Orenthal James “O. J.” Simpson

On June 13, 1994, Nicole Simpson, the ex-wife of football star Orenthal James “O. J.” Simpson, was found lying outside her residence with her throat cut from ear to ear. Nearby was the body of a male friend, Ronald Goldman, who had been stabbed multiple times. The children, asleep in their bedrooms, had no idea of the night's occurrences. They were awakened by police and removed from the scene.

With the intention of notifying O. J. Of the night's events and the location of his children, police arrived at his residence and learned he had left the state. O. J.'s older daughter allowed the officers into his residence, where they placed a telephone call to O. J. in Chicago. One officer remained outside to check on a noise complaint, and behind one of the bungalows on the property, he found a bloody glove. Police then suspected the area might be related to the crime scene and began to secure the property. The possible relationship to the crime was established when blood evidence was found in O. J.'s vehicle, on his property, and in his residence.

Former football star O. J. Simpson during a television interview in New York City, July, 2002. O. J. gained more notoriety when he was tried for the brutal murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman in what was termed the “Trial of the Century.” Although Simpson was found not guilty, in a civil trial, he was later held liable for $30 million.

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The glove found at the residence matched another glove found at the homicide scene. Bloody shoe prints at the crime scene matched O. J.'s shoe size, and blood was found in and around his Ford Bronco, which resembled the eye witness reports of a white jeep leaving the area of the murders.

[Page 439]Upon immediate return to California, O. J. voluntarily complied with investigators, providing fingerprints, blood samples, and photographs of cuts on his hand. Within a matter of days, a warrant was issued for his arrest. Witnessed by the world via television was the resulting 60-mile, low-speed vehicle pursuit in which O. J. threatened suicide by holding a handgun to his head while his best friend drove. He eventually surrendered at his home.

The resulting criminal trial, deemed the “Trial of the Century” by the media, introduced O. J.'s “Dream Team,” a group of well-known lawyers, each with a criminal justice specialization. The team immediately challenged the handling of the blood evidence by both the Los Angeles Police Department and the crime lab in an attempt to effectively convince the jury that police tampering and inept handling of the evidence made the evidence invalid.

The team also contended that a “racist cop” had planted the glove at O. J.'s residence. It was widely speculated that coming on the heels of the 1992 Rodney King trial and subsequent riot, the jury makeup (nine African Americans, two whites, and one Hispanic) made it especially beneficial to present this case as racially influenced. Throughout the trial, the media reported that public opinion regarding O. J.'s guilt was divided along racial lines.

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