Author Description

Daniel Petrocelli is the attorney who represented Fred Goldman and his family in their civil suit against O.J. Simpson for the death of their son Ron. (As such, he also coordinated the simultaneous prosecution of suits brought by Ron Goldman's biological mother and by the estate of Simpson's ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson.) In Triumph of Justice, Petrocelli tells readers how he was able to succeed where Marcia Clark and Chris Darden failed, convincing a jury that Simpson was indeed liable for the deaths of Goldman and Brown Simpson. Petrocelli takes us behind the scenes, revealing how he got--and almost lost--the job soon after Simpson walked out of the criminal trial. He goes through rigorous depositions and cross-examinations in nearly complete detail, poking holes in Simpson's ludicrous alibi. Although he has very little good to say about Simpson (whose football exploits he admired before taking on the case), Petrocelli does have professional compliments for his legal adversaries. It's an important element to note--unlike other books from Simpson trial insiders, Triumph of Justice doesn't have aggrandizement or apologies for its author as the top priority. The mission here is simple--to tell the story of how justice was done--and Petrocelli achieves his objective nobly.