Phil Spector found guilty of 2nd degree murder

Here's the link found on Drudge...

www.nbclosangeles.com...

Interesting case. I thought they might have gone for the manslaughter option because it isn't clear that it was intentional. Perhaps Spector was up to his old routine of terrorizing a woman with a gun which is foul play in and of itself, but the gun could have gone off unintentionally.

One can imagine what he told her to do and then the gun went off. In my opinion, he was at fault for the antics and for playing with a loaded gun but that can add up to manslaughter if deadly intent is not proven.

I'm not defending Spector at all, because I think his past history with women is deplorable and he's the kind of guy who cannot be trusted with a gun (he reportedly fired one in the studio during the Lennon solo album tapings), but this seems like it could have been a tragic accident.

The quote told by the driver was pretty incriminating too, but it doesn't sound like someone who had prior intent. Can anyone enlighten as to whether prior intent is needed for 2nd degree? I guess it may only apply to 1st degree.