Simpson criminal trial

For the prosecution, the biggest mistake of the trial may well have been to file the Simpson case in the downtown district rather than--as is normal procedure--in the district in which the crime occurred, in this case Santa Monica. Implausibly, the prosecution explained its decision as an effort to reduce the commuting time of prosecutors and better accommodate the expected media crush. More likely, the decision was a political one, based on concerns that a conviction by what would be a largely white jury in Santa Monica might spark racial protests--or even riots similar to those that occurred following the trial of four LAPD officers accused of beating Rodney King.

The prosecutors probably believed that their case against Simpson was so strong that even the more racially diverse jury likely in downtown Los Angeles would have no choice but to convict.

Filing downtown would be only the first of many decisions that may have cost prosecutors the case. The decision of prosecutors not to seek the death penalty cost prosecutors the advantage of not having a "death-qualified" jury, which numerous studies suggest, would be more likely to convict.

A death-qualified jury is one from which all jurors whose opposition to capital punishment might prevent them from imposing a death sentence have been excluded. Typically, excluded jurors are disproportionately black and female. Once the trial began, there would be other blunders.

To name just a few: the decision to have Simpson try the glove used in the murder, the decision to call Mark Fuhrman to the stand, and the strategy of presenting so much evidence from so many witnesses over so many weeks that the case lost much of its force.

On July 22, , Simpson answered the question " How do you plead? The opening day of trial--Tuesday, January 24, finally came. Under drizzling skies, reporters and camera person converged for what writer Dominick Dunne called "the Super Bowl of murder trials.

Darden told jurors, "If he couldn't have her, he didn't want anybody else to have her. The next day Johnnie Cochran gave an opening statement for the defense in which he presented a confused timeline of events and suggested that Simpson was so crippled by arthritis that he couldn't have possibly pulled off a double murder.

Cochran told the jury that the defense would prove that the evidence against Simpson was "contaminated, compromised, and ultimately corrupted. Over the next 99 days of trial, the prosecution put forward 72 witnesses. The first set of witnesses suggested that Simpson had the motive and opportunity to kill.

The second set of witnesses suggested that Simpson had in fact used his opportunity to kill his ex-wife and Ronald Goldman. The first group of witnesses included relatives and friends of Nicole, friends of O.

Nicole's sister, Denise Brown, described seeing O. She testified that Simpson looked "scary," like a "madman. Ron Shipp , a friend of O. The prosecution next produced a set of witnesses--including limousine driver Allan Park, Kato Kaelin , and officers of the LAPD--to establish a timeline of events that left Simpson with ample opportunity to commit murder.

Limo driver Allan Park proved to be one of the prosecution's most effective witnesses. Park testified that he arrived at the Simpson home on Rockingham at to pick O. He said he rang the doorbell repeatedly, but received no answer. Shortly before , according to Park, a shadowy figure--black, tall, about pounds, and wearing dark clothes-- walked up the driveway and entered the house. A few minutes later, Simpson emerged, telling Park he had overslept. Park testified that as he entered the limo, he carried a small black bag which the prosecution hoped the jury would conclude contained the murder weapon.

Park testified that Simpson would not let him touch the bag. The bag has never been seen since. A skycap at the Los Angeles Airport testified that he saw Simpson near a rubbish bin. Prosecutor Marcia Clark points to exhibit during trial. Simpson house guest Kato Kaelin, one of the trials more colorful characters, testified that he and Simpson returned from a run for Big Macs and french fries at After that, Kaelin couldn't account for Simpson's whereabouts.

He told of hearing thumps on his wall just before , about the same time that Park witnessed the shadowy figure enter the house. The prosecution also produced telephone records that show Simpson used his automobile cell phone to call his girlfriend, Paula Barbieri, at The defense did not attempt to explain why Simpson would make a call on his car cell phone at a time he claimed to be in his backyard practicing his golf stroke.

Finally, the prosecution began to put forward witnesses directly tying Simpson to the two murders. The evidence was technical and circumstantial, relating mostly of the results of blood, hair, fiber, and footprint analysis from the Bundy crime scene and Simpson's Rockingham home.

The most compelling testimony--if one assumed the accuracy of the testing--concerned two RFLP tests. The first indicated that blood found at the crime scene could have come from only 1 out of million sources of blood--and that O. Simpson fit the profile. The second came from blood found on two black socks at the foot of O. According to prosecution testimony, only 1 out of 6. On June 12th, , O. This led to one of the most controversial court cases in American history: the O.

Simpson murder trial, formally known as the People of the State of California vs. Orenthal James Simpson. Despite an overwhelming amount of DNA evidence against Simpson, it took the criminal court jury less than four hours to find him not guilty on October 3rd, With this particular case in mind, how could O. Simpson be not guilty of any criminal charges yet liable for both deaths? The answers lies in the many differences between criminal and civil law. A major factor that we used to differentiate between criminal and civil law is the parties involved.

In criminal law, the parties are the defendant the person accused of committing a crime and the state or federal government. Incisions, left and right internal jugular veins C. Transection of thyrohyoid membrane, epiglottis, and hypopharynx.

Incision into cervical spine, C3. Multiple stab wound of neck and scalp total of seven. Multiple incised wounds of scalp, face, neck, chest and left hand defense wound. Multiple abrasions upper extremities and hands defense wounds. Lee Bailey are no longer on speaking terms.

Johnnie Cochran becomes lead counsel for the defense. Judge Ito rules that the jury is allowed to hear evidence of Simpson's alleged domestic abuse towards Brown. Prosecutors Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden make passionate opening statements. Cochran begins his opening statement on behalf of the defense. The jurors take a field trip to Simpson's Rockingham home and Brown's house, now labeled a crime scene. Detective Mark Fuhrman is cross-examined and denies being racist. He also objects to the defense's theory that he undermined the investigation by tampering with evidence.

For a second time, Kaelin takes the stand and describes how he spent his evening with Simpson just hours before the double homicide occurred. Criminologist Dennis Fung admits that proper protocols were not entirely enforced at the scene of the crime. The DNA testimony begins and jurors learn one day later that one in million people, including Simpson, would have the genetic characteristics as a drop of blood that discovered at the crime scene.

Simpson trying on the "too tight" bloody gloves during his double murder trial. Christopher Darden presenting evidence that O. Simpson owned similar, if not the same, gloves found at the crime scene.