OJ Simpson granted parole for robbery conviction

By Canberk Yuksel

NEW YORK (AA) - Retired American football legend O.J. Simpson on Thursday was granted parole for his role in a 2007 robbery and kidnapping at a Las Vegas hotel.

The former Hall of Famer, now 70, made his case before four parole commissioners via video-conference from the Lovelock Correctional Center, the Nevada prison where he has been held for almost nine years.

An apologetic Simpson took full responsibility for the crimes, saying he was sorry and all he now wanted was to spend time with family and friends.

His oldest daughter, Arnelle Simpson, as well as robbery victim and his long-time friend, Bruce Fromong, testified in favor of his release.

After a brief deliberation, the parole board decided on his release, effective in October.

Simpson has been in public eye since the late 1960s first as a promising college player and then as a superstar in the NFL for a decade.

But he came to be known much more for his downfall when he was arrested in 1994 for the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown-Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman.

What followed was a criminal case heard gavel-to-gavel on television and watched by millions, sharply dividing public opinion and spurring a debate on racial bias in law enforcement and media coverage of high-profile cases.

Simpson was acquitted in 1995 under a mixture of intense suspicion on one side and indignation at his vilification on the other.