OJ Simpson Finally Going to Jail

Image from source, LVRJ

Anybody surprised?

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O.J. Simpson sentencing in Las Vegas

Read it at: Las Vegas Review-Journal

O.J. Simpson Found Guilty

Photo from source, LVRJ.com

Oh, big surprise. If you barge into someone's hotel room with a bunch of thugs, and wave guns around, you're guilty. It doesn't matter if that stuff was yours, or how wronged you were, that approach was stupid and criminal. And it just so happens that stupid and criminal define O.J. Simpson pretty well.

I have to say though, I've had no interest in this story whatsoever. I'm only reporting it here because it happened in Las Vegas, and I've had to hear about it for months in double doses. Do I think O.J. was guilty for murder back in the 90s? Yep. Do I think he was guilty this time? Yep. But I don't think a burglary charge by a washed up sports celebrity warranted all of the attention it got here. I guess it was sort of an Al Capone moment, where a criminal gets away with murder, and then gets busted for something stupid.

One nice thing: nobody seems to be on his side this time around.

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Simpson, co-defendant found guilty of all charges

Read it at: Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Media's New Shiny Thing: O.J. Simpson

Photo from DougHenning.com

You know the drill. A celebrity or politician does something outrageous or stupid. A girl goes missing in Aruba. A talentless heiress ODs, and leaves a baby behind. . .

A 24/7 news obsession is born, and almost nothing else gets reported. And now we're treated to reruns--O.J. Simpson, again. Like the Jon Benet story, this one grew new legs this week.

Now, I know I'm guilty of some of this too. I wrote a story about O.J. earlier, a couple on the Britney train wreck performance, a Paris Hilton story. And of course, Larry Craig. But hey, that stuff's funny, I don't care who you are. It's easy to get sucked in (ahem, sorry).

But I'd like to think we're capable of focusing on more than one thing at a time. Unfortunately, the Bush Administration just loves distractions like this. It's the perfect opportunity to do some more nefarious things while nobody is looking. Whether they can be as good at that post-Rove, I have no idea. Just be looking at what the left hand is doing while the right one is dangling sparkly things before your eyes.

Friday the 14th: OJ Takes Las Vegas

Photo from source, LVRJ.com

I'd just moved to Las Vegas when the O.J. Simpson trial was reaching its conclusion. Maybe it was my decision to move 2,000 miles across the country that caused me to have no real interest in the story. I had other things on my mind. But, like most Americans, I knew the high (or low) points of the story, and was listening to the radio (the Internet being in its infancy) when the verdict was read.

Fortunately, O.J. has never reattained his fame, and is doomed to live in infamy forever more. But I suppose it was inevitable that he'd add to that dubious legacy. Las Vegas seems to always have at least a tangential relationship to most of the big crime stories, and here we are in the center of one. As a Las Vegan, I feel motivated to post the local paper's take on the story. So, here you go.

By the way, Palace Station? This is the only notable thing I can think of for that particular property since it caught fire seven or eight years ago, right after the roof had caved in from rain. If nothing else, maybe the venerable old Palace will get a boost from the story.

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Simpson Named Suspect in Armed Robbery

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- O.J. Simpson says he went into a casino hotel room only to retrieve memorabilia that he felt was stolen from him. But police are investigating it as an armed robbery and named the fallen football star as a suspect Friday in yet another surprising chapter to his legal saga.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Simpson insisted there were no guns involved and that he went to the room at the Palace Station casino only to get stolen mementos that included his Hall of Fame certificate and a picture of the running back with J. Edgar Hoover.

"It's stolen stuff that's mine. Nobody was roughed up," Simpson told the AP. . .

Read more at: LVRJ.com