On June 17, 1994, a white Ford Bronco barreled down the highways of Los Angeles in an attempt to flee the LAPD. For over two hours, a colossal police pursuit ensued consisting of police units, news crews, and helicopters rampantly chasing after this car that didn’t have any intention of stopping. This trek paralyzed businesses and left West Hollywood’s Sunset Strip completely abandoned as people scrambled to catch every second of the white Bronco’s movements broadcast live. The entire nation watched in utter disbelief as each of these events unfolded right before their eyes. The pursuit ultimately came to an end at 8 p.m. in front of a house in Brentwood, and negotiations soon followed suit. Emerging from the white bronco was a larger than life figure and one of the faces of professional sports in the United States: none other than Orenthal James Simpson, more commonly known as OJ.
30 years ago, a detective discovered a blood-stained dog on Bundy Drive, West Los Angeles that led him to the once marital home of ex-American NFL player OJ Simpson and Nicole Simpson, now permanently occupied by Nicole and her two children. Upon arrival the detective found the bodies of two white adults, one of which was the likeness of Nicole Simpson, the other being Ronald Lyle Goldman, a waiter at the restaurant where Nicole had spent her night. Both victims had been maliciously stabbed multiple times and left for dead right outside the house.
As one would likely suspect, OJ Simpson’s candidacy as the prime suspect for this violent double homicide immediately gained traction. Law enforcement learned OJ Simpson had left town earlier in the week to attend a Hertz convention in Chicago. However, after hearing about the murder of his then ex-wife, Simpson returned back to LA, where he was questioned for nearly four hours before being released without charge. Simpson exercised innocence by claiming to have no knowledge of the events leading up to the murders. However, one day after Nicole Simpson’s murder, June 17, 1994, police officers issued a warrant for Simpson’s arrest on the suspicion of having executed the homicide, to which OJ Simpson replied with a 60-mile slow speed chase across Southern California, pursued by dozens of police units, helicopters, and news crews. Suffice it to say, if this was his perverse attempt to maintain his innocence, I don’t think this convinced the police. Upon OJ’s arrest, police also discovered $8,750 in cash, a fake beard and mustache, a loaded gun, and a passport. Ultimately, this started what most people consider the “trial of the century”.
The grip this trial had on the American public was undeniable—95 million people witnessed the highway chase live. This eleven month trial was polarizing to say the least. OJ Simpson’s defense team, oftentimes referred to as the Dream Team, masterfully weaponized the inner workings of racism as their primary argument to secure an acquittal for OJ Simpson.
