OJ Simpson Appeals Conviction
(CNN) -- Attorneys for imprisoned former football great O.J. Simpson on Tuesday appealed his conviction to the Nevada Supreme Court, claiming his trial was "fundamentally unfair."
O.J. Simpson is appealing his conviction for charges including kidnapping and armed robbery.
A jury in October 2008 convicted Simpson, 61, on charges including armed robbery and kidnapping.
He was sentenced in December to serve a term of up to 33 years in prison, with eligibility for parole after nine years.
In the 47-page brief filed Tuesday, Simpson's attorneys accuse Clark County, Nevada, District Judge Jackie Glass of judicial misconduct, saying her behavior constituted "cumulative error that was so egregious and prejudicial that the defense could not get a fair trial."
The judge inflicted herself into the trial proceedings, issued improper jury instructions, improperly admitted hearsay evidence and refused to allow defense attorneys to fully cross-examine witnesses, the filing alleges.
In addition, she would not allow defense counsel to ask prospective jurors about their "known and unknown" biases, the brief said, and allowed prosecutors to strike the only two African-American potential jurors eligible to be on the jury.
"Because of the unique nature of the case, a full and complete questioning of potential jurors needed to take place," the appeal said. "The District Court gave no deference to the fact that Simpson brought a lot of baggage into the courtroom."
Simpson's conviction came on October 3 -- the 13th anniversary of his controversial acquittal in the 1994 killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman.
The former Heisman Trophy winner, record-setting NFL running back and movie actor had enlisted the help of Clarence "C.J." Stewart and four others in an effort to get sports memorabilia items that Simpson claimed had belonged to him from dealers Bruce Fromong and Al Beardsley.
The six men confronted the dealers in a room at the Palace Station Hotel Room and Casino in Las Vegas on September 13, 2007, brandishing weapons but not firing them.
Four of the men testified against Simpson, while Stewart stood trial alongside him. The four received probation in exchange for their testimony; Stewart received a sentence similar to Simpson's, but will be eligible for parole in seven and a half years.O.J. Simpson has switched lawyers on the eve of his appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court to reverse his conviction in an armed hotel room heist, his former attorney said Friday.
Las Vegas attorney Gabriel Grasso said he had been replaced by Malcolm Lavergne, a move he attributed to an unspecified rift with Simpson's longtime Miami-based lawyer, Yale Galanter.
"There's been an ongoing disagreement between Yale and I over the last few months, and I've decided to withdraw from the case," Grasso said. He declined to elaborate.
Simpson, 61, is serving nine to 33 years in Lovelock State Prison, northeast of Reno, for his conviction in October for kidnapping and robbing two sports memorabilia dealers at gunpoint in September 2007 in a Las Vegas hotel room.
Galanter said he remains in charge of the case but needs a Nevada lawyer to appear with him before courts in that state.
Lavergne, who had sought to represent Simpson after his arrest, said he was retained to "help handle the appeal." He said appeals were not one of his specialties, but that he once worked as a clerk in the New York Court of Appeals.
Galanter said that Simpson's appeal will be filed with the state Supreme Court by Tuesday's deadline.
Four other Simpson co-defendants testified against him and co-defendant Clarence "C.J." Stewart. They received probation for convictions on various felony charges.
Stewart, 55, was convicted with Simpson and was sentenced to 7 1/2 to 27 years in prison. He was expected to file a separate appeal by Wednesday.
Web site seeks donations to help O.J. Simpson appeal conviction
(CNN) -- A new Web site is seeking donations to help free O.J. Simpson, who it says was wrongly convicted of robbery and kidnapping.
O.J. Simpson was sentenced in December to a maximum of 33 years in prison; he could get out in nine.
Creators of the site say the controversial former football star was railroaded by a "kangaroo court" in Las Vegas, Nevada, last year.
Simpson was sentenced in December to a maximum of 33 years for his role in an armed confrontation with sports memorabilia dealers in a hotel in 2007, and he'll be eligible for parole in nine years.
The Web site, run by a group called the Society Against Legal Injustice, says Simpson's case was mishandled and he deserves an appeal. The group lists what it calls errors in the case, including the contention that Simpson was targeted because of his controversial acquittal in the killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her companion Ronald Goldman in 1995.
The group put the price tag for an appeal at $1 million.
"The unfairness levied against O.J. Simpson in Las Vegas is something no citizen deserves," the site says. "O.J. Simpson is not a wealthy man anymore and is therefore largely at the mercy of the Las Vegas legal system."
The group says its goal is "to educate, promote and advocate against judicial discrimination." But the only case the nonprofit organization highlights on the site is Simpson's.
Prosecutors said OJ led a group of men who used threats, guns and force to take sports memorabilia from dealers Bruce Fromong and Al Beardsley.
Simpson claimed he was trying to recover items that belonged to him. Most of the co-defendants in the case made deals with prosecutors in exchange for testifying against Simpson.
