Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Murder Victim Ronald Goldman's Brentwood Bachelor Pad

Ronald Lyle "Ron" Goldman (July 2, 1968 – June 12, 1994) was an American aspiring model and waiter. He was murdered in 1994 along with Nicole Brown Simpson, former wife of O. J. Simpson, an actor and retired American football player. The subsequent criminal investigation and trial against O. J. Simpson was described by some as the "trial of the century." Although Simpson was acquitted following the criminal trial, he was later held liable for Goldman's death and that of his ex-wife in a 1997 civil trial.
At the time of his murder, Goldman was working as a waiter at Mezzaluna Trattoria, a restaurant located at 11750 San Vicente Boulevard in Los Angeles. Nicole Brown Simpson, a friend of Goldman and the ex-wife of O. J. Simpson, had called to report that her mother Juditha Brown had accidentally left her eyeglasses on the table. After a quick search, they were discovered in the gutter outside the restaurant. Although Goldman had not served Nicole's table, he agreed to bring them to her home after work. Some authors, including Gerry Spence and Mark Fuhrman, have cited this fact as evidence that Simpson and Goldman were lovers. Goldman told friends that he was "just friends" with Simpson.Before returning the eyeglasses, Goldman stopped at his apartment located at 11663 Gorham Avenue in Brentwood to change clothes and possibly took a shower. When he arrived at Nicole Brown Simpson's condominium located at 875 South Bundy Drive, he was murdered along with Simpson on the walkway leading to the residence, just a few weeks shy of his 26th birthday. During a reconstruction of the events, police believe he had arrived during or shortly after the murder of Simpson, and was stabbed to death in the process.O. J. Simpson was charged and tried for both the murders of Goldman and his ex-wife. In October 1995, Simpson was found 'not guilty' of both murders. In a 1997 civil trial, a jury found Simpson liable for Goldman's death and awarded $33 million (USD) in damages to the Goldman family.During the trial, Fred Goldman lashed out at defense attorney Johnnie Cochran's courtroom rhetoric such as the labelling of Mark Fuhrman as a Hitler, and his use of bodyguards from the black nationalist group Nation of Islam. Simpson's family, in turn, verbally attacked Goldman, who was supported outside the court by chanting members of the Jewish Defense League.
The rights to O. J. Simpson's book, If I Did It, a first-person account of how he would have committed the murders, were awarded to the Goldman family in August 2007. The family was granted the proceeds from the book in 2007 as part of a $33.5 million civil jury award against the ex-football star they have been trying to collect for over a decade. The Goldmans own the copyright, media rights and movie rights. They also acquired Simpson's name, likeness, life story and right of publicity in connection with the book, according to court documents. After renaming the book to If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer, the Goldmans published it in September 2007 through Beaufort Books. Within days it became a bestseller.The Goldman family contributed a portion of proceeds from the If I Did It book sale to the newly-founded Ron Goldman Foundation for Justice. The foundation provides grants for multiple organizations and programs that provide resources to victims and survivors of violent crimes.
--- wiki

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