of the trial, prosecutor Christopher Darden asked
that Simpson try on the gloves that were found at the
murder scene, a move that backfired when Simpson
tried unsuccessfully to pull on the gloves. The event
inspired Cochran’s often-repeated refrain in his
closing argument: “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”
The prosecution team portrayed Simpson as a vi-
olent man who killed his ex-wife in a jealous rage.
The prosecution’s domestic-violence strategy, how-
ever, was overshadowed by the Simpson defense
team’s accusations of police misconduct, ranging
from mishandling of the DNA evidence to racist
treatment of Simpson. Some viewed the use of the
“race card” by Simpson’s defense team as nothing
more than a public spectacle, while others believed
it had a legitimate purpose and played an important
role in getting Americans to have frank discussions
about race.
Public opinion polls showed that Americans
quickly polarized along racial lines over Simpson’s
guilt or innocence. Many white Americans believed
that Simpson was guilty even before the trial began,
while many African Americans did not believe Simp-
son committed the murders. While most white
Americans feared that the predominantly African
American jury would acquit Simpson solely because
of his race, many African Americans feared that he
would not get a fair trial because of what they per-
ceived to be a racist criminal justice system.
The Verdict On October 3, 1995, after 134 days of
televised testimony but only three hours of jury de-
liberation, an estimated 150 million viewers watched
as the jury returned a verdict of not guilty. Television
news cameras captured the vastly different reactions
of African Americans and white Americans, and
those images spoke volumes about race relations
during the 1990’s. At the verdict’s announcement,
many African Americans across the country cele-
brated Simpson’s vindication, while many outraged
white Americans criticized the acquittal as being a
miscarriage of justice.
The Goldman and Brown families later sued
Simpson in civil court for the wrongful deaths of
Ronald and Nicole. In 1997, a civil court jury, using a
lesser standard of proof than is required at a crimi-
nal trial, found Simpson liable in the murders and
awarded the families $33.5 million.
Impact Americans were captivated by the Simpson
murder case, making it the most publicized trial in
U.S. history. By the end of the eight-month trial, na-
tional surveys showed dramatic differences in opin-
ion between most African Americans and most white
Americans over Simpson’s guilt. The news media
also came under severe scrutiny over the fairness of
televising the courtroom trial and their role in trans-
forming the Simpson murder case into the so-called
trial of the century.
Further Reading
Clark, Marcia, with Teresa Carpenter. Without a
Doubt. New York: Viking Press, 1997. The chief
prosecutor in the Simpson case recounts trial pro-
ceedings, from jury selection to final summation,
and concludes that nothing could have saved her
case, given the prominent role of race in the de-
fense’s strategy and a judicial system overly im-
pressed by celebrity.
Darden, Christopher A., with Jess Walter.In Con-
tempt. New York: ReganBooks, 1996. An account
of the Simpson murder trial and the ostracism
that Darden suffered because he was an African
American prosecutor trying to convict a famous
African American celebrity.
Goldman Family.If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer.
New York: Beaufort Books, 2007. Ronald Gold-
man’s family seized the rights to Simpson’s
ghostwritten book, which includes a hypothetical
first-person account of the 1994 murders that the
family considers to be Simpson’s confession.
Morrison, Toni, and Claudia Brodsky Lacour, eds.
Birth of a Nation’hood: Gaze, Script, and Spectacle in
the O. J. Simpson Case. New York: Pantheon Books,- A collection of essays about the Simpson
case that focuses not on Simpson’s guilt or inno-
cence but on the marketing of the Simpson trial
and perception of race in the media.
Thaler, Paul.The Spectacle: Media and the Making of
the O. J. Simpson Stor y. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, - A detailed analysis of the media during the
O. J. Simpson trial, revealing that the media did
not just report the case but were instrumental in
creating it.
Eddith A. Dashiell
See also African Americans; Cochran, Johnnie;
Crime; Journalism; Race relations.The Nineties in America Simpson murder case 777