OJ Simpson's road rage trial begins

A Miami court has heard OJ Simpson snatched glasses off the head of another motorist in a fit of road rage last year.

Prosecutor Abbe Rifkin said the confrontation began when Simpson got out of his car and shouted.

The defence has countered that the other driver, Jeffrey Pattinson, acted like a madman and denies any offence.

The charges Simpson faces of auto burglary and battery carry a possible 16-year prison sentence.

The eight-member jury was selected after their views on Simpson's acquittal at a criminal trial in the 1994 killings of his ex-wife and her friend were explored in depth.

The confrontation occurred in a suburban Miami neighborhood on December 4, 2000.

Mr Pattinson told police he honked and flashed his lights when Simpson's sport utility vehicle rolled through a stop sign. Simpson allegedly approached Pattinson's vehicle, reached in and pulled off his glasses, scratching Pattinson's forehead. He allegedly shouted: "So I blew the stop sign. What are you going to do? Kill me and my kids?"

The key piece of prosecution evidence is Simpson's thumbprint on the glasses. Mr Pattinson told police he heard a girl shouting, "No Daddy, no Daddy, no!" when Simpson reached into the car.

Defence attorney Yale Galanter described a much different version of what happened. He said both men got out of their vehicles and Mr Pattinson was holding his glasses in his left hand when Simpson brushed against them.

The defence attorney also said Mr Pattinson was familiar with Simpson, his teenage children, their home and their car, and pursued Simpson, repeatedly honking his horn and flashing their lights.