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Triumph of Justice : The Final Judgement on the Simpson Saga
When Daniel Petrocelli was first approached to represent the family of Ron Goldman in the O.J. Simpson civil trial, he was one of the few people in America who had paid little attention to the Simpson criminal trial. His first inclination was to turn down the case. But as friends and clients urged him to accept, as he got to know not only the Goldmans but the facts of the case and the human tragedy lurking behind it, Petrocelli realized this was something he had to tackle head on.
Never having tried a murder case, putting his firm's considerable reputation at risk, confronting a media swarm for which he was totally unprepared, and facing an overwhelming financial disadvantage, Petrocelli nonetheless went on a personal and increasingly passionate mission to bring about justice. Triumph of Justice is a chronicle of that mission. Petrocelli's insights, observations, and inside information not only show us how he convinced a jury to find O.J. Simpson liable for $33.5 million in the deaths of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman--proving to the American people that their legal system does indeed work--he also makes the story a compelling and exciting legal read.
Among the revelations detailed in these
Petrocelli's ten-day, no-holds-barred deposition of O.J. Simpson
What Petrocelli learned from the incendiary depositions and interviews of Kato Kaelin, Faye Resnick, Marcus Allen, A.C. Cowlings, and others
The surprising realizations that emerged from a mock jury trial, which Petrocelli lost
His dramatic face-to-face courtroom confrontation with O.J. Simpson on the witness stand
What happened that night in Brentwood
Petrocelli also offers insight into the larger issues--of race, wealth, celebrity, and police competence--surrounding the case. He places the trial in its proper context and, in so doing, examines legal questions and issues about our justice system that affect and reflect upon every one of us.
Triumph of Justice proves, conclusively, that O.J. Simpson told lie after lie and that he did indeed kill his ex-wife and an innocent man. It is the story you haven't heard about the trial you didn't see and is the closest, most in-depth look at an important murder case since Helter Skelter.
Never having tried a murder case, putting his firm's considerable reputation at risk, confronting a media swarm for which he was totally unprepared, and facing an overwhelming financial disadvantage, Petrocelli nonetheless went on a personal and increasingly passionate mission to bring about justice. Triumph of Justice is a chronicle of that mission. Petrocelli's insights, observations, and inside information not only show us how he convinced a jury to find O.J. Simpson liable for $33.5 million in the deaths of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman--proving to the American people that their legal system does indeed work--he also makes the story a compelling and exciting legal read.
Among the revelations detailed in these
Petrocelli's ten-day, no-holds-barred deposition of O.J. Simpson
What Petrocelli learned from the incendiary depositions and interviews of Kato Kaelin, Faye Resnick, Marcus Allen, A.C. Cowlings, and others
The surprising realizations that emerged from a mock jury trial, which Petrocelli lost
His dramatic face-to-face courtroom confrontation with O.J. Simpson on the witness stand
What happened that night in Brentwood
Petrocelli also offers insight into the larger issues--of race, wealth, celebrity, and police competence--surrounding the case. He places the trial in its proper context and, in so doing, examines legal questions and issues about our justice system that affect and reflect upon every one of us.
Triumph of Justice proves, conclusively, that O.J. Simpson told lie after lie and that he did indeed kill his ex-wife and an innocent man. It is the story you haven't heard about the trial you didn't see and is the closest, most in-depth look at an important murder case since Helter Skelter.
644 pages, Hardcover
First published April 25, 1998
6 people are currently reading
97 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 26, 2011
Of course I think this is the best book on the OJ case. Honestly, my hubby did a great job telling the tale and it shows the kind of work ethic you need to win high profile media cases.
February 4, 2024
I’m not sure if you can ever call this case closed. Simpson was found guilty in the civil trial, which is the subject of this book. He still got away with a double murder due to a corrupt defense team and a jury that had made up their minds before they heard the opening statements in the criminal trial. There really is no actual Triumph of Justice for Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson. The jury in the criminal trial disregarded all the evidence that blatantly proved Simpson’s guilt way beyond a reasonable doubt. It was payback for many decades of mistreatment of African Americans by the LAPD.
I know I was outraged by the verdicts in the Rodney King case myself. I can’t even begin to imagine how that verdict felt towards POC. That was also not justice served.
