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LAS
VEGAS - Jurors who convicted O.J. Simpson of armed robbery
and kidnapping said Sunday they did not trust witness
testimony in the case, and instead relied on audio and video
recordings and other documented evidence to convict him.
Jury foreman Paul Connelly
said it was perhaps a waste for prosecutors to have given
plea deals to several Simpson co-defendants in exchange for
their testimony, since the jury did not rely on it.
Juror Michelle Lyons said the
jury listened over and over again to the recordings made by
collectibles dealer Thomas Riccio and felt they heard things
that had not been fully transcribed by police.
But Lyons said the jury felt
they could not trust the credibility of the cooperating
witnesses who were given plea deals to testify.
"We felt we could not
rely on that witness testimony," Lyons said.
The 61-year-old former Hall
of Fame football star could spend the rest of his life in
prison after being convicted late Friday of charges stemming
from a hotel room confrontation more than one year ago. He
is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 5.
Kidnapping is punishable by
five years to life in prison. Armed robbery carries a
mandatory sentence of at least two years behind bars, and
could bring as much as 30 years.
The jurors were unanimous in
denying they were trying to punish Simpson for past wrongs
and one of them, Dora Pettit, said she prayed for him before
and after the case.
"I think he's an
ordinary man that made a bad decision," she said.
"I prayed for him and Stewart and the attorneys. I
don't have any ill feelings and if they walked out tomorrow,
so be it."
"We've been painted as
an all white jury who hates O.J., and that's just not
true," said Pettit.
The seven members of the
12-person jury agreed to their extraordinary news conference
two nights after the case ended because they said they were
being hounded by reporters seeking to talk to them. They
answered questions for one hour in the same courtroom where
they tried and convicted Simpson and Clarence "C.J."
Stewart.
At the end, they concluded
that without the recordings of the hotel room confrontation,
the prosecution might not have won convictions.
"It would have been a
very weak case," Pettit said. Juror David Wieberg
chimed in, "Yes, a weak case," and other jurors
nodded in agreement.
Asked why they convicted
Stewart, who was seen as a minor player in the events,
Teresa Owens said: "The thing that clinched it for me
is he drove the car. He walked out with items. He came out
that room with items that didn't belong to him."
"He didn't leave,"
Consuelo Saldivar said. "If he walked in and saw what
was going on, he could have walked out."
They then said he continued
to participate in a cover up which made him a conspirator.
Pettit said she did not care
what sentence would be imposed on Simpson.
"If he walked out of
there I don't care," Pettit said. "If he lives his
life happily ever after, I don't care."
Simpson's lawyer said Sunday
that the former Heisman Trophy winner is hoping for a new
trial and a strong bid to reverse his conviction.
Attorney Yale Galanter told
The Associated Press that Simpson was being isolated from
other prisoners for his own safety, and allowed to see only
family members and a few friends. Lawyers advised Simpson to
do no media interviews, Galanter said.
Simpson will be held in the
Clark County Detention Center until his sentencing and then
is expected to be moved to state prison. Galanter said he
will pursue a request for Simpson to be released on bond
during the appeals process.
But because of the
seriousness of the charges, Simpson would probably remain
imprisoned during an appeal. Galanter said an appeal cannot
be filed until after sentencing.
The attorney said Simpson was
OK during a jail visit Saturday during which they discussed
plans for the case.
"He's disappointed and a
bit melancholy," Galanter said aboard a plane as he
prepared to return to his Miami office.
Galanter said he believes
Simpson has a strong argument for reversal of his conviction
because of legal errors made during the trial, beginning
with the jury selection process.
He said issues to be raised
on appeal will include the elimination of all
African-Americans from the jury and the inclusion of jurors
who believed that Simpson should have been convicted at
trial in Los Angeles in 1995 of murdering his ex-wife,
Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman.
Lawyers for Simpson's
co-defendant, Clarence "C.J" Stewart, have said
they also plan a strong appeal with focus on their claim
that he was prejudiced by having to stand trial with
Simpson.
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