LAS VEGAS Defense attorneys in the O.J. Simpson robbery and kidnapping trial tried to cast doubt Monday on the testimony of a man who said he brandished a gun during a hotel room confrontation after being told by Simpson to “look menacing.”
LAS VEGAS Defense attorneys in the O.J. Simpson robbery and kidnapping trial tried to cast doubt Monday on the testimony of a man who said he brandished a gun during a hotel room confrontation after being told by Simpson to "look menacing." Michael McClinton, testifying under a plea bargain that will likely save him from prison, faced cross-examination from Simpson attorney Gabriel Grasso, with prosecutors poised to rest their case. Grasso began the day questioning McClinton about a recording he made after the alleged robbery. McClinton testified Friday that Simpson asked him to bring a gun to the casino-hotel where the former football star planned to reclaim mementos of his storied career from memorabilia dealers who were offering it for sale. He was scheduled to be the prosecution’s last witness, but intense cross-examination could extend his stay on the witness stand. The defense planned to begin calling its own witnesses after McClinton concludes. Simpson claims he saw no guns the night of Sept 13, 2007. But McClinton said he had his gun drawn when he crossed into the hotel room and that Simpson was close enough that their shoulders could have touched. Prosecutors bolstered McClinton’s testimony with an audio tape recorded by McClinton during a party attended by Simpson only hours after the hotel room incident. "This ain’t no major crime," Simpson is heard saying on the tape. District Attorney David Roger highlighted this exchange between Simpson and McClinton: Simpson: "You didn’t pull the piece out in the hall." McClinton: "No, no, no, no, no, no, hell no." Simpson added in the recording, "There ain’t nothin’ on that video, and look, they gonna look at the video. Ain’t nothin’ they can see, they gonna see us goin’ in the place. Then they gonna see us leaving with just the boxes." McClinton testified that Simpson seemed concerned about security video cameras at the hotel. None of the surveillance videos shown at the three-week-old trial have included any image of a gun, and witnesses have been conflicted about whether Simpson could have been in a position to see a gun in the cramped hotel room. AP ______ Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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