Voices

Legal analysts give their views on O.J. Simpson’s deposition, his first sworn account of the events surrounding the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.

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“A deposition is like pinning a moth to a wall. The wings may continue to flail, but the bug has nowhere to go. By definition, then, a deposition can never help the person being questioned. It can only give ammunition to an adversary. The only question is, how much?”

--Santa Monica attorney Brian C. Lysaght

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“Trashing the victim is always a bad strategy. People will be outraged that he’s not taking responsibility for his actions, and that he’s making accusations about Nicole, who had her throat slashed.

--Loyola law professor Laurie Levenson

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“It is a risky proposition to tarnish the dead unless you have independent corroborative evidence indicating Nicole Brown was, as O.J. describes her in this deposition, a hellcat. It is an all-or-nothing gamble to take a holier-than-thou perspective that it was her, not me, and I’ve had to take the brunt of her aggressiveness.”

--Civil rights attorney

John Burris

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“He clearly can’t talk to anyone honestly and tell them what happened. That’s why you see this tension between him and his lawyer. The old charming O.J. is slowly being killed. It’s a weird prison he’s in, a prison of his own mind.”

--Defense attorney Harland W. Braun

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“Nothing that Simpson said really shocks me. It’s clear he’s been in denial about his domestic abuse. But some of these things are completely self-serving and reflect a total incomprehension of how they’re likely to be perceived, especially with regard to domestic violence. If he were my client, he’d be getting a good kick under the table.”

--Defense attorney Gigi Gordon

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“One can understand why Simpson’s attorneys pleaded with him not to take the stand during his murder trial. If he cannot follow his own lawyer’s advice during a civil deposition, imagine the damage he might have done under hostile cross-examination at trial.”

--UCLA law professor

Peter Arenella

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“The flower of truth unfolds when someone is questioned by a skilled lawyer. When all is said and done, the whole truth will have blossomed.”

--Los Angeles Dist. Atty. Gil Garcetti