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 However, one factor that could weigh against
his seemingly solid case for parole is the notoriety still
surrounding Simpson's acquittal in a sensational double-murder
trial that gripped America two decades ago, according to some
who have followed his case most closely.
"What plays against him is the ghost of the murders," Loyola Law
School professor Laurie Levenson told Reuters on Tuesday. Anyone
else fitting Simpson's inmate profile would be virtually assured
of parole, she said. "What we don't know is how much the O.J.
factor will make a difference," Levenson said.
The four parole commissioners meeting on Thursday in Carson City
are supposed to decide Simpson's fate on the basis of other
factors, including his age, his conduct in prison and whether
his release would pose a threat to public safety.
Judged by such standards, inmate No. 1027820 at the Lovelock
Correctional Center would by all accounts be well-suited for
parole, clearing the way for him to walk free once he has
finished serving the minimum term of his sentence on Oct. 1.
Besides having already won a favorable parole ruling from the
same commissioners four years ago before reaching eligibility
for release, the 70-year-old former football star also lacks any
prior felony convictions and is reported to have been a model
inmate.
Simpson was instrumental in mediating inmate disputes at
Lovelock, served as an unofficial "athletic director" in the
prison yard, led prayer groups and even lobbied for inmate
education funding, said Nevada state Assemblyman Osvaldo Fumo,
who was part of Simpson's legal team in a failed appeal of his
conviction.
"FORGIVENESS"
Simpson will appear before the parole board by live video feed
from prison. He will be joined there by a lawyer and supporters
including daughter Arnelle Simpson, sister Shirley Baker and one
of his robbery victims, who "plans to express his forgiveness"
of Simpson at the hearing, Fumo said.
David Roger, the retired Clark County district attorney who
tried Simpson in 2008, said: "Based upon my knowledge of his
background and behavior in prison, I expect he will be a very
good candidate for getting parole."
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In a similar assessment posted last week on the internet forum
Reddit, incumbent D.A. Steve Wolfson said: "Most people who are ...
70 years old, who have been model prisoners, will be excellent
candidates for parole. Mr. Simpson fits that description."
Wolfson said his wife, retired Judge Jackie Glass, presided over
Simpson's Las Vegas trial, sentencing him to a term of nine to 33
years in prison.
A jury found Simpson guilty of all 12 charges against him for
storming into a Las Vegas hotel room in 2007 with four cohorts and
holding two sports memorabilia dealers at gunpoint, then making off
with thousands of dollars in items he said rightfully belonged to
him.
His conviction came exactly 13 years after his 1995 Los Angeles
acquittal in the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and
her friend Ron Goldman, who were found stabbed and slashed to death
in June 1994.
A civil court jury later found Simpson liable for the deaths and
awarded $33.5 million in damages to the victims' families, a
judgment renewed in court for another decade and enlarged to about
$58 million two years ago. It remains largely unpaid.
Prosecutors said the Las Vegas robbery grew out of grudges Simpson
had nursed since his murder trial and civil case.
David Cook, long-time attorney for Goldman's father, Fred Goldman,
called his client "the elephant in the room" as Simpson's fate is
decided. He vowed to remain dogged in seeking to collect on the
judgment against Simpson.
"The good news for Mr. Simpson is he's probably going to get out on
Oct. 1," Cook said. "And the bad news is I'm good for another 10
years ... ready to pick up where we last left off."
(Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter Cooney
and Paul Tait)
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