I don’t feel like that jury should have just let Simpson walk after killing two people and anyone that truly believes he didn’t do it is in deep denial.
This book, however, tells the story of the Civil Trial that the Goldman, Brown and Ron’s mother Sharon Rufo brought against Simpson.
It was not about money for the Browns or the Goldman families. I pretty much think it was for Sharon Rufo. She had already started to sue Simpson for wrongful death before the criminal trial even started and she had not seen Ron in over 15 years and probably would not have even recognized him on the streets. How a Mother turns her back on her two little children is beyond me.
Petrocelli does a good job of taking you through everything that went on in the civil trial. He humanized Ron and Nicole and you got to know more about them than in other books on the subject.
It was a compelling read to find out how the justice system works and how it also doesn’t work. So much preparation went into it and with a jury who actually paid attention to the facts.
The one really interesting thing was that at this trial Simpson had to take the stand and he lied and lied and lied so many times that even the reporters were telling Petrocelli he may want to back off before the jury started feeling sorry for Simpson. Sorry for Simpson? Words I would never think in my head.
It’s a shame that this jury was not the one in the criminal trial and Simpson would be in jail for the rest of his miserable life.
Petrocelli and his team put together a great case. They all worked non stop to make sure they could impeach everything that Simpson testified to and they did it magnificently.
The judge,Fujisaki, did not let his courtroom turn into a circus like that clown Judge Ito. He put up with little nonsense from either side. There was so much that never came out in the criminal trial that is in this book. I thought I had read it all at least once, but I was shocked at things I learned.
The verdict went the right way this time and Simpson was found libel for the deaths of Ron and Nicole. A judgement of $33.5 million was awarded to be split between all three parties. Of course they have seen very little money from the judgement because Simpson scurried away to Florida where there are laws that protect some of his assets. They can’t touch his pension, which is about $200,000 a year and they can’t come after his house.
Simpson did manage to find himself in more trouble in Vegas and spent 9 years in jail. Not nearly long enough, but at least he did spend some time behind bars.
But this was definitely an interesting read for me. It kept my attention on a subject that I have given too much of my attention to as it is!
I know I was outraged by the verdicts in the Rodney King case myself. I can’t even begin to imagine how that verdict felt towards POC. That was also not justice served.
I don’t feel like that jury should have just let Simpson walk after killing two people and anyone that truly believes he didn’t do it is in deep denial.
This book, however, tells the story of the Civil Trial that the Goldman, Brown and Ron’s mother Sharon Rufo brought against Simpson.
It was not about money for the Browns or the Goldman families. I pretty much think it was for Sharon Rufo. She had already started to sue Simpson for wrongful death before the criminal trial even started and she had not seen Ron in over 15 years and probably would not have even recognized him on the streets. How a Mother turns her back on her two little children is beyond me.
Petrocelli does a good job of taking you through everything that went on in the civil trial. He humanized Ron and Nicole and you got to know more about them than in other books on the subject.
It was a compelling read to find out how the justice system works and how it also doesn’t work. So much preparation went into it and with a jury who actually paid attention to the facts.
The one really interesting thing was that at this trial Simpson had to take the stand and he lied and lied and lied so many times that even the reporters were telling Petrocelli he may want to back off before the jury started feeling sorry for Simpson. Sorry for Simpson? Words I would never think in my head.
It’s a shame that this jury was not the one in the criminal trial and Simpson would be in jail for the rest of his miserable life.
Petrocelli and his team put together a great case. They all worked non stop to make sure they could impeach everything that Simpson testified to and they did it magnificently.
The judge,Fujisaki, did not let his courtroom turn into a circus like that clown Judge Ito. He put up with little nonsense from either side. There was so much that never came out in the criminal trial that is in this book. I thought I had read it all at least once, but I was shocked at things I learned.
The verdict went the right way this time and Simpson was found libel for the deaths of Ron and Nicole. A judgement of $33.5 million was awarded to be split between all three parties. Of course they have seen very little money from the judgement because Simpson scurried away to Florida where there are laws that protect some of his assets. They can’t touch his pension, which is about $200,000 a year and they can’t come after his house.
