Orenthal v. People of the State of California O. J. Simpson, a former National Football League (NFL) player, broadcaster, and actor, was prosecuted and acquitted for the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in Los Angeles County Superior Court. On the night of June 12, 1994, the two were stabbed to death outside Brown's apartment in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles. The jury was sworn in on November 9, 1994, and the trial lasted eleven months. On January 24, 1995, [1] opening remarks were made, and on October 3, 1995, Simpson was acquitted of both charges of murder.  Because of its widespread attention, the trial has been dubbed "the trial of the century" and has been dubbed the "most publicized" criminal trial in history. 

On June 17, 1994, when investigators discovered a blood-stained glove on Simpson's property, he was officially charged with the murders following a cursory interrogation by police detectives. He was the target of a low-speed chase in a white 1993 Ford Bronco SUV piloted by his buddy Al Cowlings after he failed to turn himself in on time. TV stations provided live footage of the chase, which was viewed by an estimated 95 million people, during the 1994 NBA Finals. The chase and eventual arrest of Simpson were among the most extensively reported incidents in American history.

 

Simpson was defended by the "Dream Team," a high-profile defense team that was originally headed by Robert Shapiro[8][9][10] and then overseen by Johnnie Cochran. F. Lee Bailey, Alan Dershowitz, Robert Kardashian, Shawn Holley, Carl E. Douglas, and Gerald Uelmen were also on the squad. Two such lawyers who specialized in DNA evidence were Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld. While Deputy District Attorneys Marcia Clark, William Hodgman, and Christopher Darden believed they had a strong case against Simpson, Cochran was able to persuade the jury that the DNA evidence in this case, which was a relatively new form of evidence in trials at the time, was subject to reasonable doubt.  Evidence that the blood sample was allegedly mistreated by lab scientists and workers, as well as suspicious circumstances surrounding other court exhibits, supported the reasonable doubt hypothesis.  Cochran and the defense team also accused the LAPD of racism and ineptitude, citing Detective Mark Fuhrman's actions and words as examples.

 

Because of the response to the judgment, the trial became historically noteworthy.

 

 Despite the fact that the country saw the identical evidence presented at trial, there was a racial divide in spectators' reactions to the decision, which the media labeled the "race gap."

 

 The majority of African-Americans believed the "not guilty" judgment served justice, but the majority of Whites and Latinos thought it was a racially motivated jury nullification[15][16] by a predominantly African-American jury, according to a survey of Los Angeles County residents.  More recent polling reveals that the "gap" has closed after the trial, with more than half of black respondents believing Simpson was guilty in 2013.

 

Goldman's father launched a legal claim against Simpson after the trial. On February 4, 1997, a jury unanimously convicted Simpson guilty of both Goldman and Brown's killings.  The Goldman family was awarded $33.5 million in compensation and punitive damages ($54 million in 2020 dollars), but only got a tiny percentage of that amount. Simpson moved to Florida in 2000, one of the few jurisdictions where personal assets, such as residences and pensions, are not confiscated to pay for bills committed in other states.

 

Murders

Brown and Simpson both watched their daughter Sydney's dancing performance at Paul Revere Middle School on June 12, 1994. Brown and her family then proceeded to Mezzaluna for dinner, but they did not ask Simpson to join them. Ron Goldman, who had become close friends with Brown in recent weeks[50], was one of the restaurant's servers, although he was not assigned to the Brown family's table.  Brown and her children then proceeded to Ben & Jerry's before heading back to Brown's Brentwood apartment on Bundy Drive. Brown's mother called Mezzaluna at 9:37 p.m. about a pair of missing eyeglasses, according to the restaurant's manager. The manager discovered the glasses and placed them in a white envelope, which Goldman took with him when he left the restaurant at 9:50 p.m., intending to deliver it to Brown's address.  Meanwhile, Simpson ate McDonald's takeout with Kato Kaelin, a bit-part actor and family acquaintance who had been granted access to Simpson's estate's guest house. The New York Post's Cindy Adams stated that the two had gone to a nearby Burger King, where a famous drug dealer known only as "J. R." confessed to supplying them crystal meth. 

 

Brown's neighbors testified that at about 10:15 p.m., they heard a lot dog barking coming from outdoors. Brown's Akita dog was barking in the street outside her house at 10:55 p.m., according to a dogwalker who lives a few streets away. The blood-streaked Akita followed the guy home; he attempted to lead the dog back to where he found it, but the dog refused. Later, he left the Akita with a nearby couple who volunteered to keep the dog overnight; the pair opted to walk the dog back to where it was discovered since it was anxious. As they approached the location where the Akita had been discovered about midnight, the dog came to a halt outside Brown's house, and the pair saw Brown's corpse laying outside the door. Goldman's corpse was discovered alongside Brown's by police who were summoned to the area. 

