Judge Tries To Keep Simpson Past From Trial

LAS VEGAS — The judge in the O.J. Simpson kidnapping and robbery trial struggled yesterday to keep jurors from being reminded of his infamous Los Angeles murder case, ruling that a witness could not mention the former football star's troubled past.

A memorabilia dealer who was once Mr. Simpson's agent, Mike Gilbert, was called by the prosecution in hopes of establishing that Mr. Simpson held a grudge against Mr. Gilbert over possessions taken from his home after the former football star was acquitted of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ronald Goldman, in a highly publicized 1995 trial.

Prosecutors David Roger and Chris Owens argued that Mr. Gilbert could establish Mr. Simpson's "motive" and "mental state" when he went to a Las Vegas casino hotel room and confronted two other memorabilia dealers in an effort to reclaim property he contends was stolen from him.

Someone is heard to say, "Mike took it," during secret recordings of the events surrounding the September 2007 confrontation. Prosecutors wanted to show that Mr. Simpson gave the items to Mr. Gilbert to hide after a $33.5 million wrongful death civil judgment.