ENTERTAINMENT / Gossip
O.J. Simpson's daughter must testify
(AP)
Updated: 2007-06-13 08:03
MIAMI - A federal bankruptcy judge ordered O.J. Simpson's daughter
Tuesday to give a deposition by week's end in a lawsuit about the former
football star's canceled book, "If I Did It."
A judge already ordered the bankrupt company owned by Simpson's children
to turn over any copies of the book in which the former NFL star explains
how he might have committed the killings of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson
and Ron Goldman.
Simpson, who has maintained his innocence, was acquitted in 1995 of
criminal charges in the deaths.
Goldman's family wants to rename the book "Confessions of a Double
Murderer" and sell it to collect part of the $33.5 million they won
nearly a decade after a civil jury found Simpson liable for Goldman's
death.
But the Goldmans' case has been snarled with canceled depositions and
other hurdles.
Goldman attorneys have given up trying to depose O.J. Simpson after he
canceled at the last minute two weeks ago. Goldman attorney Paul Battista
said the Simpsons have failed to comply with court orders, including
turning over copies of the book.
"They simply don't want to play by the rules," Battista said. "I've never
seen as much contempt of court as I've seen in this case with the debtor."
Simpson's oldest daughter, Arnelle, is named as the head of Lorraine
Brooke Associates, which owns the book's rights.
Arnelle Simpson's attorney, Kendrick Whittle, said his client does not
have copies of the book. He said Goldman family attorneys were present
when a trustee took her deposition and she should not be forced to "sit
there and explain her life story in front of a camera," again.
But U.S. Bankruptcy Judge A. Jay Cristol ordered Arnelle Simpson and an
attorney for her father to give depositions by Friday, when a hearing is
supposed to start.
The attorney, Leonardo Starke, is believed to be holding about $3,500 for
Simpson in a client trust account in Florida, where the former NFL star
lives.
HarperCollins planned to publish the book but canceled the deal following
public outrage.
Lorraine Brooke, which struck a deal with HarperCollins to be included in
an auction for the book's rights, then filed for bankruptcy, putting the
sale on hold. Arnelle Simpson sought to reorganize Lorraine Brook, which
would have allowed her to maintain temporary control over it, but Cristol
ruled the company should be liquidated. He decided an independent trustee
would control it.
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