OJ Simpson found not guilty
On October 3rd, 1995, O.J. Simpson was acquitted for the murders of his ex-wife, Nichole Brown, and her friend, Ronald Goldman. Brown and Goldman were both found stabbed to death outside their condominium in Los Angeles on January 12, 1994.
O.J. Simpson was a retired NFL player and not a very good person. He met Nichole Brown when he was thirty and she was eighteen. Simpson was already married to someone else when he started to date the much younger Brown. Shortly after Simpson and Brown started to date, Simpson divorced his wife and married Brown. Their marriage was very abusive and controlling. Simpson allegedly would not allow Brown to work due to his extreme jealousy. Simpson would also allegedly physically beat her. Brown and Simpson got divorced on February 25, 1992. After the divorce, Simpson was known to stalk Brown.
LAPD detectives investigated the double homicide, and suspected Simpson from the start based on their domestic violence history.
O.J Simpson was arrested on January 12th, 1994, after what may be the most famous vehicle pursuit in American history. Simpson tried to run away from the police in the now infamous white bronco driven by his friend, A.C Cowlings. He had been scheduled to turn himself in to police that morning after they obtained an arrest warrant for the double homicide, but he went on the run instead.
After his arrest, Simpson pleaded not guilty, and his case went to trial a year later on January 24, 1995. The defense team was led by Robert Shapiro and Jonnie Cochran. The defense team found the bloody glove from the crime scene was now too small for Simpson’s hand. “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit” is still the memorable line from the trial.
The case of “The People of The State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson finally ended on October 3rd, 1995, after almost 10 months. Americans around the country waited with bated breath for the verdict.
As the not guilty verdict was read on national tv shock swept across the country. Los Angelenos breathed a sigh of relief. After suffering through the Rodney King riots, they were concerned about a repeat of the violence.
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