Canned Juice: O.J. Simpson headed to prison for up to 21 years
Friday, December 5th 2008, 1:41 PM
Gluskoter/AP O.J. Simpson reacts as he is convicted on 12 charges, including felony kidnapping, armed robbery and conspiracy, on Oct. 3.
O.J. Simpson's hard time has finally come.
The former football great was sentenced Friday to up to 21 years behind bars for a botched robbery in Las Vegas, ending his life as a free man 13 years after he was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife and her friend.
He must serve at least six years before being eligible for parole.
Before being sentenced an emotional Simpson apologized for his actions in a soft, hoarse voice and begged Clark County Judge Jackie Glass for leniency.
"I didn't want to steal from anyone," said Simpson, whose lawyers sought the minimum sentence of 6-to-17 years. "I'm sorry, sorry."
Glass was unmoved. The judge called the crime a "very violent event ... Guns were brought. At least one gun was drawn. The potential for harm to occur in that room was tremendous."
A Las Vegas jury convicted him on Oct. 3 of all 12 counts, including kidnapping and armed robbery charges, in the bizarre heist he attempted with a bunch of his boozy pals.
The verdict came 13 years to the day after the Juice walked away a free man following the sensational murder trial of his ex-wife, Nicole, and her friend Ron Goldman in what came to be known as the "Trial of the Century."
The athlete, anchor and pitchman was later ordered to pay $33.5 million in a wrongful-death civil judgment that remains largely unpaid.
Goldman's father, Fred, and sister, Kim, were in the courtroom Friday.
Nevada prosecutors charged that Simpson, 61, and five associates had stormed into a room at the Palace Station hotel and casino in September 2007, brandishing guns, and took thousands of dollars worth of Simpson's memorabilia from a pair of sports collectors.
The group then stole as much as $100,000 worth of items, including Joe Montana lithographs and Pete Rose baseballs, from dealers Bruce Forming and Alfred Beardless, prosecutors said.
Defense lawyers argued that Simpson went to the hotel only to retrieve personal mementos that were stolen from him and that he was unaware his sidekicks were armed.
Four of the other men originally charged in the case have agreed to plead guilty and all took the witness stand for the prosecution during nearly three weeks of trial testimony that concluded Wednesday.
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