O.J. Simpson made his request for a new trial today, claiming the lawyer who represented him in his kidnapping and robbery case screwed him over. Guy will seriously never go away it seems. Simpson appeared in court wearing a blue jail uniform; his hair was shorter and grayer than it was during a previous court appearance in 2008. He’s also not wasting away in jail. Just saying. Guy must have the premium meal plan in there or something, because wow. Letting himself go. Anyway, he entered the courtroom in handcuffs, flanked by security guards and nodded and raised his eyebrows to acknowledge people he recognized. A marshal warned people in the audience not to try to communicate with Simpson, who’s doing 9-to-33 years in prison. No words were exchanged. Simpson, who never testified in his 1994-95 murder trial or in the 2007 robbery case that sent him to the big house, is due to testify Wednesday. His former attorney, Yale Galanter, is scheduled to testify Friday. Simpson says Galanter knew about his plan to retrieve what he thought were personal items from two sports memorabilia dealers in a casino hotel room. O.J. also said Yale never told him a plea deal was on the table. Galanter was paid nearly $700,000 for his defense but had a personal interest in preventing himself from being identified as a witness to the crimes, O.J. says. As a result, he misled Simpson so much that the former football star deserves a new trial, new lawyers for the NFL great claimed today in court. “To me, the claims are solid. I don’t know how the court can’t grant relief,” said Patricia Palm, the appeals lawyer who is spearheading this effort. Of the 22 allegations of conflict-of-interest and ineffective counsel that Palm raised, Clark County (Nev.) District Court Judge Linda Marie Bell agreed to hear 19. The five-day proceedings are technically neither a trial nor appeal. There won’t be any opening statements from either side. The judge will listen to testimony before deciding whether Simpson deserves a new trial. It’s not clear whether Bell will rule immediately. Simpson maintains the plan was to take back family photos and personal belongings stolen from him after his 1995 “trial of the century” murder acquittal. He was soon convicted of recruiting some goons to “get some heat” and robbing the memorabilia dealers, however, and was sent to state prison. O.J. was also found liable for damages in a civil wrongful death lawsuit and ordered to pay $33.5 million to the families of the two people he probably killed.
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O.J. Simpson Requests New Trial, Claims Lawyer Botched Robbery Case
