The crime

The restaurant was bustling with the best and the brightest that night in January ’94 – now it stands empty, a monument to one of the most notorious crimes of the century. True, there have been crimes of greater consequence, certainly more grizzly affairs that have demanded precious minutes on the six o’clock news. But in the U.S this case has confounded the ten second grab and absorbed a rapt public for three long years. And it all began with a meal at a once trendy Brentwood eatery, down near Santa Monica Boulevard…

In the company of friends is Nicole Simpson Brown, mother of two and ex-wife of football hero cum actor/salesman O.J Simpson (appropriately "The Juice"). She leaves the restaurant, forgetting her sunglasses. Three and a half hours later she is discovered in a pool of blood, beside her Ron Goldman, one of the restaurant’s waiters. They are dead, stabbed in an apparent frenzy – he after a mammoth struggle and 22 stab wounds.

The clues

There is a bloody glove at the scene – and yes, the glove has a mate, but somehow it has found its way to the bushes outside Simpson’s mansion, 2 miles away. In O.J’s driveway there is blood on the side of his Ford Bronco. The knife will never be found – but O.J once purchased a knife similar to the one experts later identify as the probable murder weapon.

Where was O.J?

Well, at around 9 p.m., 30 minutes or so after Nicole left the restaurant, he is behind the wheel of his Rolls, at a McDonalds drive-through, accompanied by a friend who is staying in the guest house at his Brentwood estate. They part at about 9:35 p.m., just as Goldman leaves the restaurant to return the sunglasses Nicole has left behind.

Later, Nicole’s neighbour will tell the court that she heard "a dog's plaintive wail" about 10:15.

A little while later a visitor buzzes O.J’s doorbell – no-one is home.

10:55 and Nicole’s neighbour finds her dog with bloody paws.

10:54 and the waiting visitor sees a 200lb. black person cross O.J’s driveway and enter the house – remember, The Juice was a footballer.

It is less than a ten minute drive from the murder scene to Simpson’s house. O.J has no alibi for the period between 9:35 and 10:54.

11:01 and Simpson emerges from the house.

11:45 and he is on a flight to Chicago to fulfil a promotional obligation.

Man’s best friend

The dog leads the police straight to the murder scene. When the police arrive at O.J’s house to tell him what has happened, they find a blood stain on his Ford Bronco, and more blood leading to the house. And no O.J.

Detective Mark Furham, who will later be the defence team’s ace in the hole, arrives at Simpson’s estate and finds the bloody glove. At 6 a.m. Simpson is located in Chicago. He flies back and is handcuffed the moment he returns to his home – but not arrested.

The questioning begins

A few days later he leads the police and media a merry 60 mile freeway chase and is finally arrested.

Jury selection begins in January 1995.

The blood

The blood stains at Simpson’s house match those at the crime scene. The defence claim the evidence was planted or the samples contaminated. And there are bungles in the collections of the blood – of which O.J’s defence team makes much.

Does the glove fit?

At the trial O.J tries on the gloves – they don’t fit! The prosecution say they have shrunk because of the soaked blood, and produce a photo of O.J wearing exactly the same model glove.

If the shoe fits

An FBI shoe print specialist testified that the murder scene shoe prints were left by size 12 Bruno Magli shoes. They are never found. But they are the right size for O.J. He says he would never wear such "uglyass shoes".

The verdict

After a nine month trial, and a mere three hours of deliberation by the jury, Simpson is acquitted on all charges. It all comes down to reasonable doubt, although many in America feel it has more to do with a well orchestrated defence based on race and emotion.

Later some jurors will say they didn’t trust the LAPD, and suspected funny business on the part of a racist detective who was alone when he found the glove.

In the end, the glove didn’t fit.

Not guilty…and guilty!

The Goldman and Brown families sued for wrongful death, a way of claiming damages following a criminal act. In other words, the families of the victims said that Simspon was responsible for the deaths and therefore owed them money in compensation. And so in September 1996, nearly a year after the not guilty verdict in the criminal case, the civil trial begins.

The standard of proof is lower in a civil case – jurors have to be convinced on the "balance of probabilities", not the criminal standard of "beyond reasonable doubt". And only 9 of the 12 jurors have to agree with the plaintiff families.

And then there are the shoes – long after the criminal trial, the plaintiffs magically produce thirty separate photos of O.J. in those "uglyass" shoes he said he would not wear in a million years! Rare size-12 Bruno Maglis, perfectly matching the footprints at the scene of the crime.

The verdict is unanimous. Ordered to pay over $10 million for the wrongful death, there are later punitive damages in the sum of tens of millions more.

This time the shoe really did fit.

Read this: The legal information contained above is intended to be general information about the law. It is not a substitute for legal and other professional advice. Lawscape Communications P/L does not accept responsibility for loss to any person, who either acts or does not act because of this information.

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