Few of us will forget where we were that Friday evening, watching a live feed of the low-speed chase of the Ford Bronco, heading south on that California highway. OJ Simpson was famous. He still is.
As I mull over Friday’s verdict – sentencing Simpson to up to 33 years in prison for armed robbery and kidnapping in a failed attempt to recover sports memorabilia from two collectibles dealers – I wonder how many are only thinking, “It’s about time.”
I don’t claim to know if OJ was guilty years ago. As an admirer of success on the football field, I’d like to think he was not. However, it is hard to ignore some of the evidence introduced at his 1995 trial:
· DNA showed that blood found at the scene of Nicole Brown's murder was likely O.J. Simpson's. The odds it could have come from anyone but Simpson were about one in 170 million.
· DNA analysis of the blood found in, on, and near Simpson's Bronco revealed traces of Simpson's and the victims’, Brown's and Ron Goldman's, blood.
· Simpson's hair was found on Goldman's shirt.
· DNA analysis of blood on the left-hand glove, found outside Brown's home, was proven to be a mixture of Simpson's, Brown's, and Goldman's.
· Nicole Brown had told family and friends that one set of keys to her home was missing. She had indicated to several family members and friends that she feared Simpson had stolen them to gain entry. The keys were later found in Simpson's home.
I wasn’t in the courtroom during that trial (thank God!). I didn’t even watch much of Ito and company. But over a decade later, I have faced questions from a curious son who knows his football history. With Friday’s verdict, he asked, “Has OJ Simpson always been a bad guy? I mean, when he won the Heisman, when he played for the Bills, did people know his character wasn’t all that great?”
Excellent questions from a pretty wise 11 year old. I shared with him that I didn’t know if OJ was a “good” or “bad” guy. I didn’t even know for certain whether he was guilty or not. I simply know that if I was a person as famous as he, I wish I would have used my fame a little better.
From the mouth of my babe… “Yeah, me, too.”
AR
As I mull over Friday’s verdict – sentencing Simpson to up to 33 years in prison for armed robbery and kidnapping in a failed attempt to recover sports memorabilia from two collectibles dealers – I wonder how many are only thinking, “It’s about time.”
I don’t claim to know if OJ was guilty years ago. As an admirer of success on the football field, I’d like to think he was not. However, it is hard to ignore some of the evidence introduced at his 1995 trial:
· DNA showed that blood found at the scene of Nicole Brown's murder was likely O.J. Simpson's. The odds it could have come from anyone but Simpson were about one in 170 million.
· DNA analysis of the blood found in, on, and near Simpson's Bronco revealed traces of Simpson's and the victims’, Brown's and Ron Goldman's, blood.
· Simpson's hair was found on Goldman's shirt.
· DNA analysis of blood on the left-hand glove, found outside Brown's home, was proven to be a mixture of Simpson's, Brown's, and Goldman's.
· Nicole Brown had told family and friends that one set of keys to her home was missing. She had indicated to several family members and friends that she feared Simpson had stolen them to gain entry. The keys were later found in Simpson's home.
I wasn’t in the courtroom during that trial (thank God!). I didn’t even watch much of Ito and company. But over a decade later, I have faced questions from a curious son who knows his football history. With Friday’s verdict, he asked, “Has OJ Simpson always been a bad guy? I mean, when he won the Heisman, when he played for the Bills, did people know his character wasn’t all that great?”
Excellent questions from a pretty wise 11 year old. I shared with him that I didn’t know if OJ was a “good” or “bad” guy. I didn’t even know for certain whether he was guilty or not. I simply know that if I was a person as famous as he, I wish I would have used my fame a little better.
From the mouth of my babe… “Yeah, me, too.”
AR
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