Palimony Suit Targets Cochran For Lost Support

Johnnie Cochran Jr.’s former mistress filed a palimony lawsuit against O.J. Simpson’s lead attorney Tuesday, saying he abruptly halted support payments after she discussed their relationship on television.

“I don’t know why he turned against me, why he cut me off, why he would want to see me hurt,” a tearful Patricia Cochran said at a news conference.

The Superior Court lawsuit seeks at least $1 million in damages, but attorney Neal Raymond Hersh said Patricia Cochran just wants restoration of $4,000 in monthly support payments, a guarantee she will continue to be provided with a car and other expenses.

“The complaint asks for more than she is willing to accept. All she wants is for him to continue to do what he has been doing,” Hersh said.

Patricia Cochran, who took the lawyer’s name and asserts she devoted almost 30 years to Cochran, bore his son, Jonathan Eric Cochran. The son, now 22, didn’t attend the news conference.

Asked why he cut her off, she told reporters the relationship may have become an embarrassment for Cochran, a black attorney who has handled several high-profile, racially charged cases, including Simpson’s.

“I wonder if somewhere deep in his subconscious I became representative of white people and the wrongs white people have done to black people,” she said.