Simpson Plans Abuse Fund-Raiser Group Accepts Offer For ‘Very Select’ Gathering At His Estate

A group that works to combat spousal abuse has accepted O.J. Simpson’s offer to hold a black-tie fund-raiser Thursday at his Brentwood estate.

The reception and silent auction will be attended by “a very select group of press and celebrities,” according to Stop the Violence-Increase the Peace Foundation, which also seeks to curb other forms of violence.

Leaders of the group said they welcomed Simpson’s offer of assistance, even though he pleaded no contest in 1989 to abusing his then-wife Nicole Brown Simpson. He was acquitted last year in the 1994 slayings of his ex-wife and her friend Ronald Goldman.

“We have dealt with ex-gang members who have murdered three and four people in their lives,” foundation President Khalid Shah said Friday. “We have to understand them. I don’t think there is anyone who is beyond reproach, who doesn’t have any skeletons in their closet.”

A one-page letter from the Inglewood-based foundation said about 500 people were invited to the fund-raiser. Suggested donations ranged from $100 to $10,000.

Attorney Gloria Allred, a spokeswoman for Ms. Simpson’s family, said Simpson’s gesture amounts to “a public relations campaign on a grand scale to spit-shine his image.”

“Any organization dedicated to stopping violence ought not use Mr. Simpson, who apparently has not sought long-term counseling to help control his violent behavior,” she said.

Allred said the Nicole Brown Simpson Charitable Foundation is holding its own black-tie event June 29 at the Disneyland Hotel.