Fallen stars

Last week, arrangements for famed music producer Phil Spector’s retrial began after a jury deadlocked on second-degree murder charges against him, renewing criticism that juries, in L.A. and beyond, don’t convict celebrities. Opinion recalls some of the famous who have been found guilty.

– Swati Pandey

Lil’ Kim (born Kimberly Jones)

Convicted: March 17, 2005

Crime: Lying during her testimony before a grand jury about a 2001 shootout between rap rivals.

Jury notes: Several potential jurors were dismissed for expressing disgust at Lil’ Kim’s dirty lyrics and flashy fashion sense.

Prison? Yes

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Martha Stewart

Convicted: March 5, 2004

Crime: Conspiracy, obstruction of justice and making false statements related to a stock sale.

Jury notes: Stewart later sought a new trial because one juror withheld information about his brushes with the law, including a charge of assault that was later dropped.

Prison? Yes

 –

Winona Ryder

Convicted: Nov. 6, 2002

Crime: Grand theft and vandalism for stealing thousands of dollars of designer goods from the Beverly Hills Saks Fifth Avenue.

Jury notes: The jurors included Peter Guber, head of Sony Pictures Entertainment when Ryder made three movies for the company.

Prison? No

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Mike Tyson

Convicted: Feb. 10, 1992

Crime: Rape and two charges of “criminal deviate conduct.”

Jury notes: One juror was replaced because of his “mental state” shortly after a fire killed three at the building where jurors were sequestered.

Prison? Yes

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Leona Helmsley

Convicted: Aug. 30, 1989

Crime: 33 counts involving the evasion of more than $1 million in federal taxes.

Jury notes: One of the hotel magnate’s lawyers told jurors to disregard her notoriously nasty personality, saying, “I don’t believe Mrs. Helmsley is charged in the indictment with being a bitch.”

Prison? Yes

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Zsa Zsa Gabor

Convicted: Sept. 29, 1989

Crime: Slapping a police officer, driving without a valid license and driving with an open container of alcohol in her car.

Jury notes: Potential jurors were asked what they thought “f— off” – which the officer allegedly said to Gabor – implies. (She said she took it to mean she could drive off.)

Prison? Yes (at a unit rented for $85 per night)

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Jim Bakker

Convicted: Oct. 5, 1989

Crime: 24 counts of wire and mail fraud and conspiracy related to selling “lifetime partnerships” in his ministry’s resort.

Jury notes: When Bakker suffered a panic attack and a psychiatrist had to determine if he could stand trial, jurors were told the trial would be delayed but weren’t told why.

Prison? Yes

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Patty Hearst

Convicted: March 20, 1976

Crime: Armed robbery of a bank with the Symbionese Liberation Army, which had kidnapped her.

Jury notes: Nearly two decades after her conviction, Hearst played a juror in the movie “Serial Mom,” directed by John Waters, who claimed to have waited several hours to get into the Hearst trial.

Prison? Yes