 

The front entrance of Brown's apartment was open when the victims were discovered, but there were no evidence that someone had broken in or otherwise entered the building. Brown's corpse was found at the bottom of the steps leading to the entrance, face down and barefoot. Although the pathway leading to the stairs was coated in blood, the soles of Brown's feet were clean; investigators decided that she was the first to be slain and the intended target based on this evidence.  She had been stabbed in the head and neck many times, but her hands showed minimal defensive wounds, signaling a brief fight to investigators. The third cut, which severed her carotid artery, went deep into her neck. Investigators concluded that after murdering Goldman, the attacker returned to Brown's corpse, stepped on her back, pulled her hair back, and sliced her neck, based on a huge bruise in the middle of her upper back and a matched foot print on her clothes.  Brown's larynx was visible through the gaping gash in her neck, and vertebra C3 had been incised; her head was barely connected to her body. 

 

Goldman's corpse was discovered beside a tree and a fence. He'd been stabbed many times in the torso and neck, but his hands had just a few defensive wounds, indicating a brief fight to investigators. The attacker allegedly stabbed Goldman with one hand while holding him in a chokehold, according to forensic findings from the Los Angeles County coroner's office. A blue knit cap, an extra-large Aris Isotoner light leather glove, and the package containing the spectacles he was returning were all found near Goldman's corpse. Goldman visited Nicole's residence during her murder, and the perpetrator murdered him to quiet him and eliminate any witnesses, according to detectives.Through the rear gate, a trail of bloody shoe prints led to the intruder. Drops of blood from the assailant's wounded left hand could be seen to the left of several of the prints. The spacing between the prints showed that the offender walked away from the crime scene rather than running.

Step-by-step explanation

People v. Orenthal is a case involving the people of the state of California. When former National Football League (NFL) player, broadcaster, and actor O. J. Simpson was convicted and found not guilty of the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in Los Angeles County Superior Court, he was known as the James Simpson trial. On the night of June 12, 1994, the duo was stabbed to death outside Brown's apartment in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles. Brown was the victim. The trial lasted eleven months, beginning with the swearing-in of the jury on November 9, 1994. Opening remarks were delivered on January 24, 1995[2], and Simpson was found not guilty of both charges of murder on October 3, 1995, the day before his trial was to begin.  The trial has been dubbed "the trial of the century" because of the widespread worldwide coverage it received, and it has been dubbed "the most publicized" criminal prosecution in history.

Despite very cursory questioning by police detectives, Simpson was officially charged with the murders the next day, June 17, 1994, when investigators discovered a blood-stained glove in Simpson's possession. After failing to appear at the agreed-upon time, he became the target of a low-speed chase in a white 1993 Ford Bronco SUV driven by his buddy Al Cowlings, who was also arrested.  Television stations provided live footage of the chase, which was viewed by an estimated 95 million people, interrupting coverage of the 1994 NBA Finals.  The chase and eventual capture of Simpson were among the most highly reported events in American history, with millions of people watching on television.

 

Simpson was defended by a high-profile defense team, dubbed the "Dream Team," which was first headed by Robert Shapiro and then managed by Johnnie Cochran. Simpson was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Additionally, F. Lee Bailey, Alan Dershowitz, Robert Kardashian, Shawn Holley, Carl E. Douglas, and Gerald Uelmen were a part of the delegation. The DNA evidence specialists Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld were two other lawyers who worked in the field of DNA evidence. In spite of the fact that Deputy District Attorneys Marcia Clark, William Hodgman, and Christopher Darden were confident in their case against Simpson, Cochran was able to persuade the jury that there was reasonable doubt about the DNA evidence in this case, which was a relatively new form of evidence in trials in that time period.  The evidence supporting the reasonable doubt argument included evidence that the blood sample had allegedly been mistreated by lab scientists and workers, as well as evidence that other court exhibits had been placed in suspicious conditions.  Cochran and his defense team also accused the LAPD of various forms of misbehavior, including racism and ineptitude, citing, in particular, the acts and words of Detective Mark Fuhrman, as examples.

 

Because of the outpouring of support after the judgment, the trial gained historical significance.

 

In spite of the fact that the whole country saw the identical evidence presented at trial, the media noted an apparent divide in viewers' perceptions of the verdict along racial lines that they labeled as the "racial gap."

 

 A survey of Los Angeles County citizens revealed that the majority of African-Americans believed the "not guilty" judgment had served justice, whilst the majority of Whites and Latinos believed it was a racially motivated jury nullification by a mostly African-American jury.  The "gap" has reduced since the trial, according to more recent polls, with more over half of black respondents questioned in 2013 reporting that they felt Simpson was guilty of the crime. 