Simpson did manage to find himself in more trouble in Vegas and spent 9 years in jail. Not nearly long enough, but at least he did spend some time behind bars.
But this was definitely an interesting read for me. It kept my attention on a subject that I have given too much of my attention to as it is!
June 27, 2016
Triumph of Justice is my third foray into the OJ Simpson trial, following Marcia Clark's
Without a Doubt
and Jeffrey Toobin's
The Run of His Life: The People versus O.J. Simpson
. Unlike those texts, Triumph of Justice focuses on Simpson's civil trial rather than the unsuccessful criminal trial, and was penned by Daniel Petrocelli, the attorney who finally brought Simpson to justice.
It's hard to say how complete this feels, given that my recent devouring of the previous two texts and the accompanying TV adaptation has filled my head with all manner of Simpson trivia. Then again, any reader starting with the civil rather than criminal trial almost certainly already has a decent knowledge of the background leading up to this book's beginning. Petrocelli also introduces us to a number of Simpson and Nicole Brown's friends and acquaintances who had little involvement with the criminal trial, which helps give a fuller sense of their relationship and the events which lead to murder.
A great deal of the book is centered on Petrocelli's preparations for the trial and the depositions he took from key players, and at times the exhaustive detail began to feel exhausting - but by the time the trial rolls around, it really serves to highlight the number of obvious, glaring lies Simpson wove around himself, making the eventual judgement all the more satisfying. Petrocelli abstains from being overly critical of the preceding criminal trial, but it's easy to see why the civil trial reached a different verdict. Having a judge who controlled his courtroom and refused to pander to the defense, a brevity of expert witnesses, new evidence, and above all Simpson's own testimony all came together in a way that made the verdict almost inevitable.
Triumph of Justice may lack the almost novel-like quality of Without a Doubt, but it is a very satisfying read, and serves as a fulfilling conclusion to texts on the criminal trial. It's certainly not a starting point, but as an ending, it's excellent.
[Review originally published on my blog at Line After Line.]
It's hard to say how complete this feels, given that my recent devouring of the previous two texts and the accompanying TV adaptation has filled my head with all manner of Simpson trivia. Then again, any reader starting with the civil rather than criminal trial almost certainly already has a decent knowledge of the background leading up to this book's beginning. Petrocelli also introduces us to a number of Simpson and Nicole Brown's friends and acquaintances who had little involvement with the criminal trial, which helps give a fuller sense of their relationship and the events which lead to murder.
A great deal of the book is centered on Petrocelli's preparations for the trial and the depositions he took from key players, and at times the exhaustive detail began to feel exhausting - but by the time the trial rolls around, it really serves to highlight the number of obvious, glaring lies Simpson wove around himself, making the eventual judgement all the more satisfying. Petrocelli abstains from being overly critical of the preceding criminal trial, but it's easy to see why the civil trial reached a different verdict. Having a judge who controlled his courtroom and refused to pander to the defense, a brevity of expert witnesses, new evidence, and above all Simpson's own testimony all came together in a way that made the verdict almost inevitable.
Triumph of Justice may lack the almost novel-like quality of Without a Doubt, but it is a very satisfying read, and serves as a fulfilling conclusion to texts on the criminal trial. It's certainly not a starting point, but as an ending, it's excellent.
[Review originally published on my blog at Line After Line.]
June 18, 2009
"Triumph of Justice" is probably the best account by an "insider" of the Simpson legal and criminal saga. Civil attorney Daniel Petrocelli was hired by the Goldman family to represent them and bring justice for their son and brother, Ron and he takes the reader along on his first meeting with the Goldmans, to sharing memories of Ron, the tragedy of his life being cut so short, and the depositions and half-truths given by Simpson. Parts of the civil trial may be a bit heavy handed for the more impatient, but getting an inside glimpse of the civil trial, which received far less media attention that its criminal counterpart (not to mention, a firmer no-nonsense judge who would not allow cameras in his courtroom, nor any media pandering)is worthwhile. Far from being shown as a charasmatic, personable former athlete, Simpson comes across as a smarmy, cocky, self-absorbed guilty individual. His civil trial attorneys seemed, at least thru "Triumph", overwhelmed with the enormity of their client and the many half-truths and blatant lies he told. By comparison, Petrocelli steamrolled both them and Simpson and finishing the book, you come away with a deep sense of regret that Petrocelli couldn't have represented the State in the criminal matter.
