Notorious Criminal Research and Presentation Orenthal James Simpson

Introduction - Former NFL star OJ Simpson was tried on two counts of murder following the deaths of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. - Simpson and Brown married on February 2, 1985, and had two children. They divorced 7 years later in During and after the marriage, there was thought to be an immense amount of domestic violence that Simpson had inflicted on Simpson from hitting and degrading her and then after the marriage he was thought to be stalking Brown.

Summary - At around 12:10 am on June 13, 1994, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman are found murdered outside of Brown’s condo outside of LA - On June 13, 1994, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were found murdered outside of Brown’s condo on the outskirts of LA - Evidence found at the scene of the crime lead authorities to believe that the crime was committed by OJ Simpson, former NFL star and Brown’s ex-husband - Lawyers told the Los Angeles Police Department to allow Simpson to turn himself in at 11 am on June 17, OJ failed to show up and at about 6:20 pm that day Simpson was spotted in a Ford Bronco driven by his friend A. C. Cowlings and soon after authorities all over LA were chasing them until they were finally stopped and Simpson was arrested - On June 20, Simpson was attained and pleaded not guilty to the two murders - After a week long court hearing, the California Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy-Powell felt that there was enough evidence to bring Simpson to trial and on November 3, 1994, was officially sworn into court and thus began 9 months of trial.

Evidence Summary Crime Scene Blood - Blood drops were found alongside bloody shoe prints leading away from the bodies of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman; blood was found on a gate at the back of the murder scene. Blood from both places contained Simpson's genetic markers. Simpson had a cut on his left middle finger when interviewed by police the day after the killings. Shoe Prints – The Bloody shoe prints at the scene of the crime were matched to a size 12 Bruno Magli shoe. OJ also wears size 12. Hair and Fibres at the Crime Scene - Hairs were found in a dark knit cap; Similar to Simpson's hairs; fibers on a cap were similar to those in the carpeting of Simpson's Ford Bronco; dark blue cotton fibers were found on Goldman. The Glove - One dark, cashmere-lined leather glove, size extra large, was found at the murder scene and another behind Simpson's guest house. Brown bought Simpson two pair of such gloves in DNA tests showed blood on glove found on Simpson's property appeared to contain genetic markers of Simpson and both victims; a long strand of blond hair similar to Ms. Simpson's also was found on that glove

Evidence Summary Cont’d Bloody Socks – A pair of socks were found crumpled at the end of OJ’s bed. The DNA tests were able to determine the genetic markers of OJ and Brown. Ford Bronco – Blood was found on the inside and outside of the vehicle. DNA tests showed that some of blood was a mixture with genetic markers of Simpson along with Brown and Goldman. Timeline of the Events – The murders took place between 10:15 pm and 10:40 pm Past Events - Through 911 calls to police and testimony, prosecutors allege a history of Simpson hitting, degrading and stalking Brown.

Prosecution Arguments and Defense Presented Crime Scene Blood: Prosecution – Place Simpson at the scene, said Simpson dripped blood after wounding his finger with a knife during the murders; said scientific controls and testing by different labs thwarted any possibility of contamination or tampering. Defense – Felt that samples were collected sloppily which rendered the DNA results. Felt that the wound on Simpson’s hand was miniscule and were not enough to drip blood. Shoe Prints: Prosecution - tried to place Simpson at the scene of the crime by showing that Bloomingdale's in New York, where Simpson sometimes shopped, carried the Bruno Magli shoes. Defense - Thousands of people bought such shoes; noted that no murder shoes were ever recovered and that the prosecution had no evidence that Simpson ever purchased such shoes. Hair and Fibres at the Crime Scene: Prosecution – Places Simpson at the scene of the crime; witness stated that Simpson wore a dark sweat suit the night of the murders Defense – Hair could have belonged to another black person in LA. The hairs also had no dandruff and when they sampled Simpson’s, there were pieces of dandruff found. The Glove: Prosecution - Simpson lost the left glove at his ex-wife's home during the struggle and, in a rush, dropped the right glove while trying to hide it; explained that evidence gloves didn't fit Simpson in a courtroom demonstration because the gloves shrunk from being soaked in blood and Simpson had rubber gloves on underneath. If the glove doesn’t fit, you must aquit. Defense – The glove behind guest house was planted by Detective Mark Fuhrman, a racist cop trying to frame Simpson; blood on glove may have been planted by police; gloated that evidence gloves didn't fit; hair analysis isn't sophisticated enough to be trusted.

Prosecution Arguments and Defense Presented Cont’d Bloody Socks: Prosecution – Linked a victim to Simpson. Defense – Socks were planted by the police, then blood was put on the socks to try and frame Simpson. Ford Bronco: Prosecution – Simpson drove Bronco from crime scene. Defense - challenged interpretation of DNA tests, particularly those suggesting a genetic match to Goldman in a mixture; noted that the genetic material of an unknown person was found in the steering wheel blood; suggested police planted some of the blood. Timeline of the Events: Prosecution - Simpson lacked an alibi or even plausible story for what he was doing alone during this period; pointed to testimony of a neighbor who saw a vehicle similar to a Bronco racing away from the crime scene at 10:35 p.m Defense - Simpson didn't have enough time from when he was last seen at about 9:40 p.m. to drive to Ms. Simpson's home, kill two people, hide bloody clothing and murder weapon, drive home, drop the glove behind the guest house and clean up before greeting the limo driver about 11 p.m.; told jurors during opening statements that Simpson was home practicing his golf swing at the hour of the murders Past Events: Prosecution – Pointed out that Simpson was prone to jealous rages that could in fact hurt Brown Defense – Irrelevant with little evidence to prove.

Jury Decision - On October 3, 1995, the jury decided on the decision that OJ Simpson was not guilty on all charges and therefore OJ was a FREE MAN! - On February 6, 1997 at the Civil Trial, the jury felt that there was an immense amount of evidence to hold Simpson liable of wrongful death of Goldman and battery of Brown. The jury in the civil trial awarded Brown and Simpson's children, Sydney and Justin, $12.5 million from their father as recipients of their mother's estate. The victims' families were awarded $33.5 million in compensations and damages.

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Theory Two theories I was able to come up with as to why OJ might have committed such a crime would be trait theory and social learning theory. Trait theory – Trait theory deals with the fact that individuals have certain traits that will contribute to whether or not they can commit a crime if they are pushed to limit. For OJ, jealousy was one of the major factors that could of influenced him to killed Brown and Goldman because seeing them alone together even though he was returning her sunglasses might have set OJ off into a state a delusion which led to the killings. Social learning theory – indicates that individuals are influenced by those around them. When OJ was 5 his parents divorced and OJ might have taken it harder then many other people with divorced parents would have that might of caused stability issues for him in a sense that he had two marriages in which both ended up in divorce possibly because of the anger that had built up over the years. In his first marriage, OJ’s 2 year old baby died and in that same year he divorced with his wife which could have been another factor in OJ’s in altering OJ’s state of mind that could of caused him great distress.