O.J. Granted Parole

OJ Simpson

O.J. Simpson was granted parole at his Nevada DOC hearing yesterday. He has to stay in custody until October, and will continue to be supervised when he’s released. Regular readers of this blog were not surprised at the result, as I’ve stated for months that he was likely to be granted parole, based on his past track record. The next big question is where he’s going to go, with some friends speculating he may move here to Southwest Florida. He was a Florida resident for years prior to being incarcerated, as Florida provides homestead protection so it’s difficult to take someone’s house away, for instance when they have a large civil judgment against them, as O.J. does for the civil suit finding him responsible for the deaths of Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman.

Will the Juice get Loose? O.J. up for Parole Hearing Tomorrow…

OJ Simpson, via NV DOC

Tomorrow the State of Nevada will hold a parole hearing for O.J. Simpson, who’s been incarcerated there since he was convicted of an armed robbery in Las Vegas in 2008. He was previously granted parole on some other charges, but the more serious charges were not eligible until this year. Since he was successful at the last hearing, there is a good chance he will be granted parole this time, which should allow his release in October. He’s apparently even telling friends that he feels good about his chances.

Interstingly, even the victims support his release. One of them already passed away, but his family indicates that the would have supported his release, and the surviving victim indicates he has forgiven Simpson and feels he’s served enough time. In a crazy anecdote, a former prison guard recounts that OJ nearly got written up for an illicit cookie, which could have derailed his parole chances.

O.J. Simpson’s Motion for New Trial Denied

O.J. Simpson Prison Photo

Months after the hearing on Simpson’s request for a new trial in his robbery convictions, the court issued a ruling denying his motion. He will appeal this ruling, but it is an even longer shot that an appellate court will overturn this type of decision. The article doesn’t give much detail on the ruling, merely that the judge found overwhelming evidence of his guilt. That’s not usually the standard for a motion for new trial, but that may just be that the report seized on that colorful language. I am not able to tell how sound the ruling is, but it is definitely a blow for O.J.’s attempt to get out of his robbery conviction.

O.J. Update, Hearing Continues

O.J. Simpson Prison Photo

OJ Simpson’s former attorney, Yale Galanter, was called  to the stand today. He has contradicted OJ’s testimony that he had ok’d the hotel room plan to recover the property. That means much of the motion will be a battle of credibility between OJ, the convicted felon, and his experienced and respected attorney. I would not be surprised if the judge does not rule immediately at the close of the hearing, but OJ’s chances at getting a new trial remain a long shot.

O.J. Simpson Testified Today in his Hearing on a Motion for New Trial

O.J. Simpson Prison Photo

OJ took the stand to testify today in his bid for a new trial. It appears the main thrust of his claim as to why a new trial would be appropriate are shortcomings in his representation by his attorney. As Defendants are Constitutionally guaranteed the right to representation, the courts have held that if their attorney makes egregious errors, they were not properly represented at trial and can potentially get a new trial.

Not only do the errors have to be extreme, they must seriously indicate there would have been a different outcome. Also, the courts will usually not grant a new trial if the claim is based on strategic decisions, as opposed to outright mistakes. The burden is on the Defense to demonstrate the extent of the errors, and the likelihood of a different outcome.

Simpson testified that he had been given bad advice by his attorney before the incident- basically claiming that his attorney approved his actions in attempting to collect the property. If true, that could be a conflict of interest since the same attorney represented him at trial. Also, he claims that his attorney failed to inform him of the plea offer, which he would have been done serving his time by now had he accepted it. Also, he testified that his attorney kept him from testifying, thereby depriving him of his key defense. Again, the burden is on OJ to convince the judge of these claims. Such motions are generally long-shot, last-ditch attempts to overturn convictions. However, the allegations made by OJ are more dramatic that most. As far as I can tell from news reports, the hearing has not been concluded.

O.J.Simpson Back in Court Today

O.J. Simpson Prison Photo

O.J. Simpson will be back in court today for a post-conviction motion on his Nevada robbery conviction. It’s a long shot motion, and really O.J.’s last ditch shot to get out of prison earlier than the minimum 9 years he must serve before he is eligible for parole. The co-defendant who was convicted with him at trial was previously released after his conviction was overturned on appeal, leaving O.J. as the only one of the robbers serving time for the robbery.
nbc oj story

OJ Simpson headed back to court.

O.J. Simpson mug shot

OJ Simpson is asking for a new trial in his Las Vegas robbery case.  Simpson has filed an ineffective assistance of counsel motion, which is a standard motion after the appeals have run their course.  The primary grounds are that his attorney, Yale Galanter, had financial interests in the case that gave him a conflict of interest, and that he was not advised of the State’s plea offer.  For the first claim to succeed, Simpson’s attorneys will have to convince a judge that a different attorney would have done something differently if not for the conflict; otherwise there was no harm to Simpson.  The State may call Galanter to the stand to testify whether he presented the plea offer to Simpson, as Simpson claims he would have accepted the offer.  These motions are commonly filed, and are a long shot.  The judge has allowed a hearing, which means that sufficient allegations have been raised, but the burden will be on Simpson to prove the truth fo the allegations, and that a different result would have been likely.