OJ Simpson robbery case: What precipitated it?

[Earl Snake-Hips Tucker]

What kind of stuff was the dealer selling? I’d have to imagine that to risk getting into some legal trouble it must have been some very intrinsically or sentimentally valuable.

Did OJ have a point that it had been stolen?

[anson2995]

What kind of stuff was the dealer selling? I’d have to imagine that to risk getting into some legal trouble it must have been some very intrinsically or sentimentally valuable.

Did OJ have a point that it had been stolen?

The stolen items included a photo of OJ with J Edgar Hoover, his Hall of Fame certificate, and some family photos. The fact that they were stolen doesn't seem to be in dispute.

Wikipedia has a good article on the case (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O._J._Simpson_robbery_case), and there are plenty of news articles online. The Las Vegas Sun has a good compilation of all of their articles (http://www.lasvegassun.com/ojsimpson/), including video of the incident.

[Earl Snake-Hips Tucker]

OK. Thanks.

[Hypno-Toad]

If I was OJ, I'd definately feel that whatever people might say, the 33 year sentence was excessive and that my previous trial had influenced the judge.

[aceplace57]

People have been making money off OJ and his notoriety for years. The final straw was when he discovered his stolen personal items were being auctioned off at a potentially fat profit.

I'm also in the group that feels he got an excessive sentence. Anyone else would have gotten less than 5 years.

I've always wondered why OJ did something this stupid. He knew the courts were itching to shaft him and he foolishly walked into the trap.

[Annie-Xmas]

If I was OJ, I'd definately feel that whatever people might say, the 33 year sentence was excessive and that my previous trial had influenced the judge.

I'm also in the group that feels he got an excessive sentence. Anyone else would have gotten less than 5 years.

I've always wondered why OJ did something this stupid. He knew the courts were itching to shaft him and he foolishly walked into the trap.

Well, duh.....

OJ is where he belongs and should have been since the first trial.

[anson2995]

I'm also in the group that feels he got an excessive sentence. Anyone else would have gotten less than 5 years.

He was convicted of ten felonies, so I doubt that... but this is GQ. Simpson's sentence was 9-33 years. His co-defendant got 7.5 to 27. Simpson has served 2 years already.

[jtgain]

Dumb Question: Why didn't OJ just file a lawsuit against the guy who stole his stuff to recovery his property? Was he hiding it from Goldman? Would the lawsuit proceeds have gone straight to Fred Goldman?

[kenobi 65]

He was convicted of ten felonies, so I doubt that... but this is GQ.

And, in addition, even beyond the Nicole Simpson / Ron Goldman case, he kept showing up in court. Setting aside things for which he was acquitted, and misdemeanors, you still had domestic violence (he pleaded "no contest"), failure to pay taxes, and pirating satellite TV signals. That history may well have also played a role in the sentance. While I suppose it's possible that the sentance was, in some way, the judge's way to somehow get Simpson to pay for the murders, it seems far more likely that the judge saw a man who has had repeated run-ins with the law, and a pattern of flouting the rules.

[Annie-Xmas]

Dumb Question: Why didn't OJ just file a lawsuit against the guy who stole his stuff to recovery his property? Was he hiding it from Goldman? Would the lawsuit proceeds have gone straight to Fred Goldman?

Yes. I use the expression "pulling an OJ" to desribe someone who hides their assets from a monetary lawsuit.

[Mahaloth]

Yes. I use the expression "pulling an OJ" to desribe someone who hides their assets from a monetary lawsuit.

I thought OJ was living purely off his NFL pension, the only untouchable income he had. Did he somehow avoid paying the Goldman's at all?

[joebuck20]

I thought OJ was living purely off his NFL pension, the only untouchable income he had. Did he somehow avoid paying the Goldman's at all?

Pretty much. I seem to recall Fred Goldman saying at one point that he never saw a cent from OJ.

Of course that was before Goldman was awarded the rights to OJ's book, "If I DID IT.

[anson2995]

Dumb Question: Why didn't OJ just file a lawsuit against the guy who stole his stuff to recovery his property? Was he hiding it from Goldman? Would the lawsuit proceeds have gone straight to Fred Goldman?

Simpson claimed that the stuff had been stolen from a storage locker, and someone advised him that a memorabilia dealer was trying to sell it. What Simpson should have done was to call the police to recover the stuff. He didn't want the proceeds from the sale, he wanted the stuff back (it was mostly personal photos).

Maybe for some reason Simpson didn't feel like he'd get great results by asking the police for help.

But barging into a hotel room with a bunch of armed toughs and taking the stuff back by force is a crime, no matter whether it belonged to him or not. And Simpson bore the brunt of the legal responsibility as the alleged ringleader.

