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Judge Tries To Find Fair Jurors For O.J. Trial

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The Associated Press

Published: September 9, 2008

LAS VEGAS - O.J. Simpson went to trial on kidnapping and robbery charges Monday with a judge determined to find a jury unaffected by his long-ago "Trial of the Century."

"What happened then, happened then," Judge Jackie Glass told prospective jurors.

"If you are here and think you are going to punish Mr. Simpson for what happened in 1995, this is not the case for you," she said, urging them to confess if they had such a motive. All stayed silent.

Although asking many questions about the past, the judge stopped short of asking the big question that Simpson's lawyer wanted: Do they consider Simpson a murderer?

"My determination is no, we are not going there," Glass told lawyers outside the prospects' presence. "We are not here to relitigate that case. The jury reached a verdict in that case, and people have strong feelings about it. This case is about what happened here in Las Vegas last year."

The new case debuted as a pale postscript to the murder trial that riveted America in the 1990s when Simpson, a former pro football star, was charged with murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman, and ultimately acquitted.

Missing were the crowds that surrounded the courthouse when Simpson was arrested last year, accused of robbing two sports collectibles dealers in a hotel room. The media throng that has followed him over the years was dramatically diminished.

Simpson has a co-defendant this time, Clarence "C.J." Stewart, an old friend who went along on an ill-fated mission that Simpson claims was intended to reclaim personal property. Stewart was barely mentioned Monday as the judge focused on how much prospective jurors knew about Simpson and how they feel about him.

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