LOS ANGELES — A prosecutor accused noted forensic expert Dr. Michael Baden Wednesday of tailoring his testimony in the Phil Spector murder trial to advance the career of his wife, an attorney working for the legendary producer's defense.

Cross-examining the forensic pathologist on his third day on the witness stand, the prosecutor suggested Baden's conclusion that actress Lana Clarkson shot herself in Spector's mansion was grounded not in science, but in his desire to help his wife, Linda Kenney-Baden, win an important case.

"You have an additional interest in watching your wife succeed in this endeavor," Deputy District Attorney Alan Jackson charged.

"No! No!" Baden replied angrily. "The only interest I have is that Mr. Spector get a fair hearing based on the information available to me."

During more than two hours of testy questioning, the medical examiner repeatedly denied that his personal ties to the defense made his conclusions suspect.

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At one point, the prosecutor theorized that, if Baden offered testimony that undercut the defense, "you'd probably be sleeping on the couch for several months."

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler told jurors to disregard the remark and drew guffaws when he deadpanned, "It calls for speculation."

"We will hopefully stay married and well married regardless of the outcome," Baden later told jurors.

Baden-Kenney was not in court to hear the exchange. The New York attorney has been absent from court for two weeks because of illness.

Baden noted that he was hired the day of the shooting, Feb. 3, 2003, while Kenney-Baden was not retained until 2006.

"I made all my findings, all my opinions, years before my wife got involved," he said.

The prosecutor pointed out that Baden had not written his report until earlier this year, well after his wife was on the defense team. The pathologist acknowledged having "dozens" of conversations with her about the case, including one memorable discussion before she signed on to the defense.

"She asked me what my opinion was of the charges against Mr. Spector because she didn't want to get involved with defending a guilty person," Baden said.

The prosecutor asked that the comment be stricken and the judge told the jurors to disregard Kenney-Baden's opinion of her client's guilt.

Many of the prosecutor's questions concerned a controversial new theory of Clarkson's death offered by Baden Tuesday to explain drops of blood on Spector's clothing. The defense did not inform the prosecution of the new theory before Baden's testimony, as is required by law, and Fidler ruled the defense had violated discovery laws. He said he was still considering sanctions against the defense for the misconduct, including telling jurors to disregard the theory and instructing the panel before deliberations about the wrongdoing.

The prosecutor alleged that Baden had "orchestrated" the entire defense science case with his wife and that the pair had colluded in devising the new theory after his forensic colleagues faltered on the witness stand.

"That is completely false, Mr. Jackson. Completely false," Baden protested. Listing the three pathologists who testified before him and their accomplishments, he said, "I'm a schlemiel compared to them ... they are not going to take opinions from me."

He said that his wife was too drowsy from medication to discuss the case before his testimony and downplayed the importance of the new theory.

"I didn't speak to my wife about it and I didn't think it was a big deal," he said.

The theory Baden introduced Tuesday supposed Clarkson did not die immediately from her injury, as other pathologists have said, but lived several minutes, during which she coughed blood on Spector's jacket.

But in his testimony Wednesday, Baden appeared to revert to an explanation for the blood drops previously offered by defense experts. He said it was possible the spots were from the impact of the bullet wound in Clarkson's mouth and indicated that Spector was within 4 feet of the actress's shooting.

Baden is to conclude his testimony Thursday morning.

Jurors also heard testimony Wednesday from a friend of Clarkson who worked as a television executive. The defense called Eric Poticha, formerly the vice president of casting for Fox Studios, to identify as a forgery a letter Clarkson included in a portfolio documenting her acting career.

The letter was dated Sept. 6, 2001, signed "Eric Patitia" and written on a Fox letterhead.

"I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed watching your footage with you and I really think you've got something there," it read in part.

Poticha said he tried to help Clarkson in her career because he believed she was talented, but had not written the letter. The defense has said she forged the letters in a desperate attempt to get money from an older male benefactor.

Spector, 67, faces 15 years to life if convicted of murdering Clarkson, 40.