O.J. Simpson
30 Years Since Most Controversial Verdict in History
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On October 3, 1995, the jury in O.J. Simpson‘s murder trial walked into the courtroom in Downtown Los Angeles and announced they’d found the former football standout not guilty.
Thirty years later, the evidence in the case, the spectacle of it and the controversial verdict are still ingrained in the public consciousness … and, we’ve got all the photos of the trial for you to review each and every moment.
O.J. and Nicole Brown Simpson were married from 1985 to 1992 … two years later, Nicole and the man she was dating, Ron Goldman, were brutally murdered outside her condo in Brentwood in L.A., by a suspect with a knife.
O.J. was set to turn himself in a few days after the bodies were discovered … but, on June 17, 1994, he held a gun to his own head in the back of a white Ford Bronco — driven by his close friend and former USC teammate Al Cowlings. The subsequent low-speed cop chase shut down the Interstate 405 freeway … and, captured the nation’s attention
O.J.’s trial — presided over by Judge Lance Ito — began in January 1994 and came to an end with the verdict delivery on October 3, 1995.
The jury actually came to a verdict the day before, after just four hours of deliberation … but, the judge decided to hold the verdict until the next day.
The “not guilty” verdict shocked many … who couldn’t believe the jury overlooked the mountain of DNA evidence in the case. Many felt the racial makeup of the jury — with eight Black members — may have played a part in the acquittal.
TMZ.com
Simpson always maintained his innocence — vowing to find Nicole’s real killer — however, a civil court found him liable of the murders and ordered him to pay $33.5 million in restitution. That number ballooned to well over $100 million with accrued interest.
O.J. — who later served nine years in prison after being found guilty on armed robbery and kidnapping charges — died in 2024 … and our own Harvey Levin, who covered O.J.’s trial back in the day, said on “TMZ Live” he’s sure Simpson did kill his ex-wife and Goldman.
TMZ Studios
Simpson’s trial was dramatized in the first season of the anthology series “American Crime Story” — starring Cuba Gooding Jr. — and numerous documentaries, including our own 30-year retrospective “TMZ Presents: O.J. How He Really Did It” available to stream free on Tubi.
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