Los Angeles middle school to be renamed after attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr.

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ The Los Angeles middle school attended by high-profile attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. will be renamed in his honor, officials said. <br/><br/>The Los Angeles Unified School District Board

Wednesday, January 25th 2006, 10:33 am

By: News On 6

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ The Los Angeles middle school attended by high-profile attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. will be renamed in his honor, officials said.

The Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday to rename the 1,900-student Mt. Vernon Middle School after the attorney best known for representing O.J. Simpson.

``This extraordinary, superb lawyer with movie-star celebrity status was an outstanding student at Mt. Vernon Middle School and Los Angeles High School,'' said Scott Schmerelson, principal.

Cochran died last March in Los Angeles at age 67. He was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in December 2003.

Besides Simpson, Cochran's celebrity client list included football great Jim Brown, who he defended on rape and assault charges, actor Todd Bridges, who faced attempted murder charges, rapper Tupac Shakur on a weapons charge, rapper Snoop Dogg on a murder charge and rapper Sean ``P. Diddy'' Combs on gun and bribery charges stemming from a nightclub shooting.