 

Following the trial, Goldman's father launched a civil claim against Simpson. Simpson was found not guilty. In a unanimous decision on February 4, 1997, the jury held Simpson liable for the killings of both Goldman and Brown in their respective homes.  The Goldman family was granted $33.5 million in compensation and punitive damages (equivalent to $54 million in 2020 dollars), however they have only received a fraction of that monetary amount. Simpson relocated from California to Florida in 2000, since it is one of the few states where personal assets such as residences and pensions are not subject to seizure in order to pay bills accrued in other jurisdictions.

 

Murders

Brown and Simpson were both in attendance for their daughter Sydney's dance recital at Paul Revere Middle School on the evening of June 12, 1994. Following that, Brown and her family went out to dinner at Mezzaluna restaurant, but they did not ask Simpson to accompany them. A waiter at the restaurant named Ron Goldman had recently become good friends with Brown, but he was not allocated to the Brown family's table because he was not assigned to the Brown family's table.  Ben & Jerry's was the next stop before Brown and her children returned to Brown's apartment on Bundy Drive in Brentwood. A call from Brown's mother to Mezzaluna at 9:37 p.m. concerning a pair of misplaced eyeglasses was sent to the restaurant by the restaurant's manager. A white envelope containing the glasses was spotted by the manager, who placed them in it before handing it to Goldman as he left the restaurant at 9:50 p.m., with the intention of dropping it off at Brown's apartment when his shift ended.  Meanwhile, Simpson dined on takeaway from McDonald's with Kato Kaelin, a bit-part actor and family friend who had been granted permission to stay at a guest house on Simpson's estate while filming the movie. In the aftermath of Simpson's death, rumors arose that he had been high on drugs, and the New York Post's Cindy Adams claimed that the couple had indeed gone to a nearby Burger King, where a famous drug dealer known only as "J. R." had confessed to supplying them crystal meth. 

Brown's neighbors testified that they heard a lot dog barking from outdoors throughout the night, starting at 10:15 p.m. and continuing until the next morning. In the early hours of the morning, a dogwalker who lived a few streets away from Brown came upon Brown's Akita dog, who was barking in the street outside her house. Although his legs were drenched in blood, the Akita followed him home. He attempted to lead the dog back to where he had discovered it, but the dog refused to cooperate. In the end, he abandoned the Akita with a nearby couple who volunteered to keep the dog overnight; but, since the dog was upset, the pair opted to walk the dog back to the location where it had been discovered. When they arrived in the neighborhood where the Akita had been discovered, the dog halted outside Brown's home, and the pair discovered Brown's corpse outside the house. Goldman's corpse was discovered near Brown's house by police who were summoned to the area. 

It was discovered that the front door of Brown's condominium was open when the victims were discovered, but there were no evidence that anybody had entered the building, whether by a break-in or another means. A barefoot Brown was found at the bottom of the stairwell that led to the front entrance, laying face down and barefoot. Although the pathway leading to the steps was coated with blood, the soles of Brown's feet were clean; as a result of this evidence, authorities decided that she had been both the first and intended victim of the attack.  She had been stabbed numerous times in the head and neck, but she had just a few defensive wounds on her hands, which suggested to investigators that she had only fought for a brief period of time. When the final wound was administered, it went deep into her neck and severed her carotid artery. Investigators concluded that the assailant returned to Brown's body after killing Goldman and slit her throat with a large bruise on her upper back and a corresponding foot print on her clothing. After killing Goldman, the assailant stood on Brown's back, pulled her head back by her hair, and slit her throat.  In her neck, her larynx could be seen through the gaping incision, and vertebra C3 had been incised;[61] Brown's head was barely connected to her body at this point. 

 

Goldman's corpse was found nearby, next to a tree and a fence, and it was not identified. He had been stabbed numerous times in the torso and neck, but there were only a few defensive wounds on his hands, which indicated to investigators that he had only fought for a brief period of time.  According to forensic evidence obtained by the Los Angeles County coroner, the attacker stabbed Goldman in the chest with one hand while holding him in a chokehold with the other. Several items were found near Goldman's corpse, including a blue knit cap, an extra-large Aris Isotoner light leather glove on his left hand, and the package holding the glasses he was returning. Detectives discovered that Goldman had visited Nicole's home during her murder, and that the perpetrator murdered him in order to quiet Goldman and eliminate any witnesses to the crime.  There was a trail of bloody shoe prints leading to the rear gate from the attacker. Drops of blood from the assailant's left hand were found to the left of several of the prints, indicating that he was bleeding from the left hand. The distance between the prints suggested that the offender strolled rather than raced away from the scene, according to the investigators.