Simpson must turn over Heisman, $500,000 in valuables

Most items are in a trust for his children

SANTA MONICA, California (CNN) -- O.J. Simpson was ordered Thursday to turn over his Heisman Trophy and nearly $500,000 in valuables, including his golf clubs, to help satisfy a $33.5 million civil judgment against him.

In February, a civil jury found him responsible for the deaths of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman. A criminal jury acquitted him of murder charges in October 1995.

Simpson's attorney, Phil Baker, said 99 percent of the items his client has been ordered to forfeit no longer belong to him. They have been placed in a trust that benefits Simpson's children, Baker said.

The trust was set up March 10, the same day the judgment handed down against Simpson was formally entered. His sister, Shirley Baker, was named as trustee.

The timing led Goldman family attorney Peter Gelblum to call the trust "a fraudulent conveyance."

"He's trying to hide his assets," Gelblum said. "He's using his children to hide his assets."

Warhol silkscreen is on list

Thursday's order, made at the request of the Goldman family, was signed by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki. It gives Simpson seven days to turn the possessions over to the Sheriff's Department, which will decide how the items are sold or distributed.

Simpson's attorneys asked for a 30-day stay of the order, but Fujisaki refused. Simpson has the right to ask that certain items be exempted from the list.

Other items Simpson will have to relinquish are an Andy Warhol silk screen of himself valued at $25,500, a $40,000 diamond necklace and a $26,500 fox fur coat. The Heisman Trophy, which Simpson won as a star running back for the University of Southern California, is valued at $5,100.

Fujisaki 'getting disturbed' by infighting

During the court hearing Thursday, it was revealed that Fujisaki had entered a similar order Monday at the request of the estate of Nicole Brown Simpson.

That order included nearly 70 items, some not on the Goldman inventory, including a Yamaha grand piano and signed letters from former President Richard M. Nixon congratulating Simpson on his football victories.

The Brown and Goldman families have been squabbling over collecting their shares of the verdict, leading the judge to admonish their attorneys.

"You guys are just running up money, expenses for everyone," Fujisaki said. "I'm really getting disturbed by this whole process."

Phil Baker defended the trust set up for Simpson's children, saying it was designed to be "partial satisfaction" of the judgment.

Of the $33.5 million in damages awarded by jurors, $12.5 million goes to the two children of O.J. Simpson and Nicole Simpson, who are the beneficiaries of her estate. The rest goes to Goldman's father and mother.

Related stories:

• Jury unanimous: Simpson is liable - February 4, 1997
• The O.J. Simpson civil trial: Jury's decisions - February 4, 1997
• Background report: The Simpson case - February 4, 1997
• Key dates in the O.J. Simpson case - February 5, 1997

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