Despite the heavy size of the volume, the reading is relatively smooth. Will "Triumph" truly close the book on the Simpson case? Probably not, but it should definitely be the case's swan song.
Despite the heavy size of the volume, the reading is relatively smooth. Will "Triumph" truly close the book on the Simpson case? Probably not, but it should definitely be the case's swan song.
October 16, 2015
Triumph of Justice is a surprisingly readable account of O J Simpson's civil trial. Written by the lead counsel Daniel Petrocelli, the book details the development and prosecution of the civil case against Simpson.
The evidence against Simpson was overwhelming and Petrocelli details how civil proceeedings work, how Simpson's depositions were used in order to impeach him in court and thus lead to his losing the civil case.
Enjoyable, easy to read, and left no doubt in this particular mind regarding Simpson's guilt.
The evidence against Simpson was overwhelming and Petrocelli details how civil proceeedings work, how Simpson's depositions were used in order to impeach him in court and thus lead to his losing the civil case.
Enjoyable, easy to read, and left no doubt in this particular mind regarding Simpson's guilt.
October 6, 2010
From my own collection.
This is a great read for those who want to know more about the O.J. Simpson trials. It's gratifying that the victims were finally vindicated, but the criminal trial should have had the quality of defense that the civil trial had.
For some reason, my book has a different subtitle. Mine says "Triumph of Justice: The Final Judgement on the Simpson Saga."
This is a great read for those who want to know more about the O.J. Simpson trials. It's gratifying that the victims were finally vindicated, but the criminal trial should have had the quality of defense that the civil trial had.
For some reason, my book has a different subtitle. Mine says "Triumph of Justice: The Final Judgement on the Simpson Saga."
December 17, 2015
At last, a book that takes you through the entire relationship of Nicole and the murderer and puts to rest the misinformation and rumors of what/why Ron was at Nicole's condo. Thank you Mr. Petrocelli making that evil murderer stand accountable for butchering Nicole and Ron and then writing this book so well that I felt as if I was right there with you every step of the way.
February 7, 2016
Well written story by the lawyer who took the O J Simpson civil case to court and won. After the fiasco of the criminal case, this book is a joy to read as it highlights good people making the legal system work. More than just courtroom drama though. Tells a lot of the story of the victims of the crime and their families.
June 22, 2024
This has actually been the best of the books I've read on the OJ Simpson case. As Fred Goldman's attorney during the civil trial, Petrocelli has a unique take on the case. He has a lot of interesting insight into the major players and the case itself as he chronicles taking depositions, developing the case, and confronting OJ on the stand.
October 10, 2024
Have had this hard back on my shelves for over 2 decades. Excellent book with insight behind the legal processes that many do not have reason to experience in their own lives.
March 18, 2016
This massive book would have had much more appeal to Simpson trial junkies twenty years ago . . . it is filled with arcane detail that isn't as interesting now (e.g., depositions of bit players such as Cora Fischman or Christian Reichardt). I picked it up mostly because my interest was sparked by the tv docudrama "The People vs OJ Simpson" that is currently airing on FX, and I skimmed pretty quickly through most of it. The sections about Simpson's time on the witness stand are still gripping, though.
October 13, 2010
I enjoyed this book. It's the OJ Simpson case through Petrocelli's eyes. Lady justice may be blind, but she sure can be bought.
November 13, 2017
A fascinating tale from inside the civil case against OJ Simpson for murder, the the tale is partly dimmed in the scintillating glar of Petrocelli's blinding narcissism.
October 26, 2012
This was much more interesting than I expected. Convincing case for OJ's guilt.
September 6, 2015
Very interesting read.
May 8, 2016
This book tells what happened in the O.J. Simpson Civil Trial about the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. More information is revealed in this book. I highly recommend it.
May 24, 2016
Incredible detail and insight, gripping behind the scenes view into what transpires in building and executing legal case
June 26, 2013
Interesting.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews