at 14:18 on December 5, 2008, EDT.
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS


In an Oct. 1, 2008 file photo O.J. Simpson appears during his trial at the Clark County Regional Justice Center in Las Vegas. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/John Gurzinski, Pool/File


LAS VEGAS - A broken O.J. Simpson was sentenced Friday to at least 15 years in prison for a hotel armed robbery after a judge rejected his apology and said, "It was much more than stupidity."

The 61-year-old football Hall of Famer stood shackled and stone-faced when Judge Jackie Glass quickly rattled off his punishment soon after he made a rambling, five-minute plea for leniency, choking back tears as he told her: "I didn't want to steal anything from anyone. ... I'm sorry, sorry."

The judge said several times that her sentence in the Las Vegas case had nothing to do with Simpson's 1994 acquittal in the slaying of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman.

"I'm not here to try and cause any retribution or any payback for anything else," Glass said.

Simpson was immediately led away to prison after the judge refused to permit him to go free on bail while he appeals.

Simpson's co-defendant and former golfing buddy, Clarence Stewart, also was sentenced to at least 15 years.

Outside court, Goldman's father, Fred Goldman, and sister, Kim, said they were thrilled with the sentence.

"There's never closure. Ron is always gone. What we have is satisfaction that this monster is where he belongs: behind bars," Fred Goldman said.


©The Canadian Press, 2008

As a moderator you should know to check and see if any OJ Threads have already been created

CarrieLee said:

Hmmmm that's happened to a few other mods too

[Goes to her dupe thread.....]