The two-member board of directors listed on the Web site could not be reached immediately for comment.WEBSITE: Society Against Legal Injustice
The Society Against Legal Injustice Goes To Bat For a Fallen American Hero: OJ Simpson
 USC Running Back | No matter what your opinion of OJ Simpson, his case in Las Vegas is the epitome of social injustice. This case was originated by motives of greed by the instigator of the incident, Thomas Riccio. From there, political opportunity was created for the District Attorney, Judge and Jury to right what some in our society consider to be a wrong from OJ Simpson's 1995 acquittal in Los Angeles . Everyone deserves to be treated fairly based on current circumstances, and the fact is this is far from what happened to OJ Simpson in Las Vegas . Thomas Riccio worked very aggressively to set the meeting in Palace Station up by calling the Simpson home daily for approximately three months prior. He then taped the episode and sold it to TMZ.com for a six figure profit and eventually wrote a book about the meeting to realize further profit. It was not OJ Simpson's idea to set up the 6 minute meeting at Palace Station in Las Vegas � Thomas Riccio promoted and facilitated the meeting through the eyes of greed and exploitation of OJ Simpson. |
From there, political opportunism was in the air. Las Vegas police detectives, the District Attorney David Roger, and Judge Jackie Glass put a full scale kangaroo court into action. One detective was recorded on tape stating �This is great. California can't get him. Now we'll be able to.�. OJ was then charged by District Attorney David Roger with a myriad of robbery charges as well as kidnapping while cutting deals with the co-defendents in the case in exchange for testimony against OJ. Meanwhile, the co-defendents all had checkered legal pasts and criminal records. Additionally, two of the co-defendents that had plea bargain deals cut were the ones that allegedly possessed weapons, while OJ had no weapon in his possession and no knowledge of any of the co-defendents having one. On December 5, 2008, Judge Glass sentenced OJ Simpson to anywhere between 9 and 33 years in prison. On the following Tuesday, December 9, 2008, Judge Glass sentenced all four accomplishes to nothing more than probation and fines. The mere act of cutting the plea bargains with the two that possessed weapons in exchange for testimony against OJ Simpson is evidence of the Las Vegas legal system unfairly targeting OJ. From a logical standpoint, if OJ knew weapons were involved, why would he want and need 5 people with him in the room? It doesn't take much logical reasoning to know that a person intending to hold someone against their will with a deadly weapon would want a minimal amount of witnesses. |  Buffalo Bills Running Back |
The head detective, Andy Caldwell, stated that OJ should have notified police about his stolen memorabilia. That argument would stand up under normal circumstances. However, this is OJ Simpson and by the comment made by one of the Las Vegas detectives on tape it is not hard to fault OJ for knowing he would get little or no help from police. Furthermore, and most significantly, Bruce Fromong and Alfred Beardsley, the �victims� that had OJ sports memorabilia, were long time acquaintances of OJ and two people whom OJ regarded as casual friends. OJ did not want to call law enforcement on two people he had considered friends for many years � he wanted to confront them and call them out on their actions instead of turning friends over to police.
 Judge Jackie Glass | District Attorney David Roger recognized this as an opportunity to make himself world famous and proceeded to charge OJ with everything that he possibly could no matter how thin a legal thread it was based upon. People go into banks, rob them at gunpoint, and do not face a charge such as kidnapping. Furthermore, who is OJ Simpson going to kidnap and how is he going to do it? Where is he going to take them and hold them against his will and not be recognized? And what would OJ Simpson have gained by kidnapping the two alleged victims? |
The jury selection process overseen by Judge Jackie Glass was the next step in the process. Judge Glass allowed the prosecution to strike the last two African American jurors and allowed the seating of the jury foreman that had previously been dismissed at his job at a local beverage plant for racially disparaging comments. Additionally, Judge Glass would not allow defense attorneys to probe prospective jurors opinions about OJ Simpson and his prior Los Angeles case in depth because �it would take too long�. Judge Glass stated �if we start going into the whys and hows of everything we will be here for three weeks and we're not going to do that�. When charging someone with crimes like armed robbery and kidnapping, wouldn't a reasonable mind deem it to be fair to be as thorough as possible in assembling an unbiased and just jury? Meanwhile, Judge Glass defends and stands by her role in the jury selection process and maintains a just jury was assembled.
The unfairness levied against OJ Simpson in Las Vegas is something no citizen deserves. Should have OJ Simpson, considering his celebrity and notoriety from his Los Angeles case, allowed himself to be put in this situation? No. However, OJ Simpson's act of letting his guard down and making himself vulnerable to people that want to profit off of him in no way makes him deserving of the legal injustice imposed on him by less than professional and competent Las Vegas detectives, prosecutors, judge and jury.
The appeal of OJ Simpson's conviction of all �charges� in Las Vegas is being estimated to eventually cost over $1,000,000 and take a year or longer. OJ Simpson is not a wealthy man anymore and is therefore largely at the mercy of the Las Vegas legal system. Therefore, the Society Against Legal Injustice asks you, as a fan, friend or admirer of OJ Simpson to make a modest contribution to the Society's Trust Fund via the secure link shown. No contribution is too small: $5, $10, $20, $50, whatever you are comfortable with would be welcomed by the Society. Everyone deserves to be treated fairly by the law, and OJ Simpson is no exception.
