OJ Simpson Case Study Compilation SUPA Forensics Period 8 O.J. Simpson Case: Background Sara Starr, Michelle Hao, Mariam Momjian, Rebecca Song, Tristan Jeong Who was O.J. Simpson?
• Born on July 9th, 1947 • He was raised by his mother, along with three siblings • Joined a street gang called the Persian Warriors at age 13 • Was a very successful college football player for USC o he won the Heisman Trophy • Went on to play football (as a running back) in the NFL until 1979 o he played for the Buffalo Bills o only became successful after the Bills changed their style of offense to showcase his talent • Changed career paths and went into acting and commentating (was fairly successful) The Personal Life of O.J. Simpson
• O.J. married Marguerite L. Whitley in 1967 • O.J. had three children with Marguerite o their daughter Aaren Lashone died just before her birthday at age 2 (1979) • O.J. and Marguerite got a divorce in 1979 • Before he got a divorce, O.J. met Nicole Brown, who was 17 years old • In 1985 O.J. and Nicole were married o together they had two children • In 1992, Nicole filed for divorce o Nicole had often complained that O.J. was abusive towards her (which O.J. always denied) When, where, what?
• Murder occurred on June 12th, 1994 • Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman were found dead outside Nicole Brown’s luxury condominium • 875 Bundy Drive • (Supposedly) OJ Simpson brutally stabbed Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman to death • Ronald Goldman was there just to drop off Nicole Brown’s sunglasses • He was in the wrong place at the wrong time Victims Nicole Brown
• She was born in Frankfurt, Germany in 1959; moved with her family to Southern California as a toddler
• She was working as a waitress when she met O.J. Simpson in 1977; she was 18
• She began dating Simpson, who was still married though he divorced his wife in 1979
• In 1977 Nicole Brown married O.J. Simpson
• Had two kids with Simpson; Sydney and Justin
• Nicole Brown was a devoted mother, as well as the owner of a small interior decorating business
• O.J. was arrested for beating her (after a long history of bruises on her body), and they got divorced in 1992 Ronald Goldman
• born and raised in Buffalo Grove, Illinois
• moved to Southern California at age 18
• extremely athletic; enjoyed fitness clubs and surfing
• was not in a relationship with Nicole Simpson Brown, was merely returning sunglasses she had left at the restaurant where he was a waiter Suspects OJ Simpson
• Evidence found and collected at the scene led investigators to believe OJ was guilty
• 6:20pm a chase began when OJ was seen being driven in his white Bronco, by his friend, and holding a gun to his head. A captured conversation revealed Simpson repeatedly saying that he was “the only one who deserved to get hurt”- his actions were interpreted as an admission of guilt.
• The chase ended at 8:00 pm at his home in Brentwood, and Simpson was granted an hour to speak to his mother.
• The authorities arrived, and upon Simpson’s surrender, they discovered $8000 in cash, clothing, a loaded .357 Magnum, passport, fake goatee, mustache, and family pictures in his Bronco. By race: 9 blacks, 1 hispanic, 2 whites By sex: 10 women, 2 men By education: 2 college graduates, 9 high school graduates, 1 without diploma
5/12 thought it appropriate to use force on a family member 5/12 reported that they had a negative experience with the police 9/12 thought that Simpson was less likely to become a murderer because he was an athlete 12/12 were Democrats
The jury was mostly black people because the case was filed in LA rather than Santa Monica. A poll showed that most blacks found Simpson innocent while most whites found Simpson guilty. Jury When the trial initially began, on September 8 2008 in the court of Nevada Court, the judge was Jackie Glass
Simpson testified asking the judge for retrial, but he was denied by Judge Linda Marie Bell
Judge Prosecutors Marcia Clark, lead attorney in the case, Special Trials Division.
Christopher Darden, co-counsel. Darden had completed a six-and-a-half year assignment with the Special Investigations Division before joining the prosecution team.
Gil Garcetti, Los Angeles District Attorney, elected in 1992..
Hank Goldberg, joined the District Attorney's Office in 1985.
William Hodgman, director of the Bureau of Central Operations, which includes the Special Trials Division.
Lisa Kahn, DNA coordinator for the district attorney's office.
Cheri Lewis, assisted in the research and preparation of prosecution motions and pleadings. Defense Attorneys (“The Dream Team”) - His criminal case cost at least $3 million, possibly as much as $6 million.
