The OJ verdict was a perfect legal storm that we rarely see. I thought the 'OJ: Made in America' series framed it perfectly. History of racial divide between LA and the police. Rodney King beaten on video but no guilty verdicts. OJ Simpson with a history of domestic violence that somehow never came to justice. Investigative errors made by the police and coroner in the investigation. A judge who let way too much speculative information make its way into the trial. Poor jury vetting by the prosecution. A prosecutor who could not connect with the jury. And a legal defense team that was able to take every bit of that and spin it into a verdict in favor of their client.

 

i don't think John Grishman could have written a book based on the OJ trial that people would read as believable.

 

The evidence and testimoney allowed in the civil case that Judge Ito threw out of the criminal trial is the reason why OJ was found guilty in the civil trial. There is a lesser burdern to prove civil guilt than criminal guilt as backward as that seems.

 

The OJ trial also begat modern day reality TV.

It really wasn't until the last few years, especially with the release of "The People v. OJ Simpson" on FX and the "OJ: Made in America" 30-for-30 on ESPN that my interest in the entire subject was piqued.

 

I feel like the Bronco chase was one of the first things that I ever remember seeing on television. This all went down when I was in 3rd of 4th grade. I'm really glad FX had that "The People vs. OJ Simpson. I enjoyed watching and learning more about everything.

Can you imagine social media if those all went down today?

Can you imagine social media if those all went down today?

 

That's what I think about every time I think about the OJ case. Like if you took that whole scenario from the murders all the way through the trial and started it today, it would be bananas.

Remember watching the verdict in 10th grade geometry...I was pumped when they read it, because I didn't want him to be guilty. I knew he was a great player, but his playing career was before my time...I just always thought he was so cool on the Hertz commercials, running through the airport.

 

The Made In America doc really is great, and provides a lot of insight.

OJ in his Bronco was all the evidence I needed to know that his not guilty plea was a load of crap. If he hadn't murdered them he would've cooperated. Him running boldly suggested that he was afraid to be arrested because he knew he did it and wasn't thinking clearly enough to do otherwise to fake being innocent.

What was the name of the guy with him in the Bronco? He was his teammate at USC, as I recall, and maybe in the NFL.

What was the name of the guy with him in the Bronco? He was his teammate at USC, as I recall, and maybe in the NFL.

 

Al Cowlings

The Made in America documentary was one of the better made docs I can recall. The time they spent talking about the history of race relations in LA felt too long and a bit unnecessary on my initial watch. But as things unfolded, that foundational knowledge became crucial to understanding why things happened the way they did.