Allereli
12-03-2008, 11:22 PM
O.J. Simpson could get 6 years, 18 years -- or life
LAS VEGAS, Nevada (CNN) -- Former football great O.J. Simpson, convicted of armed robbery and kidnapping, deserves leniency in sentencing as he is a first-time offender who showed no criminal intent, his attorney says in court papers.
Attorney Gabriel Grasso argued that Simpson should receive the minimum sentence, six years.
Grasso acknowledged in court papers, "Clearly Simpson was not using good judgment" during a 2007 hotel room confrontation over sports memorabilia.
Simpson could receive a maximum life sentence from Judge Jackie Glass on Friday. A pre-sentencing report recommended an 18-year sentence.
On October 3, a jury convicted Simpson, 61, and co-defendant Clarence "C.J." Stewart of 12 charges, including conspiracy to commit a crime, robbery, assault and kidnapping with a deadly weapon. Watch Stewart talk about the night they were arrested »
Their convictions stem from a September 13, 2007, fracas at the Palace Station Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Prosecutors alleged that Simpson led a group of men who used threats, guns and force to take sports memorabilia from dealers Bruce Fromong and Al Beardsley.
Simpson said he was attempting to recover items that belonged to him.
Four men charged with Simpson cut deals with the prosecution and testified against him. One testified that Simpson asked him to bring a gun to the encounter.
"These were not crimes committed on strangers, but were acts stemming from prior relationships with the individuals in the room at the Palace Station," Grasso wrote in the memorandum.
"There was overwhelming evidence at trial that Simpson's intent was to recover property that was his and only his," the lawyer argued. "The trial testimony showed Simpson's intent was to return anything that did not belong to him. This intention can be heard throughout the recordings of the Palace Station incident."
He added, "However, there is nothing in the record to show that Simpson evinced a criminal mind or showed the requisite criminal intent." Because of that and other factors, Grasso wrote, Simpson's sentence should fall on the low end of the minimum sentencing range.
In a sentencing brief for Stewart, 54, defense attorney E. Brent Byron said his client also should be sentenced to six years, noting he "did not kill anyone, nor did he bind or gag anyone." He had no weapon and "no witness testified that Mr. Stewart knew that weapons were going to be used," the brief said.
Both sentencing memorandums note that one of the victims, Beardsley, did not even want the case prosecuted.
Attorneys for both Simpson and Stewart have filed motions seeking a new trial.
Simpson's lawyers cite seven reasons why a new trial should be granted in their brief, including that he was denied a fair hearing when two African-Americans were dismissed from the potential jury pool. An all-white jury convicted the men.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/12/03/simpson.sentence/index.html
Predictions! vote in the poll for what you think he will get
LAS VEGAS, Nevada (CNN) -- Former football great O.J. Simpson, convicted of armed robbery and kidnapping, deserves leniency in sentencing as he is a first-time offender who showed no criminal intent, his attorney says in court papers.
Attorney Gabriel Grasso argued that Simpson should receive the minimum sentence, six years.
Grasso acknowledged in court papers, "Clearly Simpson was not using good judgment" during a 2007 hotel room confrontation over sports memorabilia.
Simpson could receive a maximum life sentence from Judge Jackie Glass on Friday. A pre-sentencing report recommended an 18-year sentence.
On October 3, a jury convicted Simpson, 61, and co-defendant Clarence "C.J." Stewart of 12 charges, including conspiracy to commit a crime, robbery, assault and kidnapping with a deadly weapon. Watch Stewart talk about the night they were arrested »
Their convictions stem from a September 13, 2007, fracas at the Palace Station Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Prosecutors alleged that Simpson led a group of men who used threats, guns and force to take sports memorabilia from dealers Bruce Fromong and Al Beardsley.
Simpson said he was attempting to recover items that belonged to him.
Four men charged with Simpson cut deals with the prosecution and testified against him. One testified that Simpson asked him to bring a gun to the encounter.
"These were not crimes committed on strangers, but were acts stemming from prior relationships with the individuals in the room at the Palace Station," Grasso wrote in the memorandum.
"There was overwhelming evidence at trial that Simpson's intent was to recover property that was his and only his," the lawyer argued. "The trial testimony showed Simpson's intent was to return anything that did not belong to him. This intention can be heard throughout the recordings of the Palace Station incident."
He added, "However, there is nothing in the record to show that Simpson evinced a criminal mind or showed the requisite criminal intent." Because of that and other factors, Grasso wrote, Simpson's sentence should fall on the low end of the minimum sentencing range.
In a sentencing brief for Stewart, 54, defense attorney E. Brent Byron said his client also should be sentenced to six years, noting he "did not kill anyone, nor did he bind or gag anyone." He had no weapon and "no witness testified that Mr. Stewart knew that weapons were going to be used," the brief said.
Both sentencing memorandums note that one of the victims, Beardsley, did not even want the case prosecuted.
Attorneys for both Simpson and Stewart have filed motions seeking a new trial.
Simpson's lawyers cite seven reasons why a new trial should be granted in their brief, including that he was denied a fair hearing when two African-Americans were dismissed from the potential jury pool. An all-white jury convicted the men.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/12/03/simpson.sentence/index.html
Predictions! vote in the poll for what you think he will get