NCJ Number
158719
Journal
ABA Journal Volume: 81 Dated: (November 1995) Pages: 48,48a,48b
Date Published
1995
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article presents a chronology of the highlights of the murder trial of O.J. Simpson and an analysis from several perspectives of the reasons for Simpson's acquittal.
Abstract
The jury's decision took less than 4 hours and confounded many experts who had long predicted a hung jury. However, both observers and participants later concluded that the defense deftly countered a prosecution case marked by sloppy forensic work and a racist police officer named Mark Fuhrman. The most significant piece of evidence was a bloody glove found at the Simpson home by Detective Fuhrman; its mate was found at the crime scene. In an effort to prove that the gloves belonged to Simpson, the prosecutors urged him to try them on in open court. Simpson struggled to force them onto his hands, leading prosecutors to argue that the gloves had shrunk. Fuhrman denied that he used racial epithets, but he was eventually revealed to be a racist on a tape recording of conversations with a screenwriter. Observers believe that prosecutors made major mistakes when they thought that the gloves would fit and that Fuhrman's racist views would not be revealed. Another contribution to the defense verdict may have been the sniping between attorneys throughout the trial. Photographs