`O.J. II': TRIAL PLAYERS NEW, BUT NOT THE ISSUE.

Byline: Anne Burke Daily News Staff Writer

No TV camera. No Cochran, Bailey, Darden or Clark. No Lance Ito. The second trial of O.J. Simpson - this time civil instead of criminal - will be far different than the first but the issue is the same: Did O.J. murder Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman?

Simpson was acquitted of murder in the slayings last year in criminal court. But in the civil trial, which begins Tuesday, the rules are changed.

In a courtroom where the burden of proof is ``a preponderance of the evidence'' instead of guilty ``beyond a reasonable doubt,'' the families of Simpson's slain ex-wife and Goldman want a jury to find the former football star financially liable for the double slayings.

Only nine of 12 jurors need agree.

Friends of the Goldman family say the case is less about recovering money, than it is an opportunity to achieve a measure of vindication for their belief that Simpson got away with murder.

``If there's a judgment against (Simpson), absolutely, they'll feel they have partial justice,'' said Goldman family friend Jim Ziegler.

For his part, Simpson wants only one thing out of the civil trial.

To win.

``He didn't ask to be at this (trial), he doesn't want to be there,'' said a Simpson friend who asked not to be named. ``He doesn't hope to gain anything from this experience other than to come out of it with some measure of his dwindling resources intact.''

The civil trial is actually three lawsuits wrapped into one. There are new lawyers. A different judge.

Goldman's father, Fred, and sister, Kim, filed a wrongful-death complaint, as did his mother, Sharon Rufo.

Lou Brown, as executor of his slain daughter's estate, filed a survival action, used in the event that a victim survives, even briefly, an ultimately fatal assault or accident.

If the plaintiffs prevail, monetary damages could virtually clean Simpson out. Ziegler, however, says money is not a motive for the Goldmans.

``It's getting (Simpson) on the stand and watching him contradict himself, like chipping golf balls at 10 at night, sleeping, or showering, or what was it that he was really doing?'' Ziegler said.

Simpson is expected to testify in the civil trial. His acquittal negates any Fifth Amendment rights this time around.

During deposition testimony, Simpson never seriously contradicted himself or his lawyers from the criminal trial. What the plaintiffs' attorneys will focus on are some of the credibility stretches in his stories.

Simpson denies he killed his former wife and Goldman.

Defense attorneys expect the trial will last at least four months. The first step will be jury selection with hardship screening of 225 potential panel members.

The jury could have an entirely different racial makeup.

Different from the downtown criminal trial, which yielded a majority of African-Americans on the panel, the civil trial will be in upscale, seaside Santa Monica, where the jury pool is predominantly white.

The civil trial - despite a gag order and a judge's order pulling the plug on TV coverage - will be closely watched outside court by the District Attorney's Office, advocates for battered women and community leaders.

Prosecutors were targeted with criticism by many after Simpson's acquittals, and success by the families in the civil trial could have a mixed impact on the District Attorney's Office.

The loss of the high-profile criminal case has been made an issue by prosecutor John Lynch in his bid to unseat District Attorney Gil Garcetti.

``Obviously, they think O.J.'s guilty so they should want, and probably do want, a plaintiff's verdict,'' said Laurie Levenson, an associate dean at Loyola Law School. ``On the other hand, if there is a plaintiff's verdict, it's partly an indictment of the DA's Office because it couldn't win.''

Those who fight domestic violence were bitterly disappointed by Simpson's acquittal, but could come out winners in the civil trial, advocates said.

An adverse ruling for Simpson could do much to eliminate the cynicism felt by battered spouses toward the justice system, said victims advocate Gail Pincus of the Domestic Abuse Center.

Whichever way the verdict goes, the trial could benefit victims by opening them to the possibility of seeking redress in civil court, Pincus said.

``The civil suit is an underutilized tool. Even though in lots of cases no one would ever be able to collect the money, the judgment will permanently change the lifestyle of the batterer,'' Pincus said.

Regardless of the outcome of the trial - dubbed ``O.J. II'' - some are predicting that race relations in Los Angeles could be a two-time loser as the trial plays out.

If Simpson is held liable, many of his African-American supporters will conclude he was persecuted because of his race, said Earl Ofari Hutchinson, a political analyst and author of ``The Assassination of the Black Male Image.''

``I hear this over and over again: `Why is he standing trial again? Wasn't he acquitted in a court of law? . . . Is it because O.J. Simpson is African-American and the victims were Caucasian?' '' Hutchinson said.

If Simpson wins, those who believe that the acquittals were racially motivated will be outraged and indignant all over again, pundits say.

``My fear is that no matter what happens in the civil case, it will only further exacerbate the divisions, especially the racial divisions,'' said USC law Professor Erwin Chemerinsky.

Others caution that it is wrong to predict discord.

The Rev. Cecil Murray of the First A.M.E. Church in Los Angeles said that as long as the trial is fair, African-Americans will accept the verdict.

``I think it's important to observe that the nonwhite citizens of Los Angeles are just as zealous for law and order and procedure as the white majority, and without provocation, they are not provoked. It's that basic,'' said Murray, whose church is predominantly African-American.

In the civil trial, people hungry for Simpson courtroom drama are big losers the second time around.

With no cameras, Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki's 80-seat courtroom probably will be packed every day. The scramble for seats will intensify when Simpson takes the stand.

Randee Olson of West Hills is one Simpson watcher who's not happy that the trial has been unplugged. She's curious to see if the former football star gets a fair shake, but doesn't trust the media to give her the full story.

``I prefer to watch it myself and see firsthand what the information is,'' said Olson, 47.

A lot of people, though, are just as happy. Ross Hoffman of Ventura said he was disillusioned with the criminal justice system because of the acquittals and has lost interest in the Simpson case.

Said Hoffman: ``I wouldn't have watched it anyway.''

What's being litigated

The O.J. Simpson civil trial is really three lawsuits in one, with Simpson being sued by the estate of Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman's mother and father.

Nicole Simpson's estate and Goldman's estate - overseen by their parents - each filed a survival claim - a vaguely defined action that can only be brought if a victim survives, perhaps even briefly, an ultimately fatal assault or accident.

This claim is important because it carries the potentially big-money punitive damages. But the law is unclear on how long a victim must survive and suffer to warrant a claim.

The Goldman parents as individuals also filed separate wrongful-death claims seeking compensation for the loss of their child's companionship.

Simpson's children still have the right to file their own wrongful-death claims until their 19th birthdays - meaning there is still the possibility of O.J. Trial Parts III and IV.

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