It was the trial of the century that polarized America and gave the world its first taste of reality television.
OJ Simpson’s 1995 trial was one of the most watched events in television history, gripping viewers with gavel-to-gavel coverage for 11 months as the former NFL champ stood trial for killing his former wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend Ron Goldman.
Judge Lance A. Ito’s decision to allow a single camera in his courtroom arguably affected the case and provided daily salacious soundbites and memorable clips from grandstanding attorneys and emotional witnesses.
Defense attorney Johnnie Cochran delivered the one of the most notable lines during the trial in his closing argument that has carried into pop culture: ‘If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.’
A key point during the trial showed OJ Simpson struggling to put on black leather gloves that were found at the crime scene
Defense attorney Johnnie Cochran’s rhyming argument, ‘If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit,’ became famous and even parodied in television shows such as Seinfeld
Pools of blood was found at the front entrance of Nicole Brown home on 875 S. Bundy Drive on July 1994
He was referring to the gloves that were found at the crime scene that he said couldn’t have been OJ’s because his hand was too big.
Cochran, who put on black knit cap to make his point, attacked the prosecutors’ theory that his famous client was the killer and tried to disguise himself with dark clothing.
‘If I put this knit cap on, who am I,’ said Cochran asked the jurors. ‘I’m still Jonnie Cochran with a knit cap. And if you look at OJ Simpson over there, and he has a rather large head. OJ Simpson with a knit cap from two blocks away is still OJ Simpson.
‘It’s no disguise…it makes no sense.’
Cochran’s clever rhyme also burned another memorable moment into the viewing public’s psyche when Simpson stood in front of jurors and struggled to fit his hands into black leather gloves that was found at the crime scene.
Simpson also wore rubber gloves as he tried to put on the leather gloves.
Prosecutors argued Simpson dropped the right glove at the scene as he rushed out of his ex-wife’s Brentwood home after killing her and her friend.
After the glove demonstration backfired, the prosecution argued the size extra large Aris Light leather gloves had shrunk from being soaked in blood and then frozen and unfrozen several times.
Simpson’s ‘Dream Team’ of attorneys – which also included Robert Kardashian, Robert Shapiro, Alan Dershowitz, F. Lee Bailey and Shawn Holley – argued the bloody gloves was planted by then LAPD Detective Mark Fuhrman.
Christopher Darden, one of the prosecutors on the case, said of Simpson during a 2016 interview: ‘He’s a better actor than I thought he was.’
‘Dream Team’ members Johnnie Cochran and Robert Shapiro with Simpson during the Los Angeles trial
Other key members of the defense team were Robert Kardashian and Alvin Michelson
The infamous gloves are still being held by police in evidence lock-up, according to a 2018 report by Fox 11.
Fuhrman, who found the infamous bloody glove, was called into question himself after tapes from an unrelated 13-hour interview showed the former detective using racial and misogynistic slurs.
In the tapes, Fuhrman used the N-word and also talked about how ‘planting evidence’ was a common practice at the LAPD.
Fuhrman repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when the defense hammered him over providing false statements during the preliminary hearing of the case.
Former LAPD Detective Mark Fuhrman found the infamous bloody glove
Another prosecution witness who proved memorable was Simpson’s former houseguest, Brian ‘Kato’ Kaelin, who testified he was staying in a guest house on Simpson’s Rockingham estate at the time of the murders.
At the stand, Kaelin provided testimony that contradicted Simpson’s version of events.
In a shocking display, Kaelin clenched his fist and loudly thumped his hand on a table in front of the witness stand to demonstrate the noise he heard around 10:45 p.m. on June 12, 1994.
Kato Kaelin gained his 15-minutes of fame as the most famous houseguest and friend of OJ Simpson
Prosecutor Marcia Clark hammered Kaelin about his close relationship with Simpson
He testified he came out of guest house to help Simpson load his bags into a limousine before he had to catch a flight to Chicago. But Simpson only had one bag, which he insisted he load himself in the trunk.
Prosecutor Marcia Clark pushed Kaelin on the stand about his close friendship with Simpson.
‘You consider yourself the defendant’s friend. don’t you, Mr.Kaelin,’ she asked in a forceful tone.
Prosecutors showed evidence of injuries on Simpson’s finger
Pools of blood was found where the bodies of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman were discovered
‘Yes, I’m still a friend,’ the houseguest replied. ‘I know my job is to be 100 percent honest and that’s what I’m going to do.’
Kaelin took to X on Thursday shortly after Simpson’s family announced the former running back died of cancer.
He first expressed his condolences to Simpson’s children, ‘who lost their father, and that is never easy.’
He also sent his ‘love and compassion’ to Ron Goldman’s father Fred and sister Kim before addressing the family of ‘the beautiful Nicole Brown Simpson.’
‘May we always cherish her memories,’ Kaelin said. ‘Nicole was a beacon of light. May we never forget her.’
Judge Lance A. Ito allowed a single camera into the courtroom, which allowed millions of viewers to see the drama unfold on live television
Court spectators were also glued to their television when Brown’s sister, Denise, provided heart-wrenching testimony about other incidents when Simpson allegedly abused Nicole.
With tears streaming down her face, Denise Brown recalled a time when she saw Simpson pick up her sister and threw her against the wall in the late 1980s.
Brown also recalled another incident in 1989 when they were in a crowded bar.
‘At one point O.J. grabbed Nicole’s crotch and said, ‘This is where babies come from. And this belongs to me.”
Denise Simpson provided riveting and emotional testimony about the alleged abuses she saw between her sister Nicole and OJ Simpson while they were married
The culmination of the trial of the century came down to the riveting moment the verdict was read on live television on Oct. 3, 1995.
Simpson, who was flanked by Cochran and Kardashian, looked relieved and shocked as the jury forewoman read out loud the not guilty verdict after less than four hours of deliberation.
In the audience, Ron Goldman’s father, Fred, held his daughter Kim, who sobbed loudly into her father’s shoulder.
Outside the courtroom, audible cheers and gasps were head throughout the hall.
In a news conference shortly after the verdict, a devastated Fred Goldman said, ‘Last June 13th ’94 was the worst nightmare of my life.
‘This is the second. I will forever be proud of my son and my family.’
The Goldman family attended the trial faithfully and were visibly devastated at the not guilty verdict