The O.J. Simpson Case Criminal Investigation

ABSTRACT

This paper will discuss the case O.J. Simpson Murder case. Officially this case is known as People of the State of California vs. Orenthal James Simpson. The popular football player, Orenthal James Simpson was convicted for two murders. One was of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and the other was of his friend, Ronald Goldman. The trial lasted for about nine months and in the Simpson was acquitted. In the Simpson case the jury's racial integration was particularly important because the defense of the accused alleged racially discriminatory attitudes of police and witnesses presented by the prosecutor. If all members were white, a possible sentence could not only be appealed on that basis but inevitably would lead to unrest in a country where discrimination is the subject of constant concern. An estimated six-month trial was extended to a nine month trial during which twelve jurors lived in a secret location, surrounded by security measures and theoretically free from the influence of newspapers. The latter was given special care and which formed the basis of the dissolution of a 23-member grand jury convened to decide whether the evidence gathered was sufficient to charge Simpson for murder. The double murder investigation was taking more and more surprise twists until the prosecutor ordered the arrest of Simpson and indicted for the crime. The subsequent police chase was broadcasted live and in person yet and reading a note apparently suicidal. In the bottom of the interest aroused by the case is the desire to solve a mystery. In this case, no one knew the outcome because every time there was a surprise twist and a new witness contradictory. But perhaps most compelling was the idea behind the captivating smile of a national hero can hide a brutal murderer. On January 23, 1995, OJ Simpson was tried on two counts of murder. He pleaded guilty to both and gathered his own Dream Team, a team of ruthless lawyers and they charged very high fees, including the legendary defenders of civil litigation Alan Dershowitz, F. Lee Bailey, Robert Kardashian, Robert Shapiro and Johnnie Cochran, besides the lawyers DNA testing Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld. His first task was to obstruct the jury selection and ensure that their members would be favorable. Lawyers, with Cochran at the helm, determined from the beginning that ethnicity and race constitute crucial factors in securing a guilty verdict for Simpson. Finally, he got the jury favorable to his cause, which had eight black women, two white, one black man and a Hispanic. The defense believed that black women might show more empathy for Simpson. At the other end of the room, at the head of the prosecution, were the District Attorney Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden, assistant prosecutor. Clark had a reputation as a tough litigator and determined, as a result both of his traumatic past (as a teenager suffered a violation during a trip to Europe and in adulthood survived two marriages in abuses that ...