O.C. Vigil Marks Simpson-Goldman Deaths

The second anniversary of the death of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle Goldman drew hundreds of people to Salt Creek Beach late Wednesday for a candlelight vigil.

Some came to stand against domestic violence, others to protest the October acquittal of O.J. Simpson in connection with the murder of his ex-wife and her friend Goldman.

They came alone and in couples, from surfing and skateboarding, carrying lap dogs and leading children by the hand. Many wore buttons with Nicole Simpson’s date of birth and death as they quietly gathered around a makeshift altar on a basketball court.

Carol Kreuz, 35, of Laguna Niguel brought her three children, ages 4 through 7, to the vigil to teach them an early lesson about domestic violence.

“I particularly wanted to bring my daughter here tonight so that she would learn about domestic violence. I tell her [that] if someone loves you, they don’t hit you. If they hit you, it’s not love and it’s not right,” Kreuz said while her daughter Sarah looked on. “I tell her the reason we’re here is that that happened to Nicole.”

Simpson pleaded no contest to spousal battery charges in 1989.

Janet Cross of San Clemente said she went to the vigil because her feelings about Simpson’s guilt and about spousal abuse have remained as strong as they were during the trial. “I just felt so helpless and frustrated during the whole trial,” she said. “I thought if I came tonight, it would be a way of empowering myself.”

Brown family members said they were grateful for the audience’s attendance but that the vigil was not held solely to support them in their grief or just to remember Nicole Simpson and Goldman.

“This is not just for Nicole,” said Lou Brown, Nicole Simpson’s father. “This is for everyone here.”

Domestic violence cuts across all classes and races, he said. And he urged people who found themselves in troubled relationships to leave them.

“Keep your heart clear. Treat your mate as a person equal to you in every respect,” Lou Brown said. “God bless each and every one of you for coming out here this evening.”

“Nicole is looking down right now and so is Ron and so are other victims of violence,” said Nicole’s sister Denise Brown. “They’re seeing these candles.”

The light from the candles, held by the people remembering them, signaled the first step toward “banishing the darkness” of domestic violence, Denise Brown said.