Court Overturns Custody Ruling in Simpson Case

A state appeals court Tuesday threw out a judge’s decision giving O.J. Simpson full custody of his two children, reopening the bitter legal battle with his former in-laws, Louis and Juditha Brown.

In a scathing ruling, the 4th District Court of Appeals found that Orange County Superior Court Judge Nancy Wieben Stock erred by preventing Brown’s attorneys from introducing evidence that Simpson allegedly beat and later murdered his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson.

The justices criticized Wieben Stock for excluding evidence from Nicole Brown Simpson’s diaries, which detailed Simpson’s violent tendencies, and for placing too much significance on Simpson’s 1995 acquittal on murder charges.

“In light of the importance of the murder evidence to the welfare of the children, any doubt as to whether the murder issue had been raised should have been resolved in favor of hearing it rather than excluding,” Justice David G. Sills wrote in the majority opinion.

Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Lyle Goldman, were knifed to death outside her Brentwood home June 12, 1994, as the Simpsons’ children, Sydney and Justin, slept inside.

“Whoever committed this crime must have acted in extreme rage and anger and been oblivious to the possibility that the victim’s children might discover her body,” Sills wrote.

The justices ordered a new custody hearing--to the delight of the Brown family.

“The family is just emotional and overwhelmed,” said Natasha Roit, the Browns’ attorney. “They clearly look at it as a wrong that has been righted. . . . [Juditha] was thinking about Nicole and what Nicole’s wishes would be. What she wanted to know first and foremost was what’s the best thing to do for the children now.”

The Browns, who live in Dana Point, declined to comment until they had finished reading the court decision. But Jonathan Burrington, the boyfriend of Nicole’s sister, Denise Brown, said, “They are elated that the system has worked this time. It’s been a long time coming.”

Simpson told the Associated Press that he plans to fight the decision for as long as it takes to keep custody of his children.

“The one thing is--no matter what anyone thinks of me personally or what they may think I have done or haven’t done--is the well-being of these kids,” he said.

Simpson said no one could argue that the kids aren’t doing “incredibly well and are incredibly well adjusted and happy.”

Marjorie Fuller, the attorney appointed to represent the interests of the Simpson children, said Sydney and Justin were unhappy when told of the court’s ruling Tuesday afternoon.

“The only comment I have is on behalf of my clients, Sydney and Justin, who are very disappointed in the result,” Fuller said. “I am still studying the decision to see what needs to be done.”

In ordering a second custody hearing, the justices ruled that the case should be heard by Family Court Commissioner Thomas H. Schulte. Schulte was originally scheduled to handle the case but was removed by then-Presiding Judge Theodore E. Millard in favor of Wieben Stock.

At that time, Superior Court officials attributed the change to scheduling issues and emphasized that Schulte was not being punished for any decisions he made early in the Simpson case.

The appeals court, however, concluded that Schulte was removed without cause. The ruling also suggests that Schulte was more willing than Wieben Stock to consider the murder and domestic violence charges as part of the custody decision.

Wieben Stock faced heavy criticism after granting Simpson custody and became the target of an unsuccessful recall effort.

In response to the recall campaign, Wieben Stock released a statement maintaining she followed the law in granting custody to Simpson. While “public hatred” of Simpson made the decision unpopular, the statement says, should judges make “decisions based on public opinion or based on the law?”

The appeals court, however, criticized the judge for several key decisions during the custody case. “While we understand the incredible pressure the court was under, the fact remains that it made a number of errors,” the justices wrote. “These errors require reversal of the order terminating the guardianship.”

Sydney, 12, and Justin, 10, have been living with Simpson since Wieben Stock’s December 1996 decision. Roit, the Browns’ attorney, said the grandparents have seen the children “as often as they could work it out with Simpson” since losing custody.

The Browns were granted temporary legal custody of the children shortly after Simpson’s June 1994 arrest in the murders.

With the case now being sent back to a lower court, Roit expected it to take some time before the custody of the children is determined. But she said the decision is encouraging.

“This is a very courageous decision, and it’s going to improve the lives of a lot of kids, not the least of which are the two that we are most concerned about and that the Browns are most concerned about: Sydney and Justin,” she said.

The appeals court ruling is just the latest in a series of dramatic legal decisions in the Simpson saga. Jurors in a criminal trial acquitted the former football great of murder in 1995, but jurors in the civil case later awarded the victims’ families $33.5 million in damages.

In her decision, Wieben Stock described the children’s affection for their father, writing that one of the children had stated a desire to live with Simpson and the other did not state a preference.

While Wieben Stock blocked some evidence regarding Simpson’s alleged violent conduct, attorneys for the Browns did present evidence about domestic abuse in the Simpson family. Citing experts, Roit said during closing arguments that witnessing domestic abuse or its results is harmful for children.

But the judge wrote in her opinion that the attorneys for the Browns had “failed to demonstrate clear and convincing evidence” that giving custody to their father would be harmful to the children.

The judge cited an “intact, stable, bonded, healthy relationship between the minors and their grandparents” when ordering visitation.

Times staff writer David Haldane contributed to this report.