F. Lee Bailey - celebrity attorney
Johnnie Cochran Jr
Alan Dershowitz
Carl Douglas
Robert Kardashian
Peter Neufeld - specialized in DNA evidence
Barry Scheck - specialized in DNA evidence
Robert Shapiro
Gerald Uelmen The Crime By: Rebecca Weimer, Brenna Wiegand, Kalette deMarrais and Noelle Lawler Type of Murder
• Murder weapon- knife • O.J. Simpsons ex-wife and her friend were found murdered outside of Nicole Brown Simpons home. The Crime
• Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald L. Goldman were murdered Charges
• O.J. Simpson was charged with two counts of first degree murder • First degree murder means that he planned to kill his ex-wife and her friend • He was eligible for death penalty Suspect
• OJ Simpson
Victims
• Nicole Brown Simpson • Ronald Goldman In court:
• Judge Lance Ito- Judge
• Mark Fuhrman- Detective of the LAPD • Supposedly planted the famous bloody glove Witnesses
• Kato Kaelin • Was currently staying in a guest house on Simpsons property • He was present on the night of the two murders • Rosa Lopez • Former maid to Simpsons neighbor • Said when she was walking the dog and saw his white bronco parked outside his house Defense
• Johnnie Cochran • Robert Shapiro • F. Lee Bailey • Robert Kardashian Prosecution
• Marcia Cross The Car Chase
• O.J. was in passenger seat while Al Cowlings drove • On Interstate 405 in LA in White Ford Bronco • Hour long chase • O.J. held a gun to his head and laid in the back seat- 50 miles total • Detective Lange was talking to O.J. to convince him to throw the gun out of the car Return to house
• O.J. wanted to speak to his mom before he surrendered • He was allowed to go into his house for an hour • Lawyer Robert Shapiro arrived • Simpson surrendered Search of house:
• After Simpson surrendered police searched the bronco and found: • $8,000 cash • Change of clothes • Loaded gun • Passport • Family pictures • Fake goatee and Mustache ** None of this was used in court as evidence** Crime Scene Evidence Michael Leon, Max Cepeda, Dan Desiderio, Kat Hroncic Evidence from the Crime
• XL Aris Gloves • Size 12 Bruno Magli Shoes • The Bronco car • Strange reaction to call about the death of Nicole Brown. • Simpson had fresh cuts on his left hand the day after the murder. • Blood on OJ’s sock matched the blood of Nicole Brown. • Hair Fibers similar to Simpson’s hair XL Aris Gloves
• During the trial Simpson was asked to try on the exact pair of gloves from the crime scene. • Simpson bought a pair of these gloves at Bloomingdale’s • Simpson’s Lawyer asked to try on the gloves with latex gloves on underneath the Aris Gloves Size 12 Bruno Magli Shoes
• Simpson was also asked to try on these pair of size 12 Bruno Magli Shoes • The shoe print was found at the crime scene which match the pair that Simpson had in a size 12 The Bronco
• Simpson try to escape the cops in a white Ford Bronco which was reported to be covered with blood on the inside of the car. Fresh cuts on hand
• The day after the murder of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman fresh cuts were found on Simpsons left hand Hair Fiber
• The Hair fibers found at the Crime Scene matched Simpson’s. Bloody sock matching Nicole Brown’s
• These socks were found in Simpson bed room they matched the blood type from the crime scene of Nicole browns blood. Witnesses in the OJ Simpson Case
Mark Wittkamp, Jane Murphy, Richie Myers, & Danielle LoGuercio • OJ SIMPSON TRIAL • Also known as the “People of the State of California vs Orenthal James Simpson” • Opening statements started on January 24, 1995 and until the verdict was reached on October 3, 1995 • OJ Simpson (Former actor and football star) was tried on two counts of murder: • Murder of his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson • Murder of waiter, Ronald Lyle Goodman • It became the most publicized case in US history. • Was the longest trial ever held in California, costing over $20 million to fight and defend, running up 50,000 pages of trial transcript in the process. •There were 150 witnesses called to give evidence before a jury that was sequestered at the Hotel Intercontinental in downtown L.A. from January until October.
