OJ Simpson Granted Parole, Says 'I Was Always a Good Guy, Could've Been a Better Christian'
Controversial former NFL player and actor O.J. Simpson has been granted parole after nine years in prison in Nevada, with his release scheduled for Oct. 1.
Simpson, 70, who was convicted of armed robbery and kidnapping but found not guilty in the trial of the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown-Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman, insisted that he has always tried to be good.
"I was always a good guy, but could have been a better Christian, and my commitment to change is to be a better Christian," he said of his time in prison, according to ABC News on Thursday.
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"Simpson was at times jovial and combative with the members of the parole board, expressing his remorse and saying he's humbled by his incarceration," ABC noted.
Reuters reported Thursday that a four-member panel of the Nevada Board of Parole Commissioners voted unanimously to release the former football player, with Simpson participating by video from the Lovelock Correctional Center in Nevada.
"I've done my time, I've done it as well and respectfully as anyone can," Simpson said during the hearing. "None of this would have happened if I'd had better judgment."
Commissioners determined that Simpson should be granted parole, given his compliance with prison rules, his lack of prior criminal convictions, and his minimal safety risk to the public.
Simpson's adult daughter, Arnelle, added at the hearing: "No one really knows how much we have been through, this ordeal the last nine years," she said. "He's like my best friend and like my rock."
The double-murder case of Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson gripped America back in 1994, ABC noted, though Simpson was acquitted of all criminal charges in 1995.
He has continued to maintain his innocence, despite family members of the victims insisting that he is guilty.
Ron Goldman's father, Fred Goldman, told ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos before the parole hearing: "What's troubling to me is not only him, but the whole system gives second chances to violent felons or, for that matter, anyone in jail. ... Ron doesn't get a second chance.
"Ron never gets to spend his life doing what he wanted to do," Fred Goldman continued. "We'll never get to share his life, and the killer will walk free and get to do whatever he wants."
Others, however, such as Bruce Fromong, one of the sports memorabilia dealers Simpson was convicted of robbing, said that he has forgiven Simpson, who was once a close friend.
"This is a good man. He made mistake. But if he called me tomorrow and said, 'Bruce I'm getting out, will you pick me up?' Juice, I'll be here tomorrow for you," Fromong said.
Evangelical leader the Rev. Franklin Graham also commented on the news of Simpson's October release, stating that there is "a lot of controversy about what this man deserves and his previous acquittal."
"But yesterday's ruling can serve to remind us of our own pardon, made possible by Jesus Christ. We have all been found guilty of sin and deserve its penalty — death. The Bible tells us, 'For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord' (Romans 6:23)," Graham wrote in a Facebook post on Monday.
"Jesus gave His own life on the cross, died, was buried, and rose again on the third day so that if we ask His forgiveness and put our faith in Him, we can have eternal life with Him. I hope everyone reading this knows His eternal pardon — and I hope O.J. Simpson does too."
