Court TV Host: We're being visited by forensic psychologist J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner. He was just on The Best Defense, discussing the Spector case, and he's joining us here now. Welcome, Dr. Buzz! Thanks for being our guest today!

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Hey! Hello, everybody! It's me Dr. J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner, but call me Dr. Buzz!

Question from BrazilShirley: HI Buzz, another unusual case, to say the least. Why are we so quick to judge people because they don't fit our idea of normal?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Hey, I hear what you are saying! First off, he does self-identify as suffering from mental illness, he stated that he does take his medication, and that he has had a long history of mental illness coupled with a family history of mental illness. The jury will have to comprehend that having a history of mental illness, a history of alcohol abuse and what appears to be a history of abusive behaviors with firearms toward women, does not make him guilty of murder. The jury needs to be convinced that he was medication-compliant, and had a good working relationship with a psychiatrist. The clothing, the hair, the make-up, the platform shoes ... only seem to scream out to the jury that this man just doesn't "fit in". He doesn't seem to belong in "normal society". Should his defense team force him into a three-piece suit? Should the defense team put on a show and pretend to have him "look like everyone else?" Should the defense team stuff him in a suit, take off the hair (wig) and the make-up and then present him as a "normal person?" Psychologically it may create a sense of deception to the jury.

Question from JrJ: Are LA jurors different from jurors from, say the Midwest?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Good question! We are talking about Hollywood and the affect that it has on individuals who live in L.A. However, when I'm in court I follow the rules. I dress in a suit. My clients suffer from mental illness and I tell them to dress in their best clothing, to take a shower, to shave and get a hair cut. I want the judge and the jury to know that my clients are aware of society's norms and respect and follow the rules of the court. With that stated, the jury thus sees Mr. Spector, who may be someone who doesn't always follow the rules. Maybe he thinks he doesn't have to. The jury may pick up on a sense of entitlement - a grandiosity that Phil Spector may have. That should not convict him of murder. But as a psychologist I say his personal appearance clearly does not help him. As I stated on the Jami Floyd: Best Defense show, his personal appearance clearly does not help him. It all starts to become rather Michael Jackson-ish - he lives in a castle, he self-isolates, and he thinks or has be told he is a genius. It doesn't mean he committed murder, but it also may create the impression that he doesn't follow the norms of society.

Question from MaryB: Dr. Buzz, hard to convince a jury that you're med compliant and abuse alcohol, don't you think?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Good point! I would be asking, if his mood "turns on a dime", and he has a history of acting paranoid and self-isolates, was he actually medication-complaint? It sure doesn't sound like he was taking his medication consistently from the recent testimony. Phil Spector indicates someone who was not taking his medication and he appears to be paranoid, delusional and had rapid mood swings. Psychologically, he sounds to me that he needs medication, but was he really taking it consistently? In addition, no one taking anti-psychotic medication should be drinking alcohol! Judgment and rational, logical thinking go right out of the window when a individual is intoxicated.

Question from Cortaid: How would you describe him in terms of DSM-V?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Let me go with what he stated in one interview. Phil Spector stated: "I take medication for schizophrenia, but I wouldn't say I'm schizophrenic. But I have a bipolar personality, with is strange, I've been a tortured soul. I have not been happy." So with that stated, when it is important that anyone who has mental health issues, takes the steps to seek treatment. With that stated, Phil Spector appears to be taking those important steps.

Question from Cortaid: Any notions about the victim's psychology?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: It's not uncommon for individuals to focus on the victim's background, to focus on her age, and her lack of Hollywood success and then determine suicide. However, psychologically, Lana Clarkson does not fit that theory. She does not have a history of engaging in high risk behaviors, she has no known history of prostitution or drug use or sexual promiscuity, which could possibly point to what I would term a "slow suicide," where the individual destroys her body with drug and alcohol abuse and then dies of "natural causes". She does not appear to have the signs of an individual who had low self-value for her own life or for the lives of others. For me as a psychologist, I never heard of the word "accidental suicide". So the defense has kind of lost me there, as a psychologist. As a defense move I would be more open to "high risk behaviors" that may have led to an accidental homicide, to what appears to be some king of sex game or sexual fetish connected to a gun. However, as stated, Lana Clarkson does not appear to have had a history of engaging in high risk behaviors, such as sexual adventures.

Question from ForensicRPH: Dr Buzz, will the names of Mr. Spector's medications be revealed over the course of the trial...likely by means of expert witnesses?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Yes, it appears that they will be mentioned; the names of a number of medications were mentioned on the jury questionnaire.

Question from babslw: I think that more than his clothes, the tremors are detrimental to his case. Might not people think they are from alcoholic tremors? I did when I first saw them.

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Another insightful question! Psychologically he appears at least to me as being medication complaint in court. He may have those hand tremors which can be a side-effect to medication, in addition to having a dry mouth. He continues to keep licking his lips and of course that gives the appearance of someone who is very thirsty, almost lizard-like in appearance. If people ever wonder why it can be so difficult for individuals to be medication complaint, it is often due to the numerous side-effects that come with the great benefits of taking medication. Least talked about are the sexual side-effects for the male, such as impotence and preventing ejaculation. However, if he was off his medication or it was mixed with alcohol and with a ton of guns around his home with paranoid delusion, with a beautiful woman, who wants to leave ... NOW that would be another story!

Question from HeidiLou: Dr. Buzz, do you agree with the defense's opening statement regarding forensic evidence pointing to LC shooting herself?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Lana Clarkson appeared to be very optimistic and had made additional goals and appeared to be moving on into the area of stage work. She had taken a hostess job but she wasn't a waitress in a diner being pawed by truck drivers. She was situated in the V.I.P. room of the fashionable House Of Blues, where she feasibly could meet powerful people who could help her career. She was taking what appear to be the steps she needed to take - that as a nighttime hostess job within an established restaurant where the potential to make Hollywood connections existed. On a positive note, she wasn't doing so badly as a hostess for a V.I.P. room. This was a woman who had been employed moderately successfully within an industry where very few are. She was still very beautiful, still desirable and still had great potential to meet her goals. She appeared like many Hollywood actresses to date famous, successful and powerful men like Jack Nicholson and Warren Beatty, but what beautiful woman in Hollywood hasn't? After an eight hour hostess shift a age 40, I can psychologically bet she was dead on her feet and the last thing on her mind would have been to go out "on the town". She did not know who Phil Spector was, she was told he was "famous"; he did leave a $450.00 dollar tip for the waiter. If one could read her mind, "what would it hurt to help this intoxicated man down the stairs and into his limo?" She didn't know this man, she didn't know his history. She didn't know anything about him. The only thing she knew was that he was very persistent!

Court TV Host: Any closing thoughts?

J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner: Many, many individuals dream of coming to Hollywood, and that's where the dream usually stops. I think if more people actually followed their dreams of acting in movies or television, they might find out that it's a dream that they no longer desire. I can psychologically relate to Lana Clarkson, she was after all following her dreams of becoming a Hollywood movie star. The problem is so many people want that Hollywood dream. There are just so many Hollywood movie star slots that can be filled. It's a real tragedy! Thank you so much everybody for your psychological questions! Dr. J. Buzz Von Ornsteiner aka Dr. Buzz