•Here are our key players Jose Camacho
• Knife salesman at Ross Cutlery who claimed to have sold Simpson a 15-inch (380mm) German- made knife similar to the murder weapon three weeks before the murder. Cynthia Shahian •A friend and jogging partner of Nicole Simpson. •Testified on Monday, February 6th •Said Nicole Simpson was “distraught” after she received a letter from her ex-husband saying she could no longer use his mansion as her legal address. Detective John Edwards
•Replied to the 911 phone call from Nicole Brown Simpson •She screamed that her husband was, “going to kill me.” DNA EVIDENCE AT THE SCENE
-Trail of blood from inside Ford Bronco to Rockingham House -Bloody Rockingham Glove -Bundy -Bloody Socks in Rockingham Bedroom Robin Cotton
-Advocated that drops of blood found near Brown and Goldman originated from OJ Simpson. -There was a 1 in 170 million chance that someone had the same blood as OJ Simpson. -She also deemed that there was a 1 in 1.68 billion chance that someone matched the DNA profile of OJ Simpson, which was also found at the scene. -Stated the blood on OJ’s sock in his bedroom matched Brown’s. Peter Neufield
-Argued the problem with this Cotton’s method of extrapolation of this information could have been an inaccurate method. -A pool of samples from 240 African Americans in Michigan were taken to gain these statistics-Not a valid statistic as the sample pool was too small.-Peter Neufield -Also argued there was a conspiracy theory against OJ Simpson-the crime was set up to seem as though he did it Alan Dershowitz
-Most experienced defense attorney but was lost with regards to DNA evidence - “If you find a cockroach in a bowl of spaghetti, you don't look for another cockroach before you throw out the whole bowl of spaghetti” -Dr. David Lee, part of the closing argument. - Argument following the quote was that “you couldn’t trust any of the blood and DNA evidence that these policeman provided because we proved they lied about certain for things and planted at least some evidence” -Alan Dershowitz Barry Scheck
-DNA expert—briefed defense team on DNA -Delivered closing argument, argued that evidence was tampered with or planted -Argued that Andrea Mazzola collected blood samples without approval Collin Yamauchi
-Member of unreliable and faulty LAPD Forensic team -LAPD forensic team was known to mishandle evidence and to frequently break the chain of custody due to lack of training and enforcement of protocol -Supposedly spilled blood when he was examining the Rockingham Glove and Bundy -Fueled argument of possible contamination Synopsis
The OJ Simpson trial was complicated. There was DNA evidence found that pointed to OJ Simpson and should have convicted him. However, because the evidence was handled poorly and there was much speculation about a conspiracy against OJ, the evidence was not enough to convict him. OJ Simpson Civil Case By: Rebecca Wasserman, Robbie Lombardi, Shamus Barnes, Tyler Kane Case Background
• OJ Simpson was a pro football player in the NFL • He went to college at USC • He was one of the most decorated athletes of his time • He was married to Nicole Brown • OJ Simpson was accused for the murder of his wife but was acquitted and found not guilty for that accusation Major Players
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • O.J. Simpson • Oj simpson • Walter Alexander • CJ Stewart • Charles Cashmore • Charles Ehrlich • Tom Scotto • Michael McClinton • Thomas Riccio • Bruce Fromong • Alfred Beardsly Set the Scene
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • O.J. Simpson • Bruce Fromong was held at gunpoint by a group of men led by OJ Simpson for his sports memorabilia in his hotel room in Las Vegas, Nevada. Crime
• Goldman Family Civil Case: • The families of Ronald Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson brought OJ to court • They were seeking compensation for their lost ones • The Judge: Superior Court Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki • Fred Goldman said civil suit was his “last opportunity for justice” Crime (cont.)
• State of Nevada vs. Orenthal James Simpson • Criminal case prosecuted 2007-2008 • September 13, 2007 • O.J. and a group of men entered a room armed in the Palace Station hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada • September 16, 2007 • O.J. was arrested and held without bail • Simpson was trying to take back his sports memorabilia he claimed was stolen • December 5, 2008 • Simpson was sentenced to 33 years in prison with eligibility of parole in 9 years Suspects
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • O.J. Simpson • O.J. Simpson • Walter Alexander • Clarence “C.J.” Stewart • Charles Cashmore • Charles Ehrlich • Tom Scotto • Michael McClinton • Thomas Riccio Apprehension or Not of Suspects
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • O.J. was ordered to appear in court. • Simpson was originally named a suspect. • They brought him in for questioning and released him soon after. • Walter Alexander was arrested the next day on multiple counts on his way to McCarran International Airport. Evidence Trail
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • The Goldman’s attorney introduced • TMZ had an audio tape of OJ during Simpson’s failure of a lie detector test the robbery. about the murders. • There was a picture of OJ at a Buffalo Bills game in 1993 where he can be seen wearing the same shoes as the man who killed Goldman and Brown. Trial or No Trial
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • Took place over four months in Santa • Simpson tried and found guilty on 10 Monica. convictions. • Was not televised by order of court. • Simpson filed for retrial in 2013 but was refused by Clark County District Court. Verdict/Sentence
Civil Court Case Nevada Case • Because the standards of proof are • Convicted October 3, 2008. lower in a civil trial the plaintiff won • Charged with robbery, kidnapping, • O.J. Simpson was ordered to pay the coercion, and conspiracy. Goldman family $33.5 million • O.J. Simpson was sentenced to 33 • Simpson’s children, Sydney and Justin years in jail with eligibility of parole in received 12.6 million each. 9 years. Unanswered Questions
• Did he commit the murder? • Could it be his son? • Could it be a random person? • Did he hire someone to do it? • What were his motives? • Does the glove fit? • Was the jury impartial? • Does this prove that he was lying about not having his memorabilia for the civil case? Update on Present Situation
• OJ is currently in jail for robbing memorabilia (his own) –worth $,sold it-armed robbery • Civil court • Goldman’s- never got there $ from OJ • OJ lost $, bankruptcy • Lied to court Works Cited
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