June
17, 1994
O.J. Simpson arrested after flight from justice.
Earlier in the day, after learning he was to be
arraigned on the charges, Simpson attempted to escape Los Angeles, but the
police located him in a vehicle being driven by his friend, former professional
football player Al Cowlings. Simpson, speaking on a cellular phone to the
police, explained that he had a gun and was suicidal, and the police agreed not
to stop his vehicle by force. Los Angeles news helicopters soon learned of the
event unfolding on their freeways, and live television coverage of Simpson's
attempted flight began. As millions watched, Cowlings drove Simpson's white
Ford Bronco, escorted by a phalanx of police cars, across Los Angeles while
Simpson cowered in the back seat, allegedly with a gun to his head.
Finally, after nearly nine hours on the road, the
Bronco returned to the Rockingham estate, and a tense 90-minute standoff in the
driveway ensued before Simpson finally surrendered. In the vehicle and on his
person were discovered the gun, a mustache and goatee disguise, and his
passport.
His lengthy criminal trial was a sensational media
event that brought to light racial divisions present in America while also,
some believed, calling the U.S. justice system into question. In polls, a
majority of African Americans consistently believed Simpson, who was black, to
be innocent of the murder of the white victims, while the vast majority of
white Americans, supported by the media and law enforcement, maintained
Simpson's guilt.
Although the evidence appeared to be pointing almost
indisputably toward Simpson's guilt, on October 3, 1995, the jury of nine
African Americans, two whites, and one Hispanic took just four hours of
deliberation to reach their verdict of not guilty on all charges. In 1997,
however, Simpson was found liable for several charges related to the slayings
in a civil trial and was sentenced to pay millions in compensatory and punitive
damages to the victims' families, little of which they have received.
In 2007, Simpson ran into legal problems once again when he was arrested for breaking into a Las Vegas hotel room and taking sports memorabilia, which he claimed had been stolen from him, at gunpoint. On October 3, 2008, he was found guilty of 12 charges related to the incident, including armed robbery and kidnapping, and sentenced to 33 years in prison.
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