawyer was really rude to witnesses. When he went on to say that Rachel killed Lillian, it made me sick.
colette | 06.26.08 - 1:15 pm | #

the 1st degree murder charge is an automatic appeal - so weinstien just thru out there the "illegal entry" b.s. so he would have something to say - totally lied about the amount of gsr on rachels hands - don't believe neil went to the mall - the lattes were bought on the 19th - theere were so many things weinstien said that were just plain dumb to anybody who had any sense - even one of the jurors when asked what they thought about the homocide/suicide theory - said, give us a little more credit than that - his attys were free - he said he only wanted his rent back and the jewelry - neil has no soul -
pdx-77 | 06.26.08 - 8:16 pm | #

Are you sure the parents were in denial? I covered a story in the late 1980s, William Dean Christensen, a rapist and serial killer who escaped from prison. His nice middle class parents funded his run from the law, which left a trail of dead women in Pennsylvania and Canada. I don't believe they thought anyone else was committing those crimes. I could name a few more cases - blind parental love. No matter what, some parents will try and protect their child above all and anything else.

They are, after all, the people who raised him, which could call their judgement into question.
Melanie | 06.26.08 - 10:22 pm | #

Melissa: Yes, I'm aware there was a mistrial with Spector. But there shouldn't have been, for exactly the reason that I gave--Juror #10, Ben Willardson, clearly identified with Spector re behavioral & misogyny issues.

Sue: Lillian committed suicide? Pretty neat trick for a 9 month old baby.
Nancy Collins | 06.26.08 - 10:22 pm | #

That is an interesting point Melanie, but I do think in this scenario that the parents are just unable to face the reality of what their son did.
Blimeyhecks (UK) | 06.27.08 - 2:59 am | #

Nancy, sorry - an obvious typo there, of course I meant Rachel.
Sue | 06.27.08 - 4:04 am | #

Nancy Collins said: "I guess they were hoping for some nut on the jury to identify with Entwistle and fall for the suicide BS, just like that wackadoo on the Spector jury did".

There were 10 "wackadoo's" on the Spector jury - 10 people who didn't understand evidence and voted on prejudice alone. The shot in the mouth is solid proof of suicide. The lack of evidence on Spector's clothes is proof of suicide. The combination of the two is unshakable proof that Clarkson killed herself.
A Voice of Sanity | Homepage | 06.27.08 - 6:58 pm | #

"A Voice of Sanity": So you're THIS bored waiting for your trial, Phil?
Nancy Collins | 06.27.08 - 7:37 pm | #

Wow! Insults instead of argument - the sure sign of the unthinking.
A Voice of Sanity | Homepage | 06.27.08 - 10:17 pm | #

Geesh, I am certainly not agreeing with AVOS here, because they are obviously nuts (and yes I used plural for a reason)

But Nancy, maybe you should tone down the outright snottiness. Just a thought.
Melissa | 06.28.08 - 6:02 am | #

You have a point AVOS...Nancy calling you out as Phil Spector - well now, that IS pretty darned insulting.

And while I did feel some sympathy for the Entwistle family, their vicious statements post-verdict did a wonderful job of making me forget all about it. Lee and Jackie Peterson 2.0.
Velouria | 06.28.08 - 11:25 pm | #

Velouria said "You have a point AVOS...Nancy calling you out as Phil Spector - well now, that IS pretty darned insulting.
And while I did feel some sympathy for the Entwistle family, their vicious statements post-verdict did a wonderful job of making me forget all about it. Lee and Jackie Peterson 2.0."

Surely you mean Sharon Rocha and Ron Grantski - the notorious housebreakers and slanderers of their son in law.

As for Phil Spector, IMO he is an annoying little toad and I wouldn't p*ss on his head if one of his wigs was on fire. OTOH Lana Clarkson seems to have been a truly nice human being who I would have been delighted to have as a friend. However the evidence is more that sufficient for me to determine that this was suicide. She is hardly alone, Hollywood is a cruel, cruel town for those who never quite make it and many others have done the same. As an example, Inger Stevens was much more successful, but she killed herself. Lana was in all sorts of trouble so I am not too surprised although I am saddened.
A Voice of Sanity | Homepage | 06.29.08 - 1:01 am | #

Hey, I have friends whopersonally knew Lana and talked about her, both her pros and her cons, and I have talked to people who were threatened by Spector at gun point.The "proof" of Lana's suicide is close to nil. And I've known my fair share of people who have killed themselves in my near-50 years. One even went so far as to go out into the woods,and left a map--which we were never able to decipher, so he's still out there, somewhere, 20+ years later. But none of them shot themselves in the mouth, instantly severing the spinal cord, without touching the gun, the gun holster, or the drawer the gun was kept in.

Like the late, great George Carlin said, ,everyone has a right to their opinion in this country,but that doesn't mean they're free from being called out when its BS.
Nancy Collins | 06.29.08 - 5:38 pm | #

Nancy Collins said: Hey, I have friends who personally knew Lana and talked about her, both her pros and her cons, and I have talked to people who were threatened by Spector at gun point.The "proof" of Lana's suicide is close to nil. And I've known my fair share of people who have killed themselves in my near-50 years. One even went so far as to go out into the woods,and left a map--which we were never able to decipher, so he's still out there, somewhere, 20+ years later. But none of them shot themselves in the mouth, instantly severing the spinal cord, without touching the gun, the gun holster, or the drawer the gun was kept in.

Like the late, great George Carlin said, ,everyone has a right to their opinion in this country,but that doesn't mean they're free from being called out when its BS.

Spector may have threatened people years ago but how many did he actually shoot?

As for the 'friends', it's amazing how often you hear comments like, "I can't believe she killed herself. She seemed so much happier and things were turning around for her" in connection to other suicides. List for me all the cases you can find where a shot in the mouth was not a suicide. And your information is exactly wrong - her DNA was on the gun, his was not and there was a miniscule amount on him, easily explained by his entering the room.

DNA consistent with Phil Spector's genetic markers was found on Lana Clarkson's left breast but was not present on any part of the gun that killed her or the bullets in the weapon and was not under her broken fingernail, a sheriff's criminalist testified Tuesday in the record producer's murder trial.
Steve Renteria, who said he has worked with DNA analysis since 1994, made the disclosures under cross-examination by defense attorney Christopher Plourd. A prosecutor had not raised the issue of DNA on the actress' breast during his inquiry.

"The left (breast) swab from Lana Clarkson yielded a mixed profile that was consistent with two donors," said Renteria. "The major donor in that sample was Lana Clarkson herself -- it's her own skin surface so one would predict that -- and the minor donor, the types found, were consistent with -- were originating from Phil Spector."

However, Renteria said he could find no DNA consistent with Spector on the gun or the bullets in the fully loaded weapon. Only one bullet had been expended from the snub-nose .38-caliber revolver.

As for the nail scrapings from Clarkson's right thumb, Plourd asked, "None of the DNA came back as Phil Spector's?"

"That's true," said Renteria.

And don't try the "He wiped off his and left hers" argument - I prefer the saying, "No one is entitled to a stupid opinion.
A Voice of Sanity | Homepage | 06.29.08 - 9:41 pm | #