Suited for the Smithsonian

A judge sizes up the lawsuit over O.J. Simpson's suit

With O.J. Simpson giving his agreement from prison, a judge approved a plan Monday to donate the suit the former NFL star was wearing when he was acquitted of murder to the Smithsonian Institution.

The decision was part of a civil lawsuit filed by Fred Goldman -- father of Ron Goldman, one of the murder victims in the O.J. Simpson case. Goldman sued Simpson and his former agent, Mike Gilbert, for possession of the suit Simpson was wearing when he was  acquitted of the murders of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson, said  Simpson's lawyer, Ronald Slates.

"It's part of American history," Gilbert said outside court Monday. "People should be able to see it and reflect on what went so wrong for someone who had everything."

Simpson, 62, told the judge and lawyers by phone that he approved of donating the suit "as long as no one made a profit from it," his attorney Ronald P. Slates said.

"I said to OJ, 'Whether you like it or not, you're an important part of American legal history,'" Slates said.

The Smithsonian has not yet been contacted to see if the museum wants the Simpson suit. If it is rejected, it will be offered to another museum or institution of higher learning, according to the agreement approved by Superior Court Judge Joseph Biderman.

Goldman has been trying to take Simpson's possessions and sell them to satisfy a $33.5 million wrongful death lawsuit award.

The donation will be made in the name of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.

Goldman's attorney, David Cook, said Simpson did not have many assets left to be seized, but he would continue the quest.

"It's on my radar screen but it's becoming a very small blip," Cook said. "But you never know what's going to fall from the sky."

Simpson was acquitted of fatally stabbing his ex-wife and her  friend at the end of the 1995 tial, but in 1997 a  jury in Santa Monica found Simpson liable for the deaths and awarded Ron  Goldman $33.5 million in damages. He has been trying to collect on the  judgement ever since.

In September 2007, Simpson was arrested in Las Vegas for trying to get  back some of his memorabilia and charged with various felonies, including armed  robbery and kidnapping. A jury found him guilty on all charges in October 2008  and he was sentenced to at least nine years in prison. 

Copyright CNS - City News Service
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