[Diceman]

If OJ had called the cops, the most likely outcome (given OJ's still-unpayed judgement) would have been that the stuff would be sold anyway, with the proceeds given to the Goldman family.

[Jake]

What did happen to the "Stuff?"

[anson2995]

What did happen to the "Stuff?"

It's still in evidence until Simpson exhausts all of his appeals. Goldman successfully filed suit seeking possession of the items, and he'll eventually get them.

[Hypno-Toad]

...Goldman successfully filed suit seeking possession of the items, and he'll eventually get them.

That part pleases me no end. Especially if it really galls OJ.

And my earlier post, I was just speculating how OJ felt. Not my opinion, which is quite different.

[billfish678]

While OJ probably deserves what he got, what's happening to the thieves that stole his shit? Just because they tried to screw OJ and he ending up pulling guns on their asses I hope that wasnt an excuse to let THEM slide on some serious bullshit behavior.

[Annie-Xmas]

To everyone who thinks the stuff was really stolen, would you like to buy a bridge?

[billfish678]

Ahem.


. The fact that they were stolen doesn't seem to be in dispute..

[md2000]

While OJ probably deserves what he got, what's happening to the thieves that stole his shit? Just because they tried to screw OJ and he ending up pulling guns on their asses I hope that wasnt an excuse to let THEM slide on some serious bullshit behavior.

Of course, the other problem is that the dealers at best could be charged with possession of stolen goods. IIRC some of the stuff disappeared from OJ's house during a break-in a few years after the trial. To charge someone with theft, you have to tie them to the actual act. Simple possesion might lead to possession of stolen goods charge, but you would have to prove they knew it was stolen. If the sellers claim the first they heard about it being stolen is when someone busted in waving guns, and grabbed it, then it's unlikely possession of stolen goods charges would stick.

[billfish678]

If the sellers claim the first they heard about it being stolen is when someone busted in waving guns, and grabbed it, then it's unlikely possession of stolen goods charges would stick.

Oh, certainly that is true. I'd just hate to see them get a pass or off easy because OJ behaved badly and OJ "needed" to go up the river for something and they provided it to the authorities. Cause thieves really don't care whose stuff they are stealing. I guess I could read up on this and find out for myself, but I figure somebody here might have already read up a lot on this and have a quick answer. If not, I aint going to miss any sleep over it.

Oh, and the stealing satellite tv is funny. Unfortunately for OJ, the judge's brother owns a satellite tv company :)

[md2000]

I suppose the added problem is that if OJ filed a complaint with the police to recover his property, it would become the Goldman's property. I assume anyone in the OJ memorabilia business knew this; just because they could profess no knowledge of stolen goods officially does not mean they were clueless.

[anson2995]

To everyone who thinks the stuff was really stolen, would you like to buy a bridge?The stolen items are fairly well documented, thanks to the Goldmans efforts to retrieve them. Most of the items were taken from Simpson's Brentwood house in 1997 by his former agent, Mike Gilbert. Others were taken from a storage locker owned by Simpson's mother. Gilbert was later forced to return much of that stuff under court order. Here's one article that talks about the subject (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=3021717), but there are plenty of others.

While OJ probably deserves what he got, what's happening to the thieves that stole his shit? Just because they tried to screw OJ and he ending up pulling guns on their asses.

The thief was Gilbert, who stole the items in the late 1990s. He was never criminally charged, but was ordered to return all of the items he allegedly stole.

Simpson claimed that he complained to the FBI about the two men he later confronted (Al Beardsley and Bruce Fromong) having his items, and that they told him it was a civil matter. They weren't charged for possession of stolen items, but Beardsley had an outstanding warrant at the time of the incident for which he was jailed. Fromong had a heart attack during the trial.

[billfish678]

Thanks for that reply Anson.

So it does sound like thieves mostly got away with thieving :mad: And theft is a civil matter? Lazy cop bastards.

[anson2995]

Thanks for that reply Anson.

So it does sound like thieves mostly got away with thieving :mad: And theft is a civil matter? Lazy cop bastards.

I think the issue with respect to the folks in Las Vegas was that they hadn't stolen the stuff. Recovering the property was a civil matter. The statute of limitations had run out on the original theft.

The person who was accused of stealing the stuff claims that he didn't steal it, but rather had taken it to hide it from being seized as part of the Goldmans civil suit. When the matter was taken before the court, the judge opted not to pursue criminal charges as long as the stuff was turned over.

[billfish678]

Thanks for more info Anson. I guess anything OJ ish is just a big mess.