Ito Returns Jurors’ Copies of Grisham’s ‘The Rainmaker’

One of the many satellite dramas in the O.J. Simpson case ended Thursday with a decision that strikes a blow for summer reading material everywhere.

Superior Court Judge Lance A. Ito ruled that two jurors could continue to read John Grisham’s novel “The Rainmaker,” which has a recurring theme of domestic violence.

The book’s narrator, an attorney, attempts to persuade a young woman to leave her wife-battering husband, an over-the-hill baseball player. “If you don’t get rid of this jerk, you might be dead in a couple of months,” the lawyer warns. But she responds: “I can’t file for divorce. He’ll kill me. He tells me so all the time.”

Earlier this week, at defense lawyer Johnnie L. Cochran Jr.’s behest, Ito directed bailiffs to confiscate the novel from jurors. Sidebar transcripts, including one released Thursday, reveal Cochran’s worries about the book.

But after reviewing Grisham’s latest bestseller, Ito decided to return the books and indicated that he was confident the jurors would not let “The Rainmaker” influence their decision-making. “I’ve thought about it, and that book is clearly a work of fiction,” the judge declared, adding that the books had been confiscated in “an abundance of caution.”

“I apologize to you for the inconvenience. But I’d hate to have this case have something horrible happen for reasons that have nothing to do with the facts and the evidence,” Ito said just before dismissing the jurors for the day. “I’m sure you understand, and I’m sure you will follow my instructions to reach your verdict on this case solely on the facts, the law, and the evidence.”