Former superstar Simpson gets ready to serve time behind bars

Las Vegas: More than a decade after O.J. Simpson stunned much of America by walking away from a murder trial a free man, the former football great known for unbridled speed was preparing to spend in prison what should have been the prime years of a superstar's retirement.

The 61-year-old former athlete, Hollywood actor and pioneering symbol of African-American celebrity success was sentenced on Friday to as much as 33 years behind bars, with eligibility for parole after nine, for a robbery caper in Las Vegas last year.

As the retired football hero once known as "The Juice" was led away in shackles, many who have followed his downward spiral over the years still wondered how a figure who inspired a generation could have fallen so far from grace.

The case stemmed from a bid by Simpson to reclaim what he insisted were personal possessions that had been stolen from him. With five other men in tow, he stormed into a small room at the Palace Station hotel and casino in September 2007 and made off with thousands of dollars in collectibles they seized at gunpoint from a pair of memorabilia dealers there.

In the words of Simpson himself, pleading for leniency in a hoarse, trembling voice as he stood before the judge in blue jail garb: "In no way did I mean to hurt anybody, to steal anything."

But Clark County District Court Judge Jackie Glass rejected defense arguments that Simpson acted without criminal intent and she suggested that he was his own worst enemy.

"While at this case bail hearing, I said to Mr. Simpson that I didn't know if he was arrogant or ignorant or both. Then during the trial and through this proceeding, I got the answer: it was both."

His sentencing came two months after a Las Vegas jury concluded a three-week trial by finding Simpson and co-defendant Clarence "C.J." Stewart guilty of all 12 charges against them, including kidnapping, assault, robbery and assault with a deadly weapon.

Simpson's conviction came 13 years to the day that he was acquitted in Los Angeles of the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, who were stabbed to death in 1994.

A civil court jury later found Simpson liable for the deaths and awarded $33.5 million in damages to the victims' families.

Both prosecutors and defense lawyers said the case was inextricably linked with his previous legal woes.

Prosecutors contended the robbery grew out of grudges Simpson had nursed since his murder trial and civil case.

Timeline

Legal saga

- June 12, 1994: Simpson's former wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman are stabbed to death outside her West Los Angeles town house.

- June 17: O.J. Simpson is arrested on suspicion of murder after he leads police on a two-hour car chase.

- January 24, 1995: Trial begins.

- June 14: Simpson tries on the leather gloves that prosecutors said he wore during the slayings. Simpson says they are "too tight".

- September 27: In his closing statement, Simpson attorney Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. urges jurors to deliver a verdict that "talks about justice in America".

- October 3: After less than a day of deliberations, the jury's not-guilty verdict is announced on TV.

- February 10, 1997: Civil jury orders Simpson to pay $33.5 million to relatives of Brown Simpson and Goldman.

- December 4, 2000: Simpson is involved in an altercation with a motorist in a suburb of Miami. A jury acquits Simpson.

- December 4, 2001: Federal authorities and Florida police raid Simpson's Miami-area home as part of an investigation into a drug ring. No charges are filed.

- September 13, 2007: Simpson and an entourage confront two collectors in a Las Vegas hotel room over valuable sports memorabilia that Simpson said had been stolen from him.

- September 18: Simpson and three others are charged with felonies, including kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon.

- October 3, 2008: A jury convicts Simpson on all charges.

- December 5: Simpson is sentenced to a maximum of 33 years in prison. He will be eligible for parole in nine years.

- Los Angeles Times-Washington Post News Service