OJ Simpson Died

[NYCgrrl]

I had an identical experience. Must have been lots of people gathered around lots of conference rooms that day.

Under the radar it was a turning moment in the American experience on many sides.
One of the few current events that the man and I chose not to discuss together; much too fraught with way too many issues.

 

[Allison]

All I can think of is I pray his kids are ok, what a mess me made of their little lives.

Off he goes to be judged in a place where tricks like ill-fitting gloves don't matter.

Still confused, I didn't use the word little....

You didn't?

 

[Genie+]

The televised chase on June 17 drew an audience of some 95 million people.

^That was very surreal too

 

[NYCgrrl]

An article of those times that attempts neutrality (it was hard to achieve):

https://www.nytimes.com/1995/10/04/...e_code=1.jk0.lCQ9.mPkvjUyDWfQV&smid=url-share

 

[Disneyland1084]

Good riddance. Many years ago my dad played the piano at a bar OJ would come to often. He (OJ) was NOT a friendly person.

 

[GreatLakes]

His death is a perfect example of addition by subtraction. Good riddance murderer.

 

[WEDWDW]

I saw that it was Prostate Cancer.

In "tribute" to the "great" Johnny Cochran:


Juice waited too late
To check the Prostate

 

[DisneylandFreak2013]

There are theories out there that the son committed the murders, OJ just covered up to protect his son.

 

[SirDuff]

Still confused, I didn't use the word little....

All I can think of is I pray his kids are ok, what a mess me made of their little lives.

Off he goes to be judged in a place where tricks like ill-fitting gloves don't matter.

So, there's another poster with the same name as you? Or someone went into your post and somehow edited it? Didn't realise that was even possible.

 

[ncc1701]

The televised chase on June 17 drew an audience of some 95 million people.

^That was very surreal too

Extremely surreal. DH ( not at that time) & I were out to dinner after I got out of work.The restaurant we were at had TVs showing sports. However all of them went to the Bronco. A few people came in asking why a movie was on. Everyone in earshot said it OJ on the I-5 .

 

[barkley]

I was working in a very rough high school when the verdict came - I don't know if it was lunch or just at the end of school but most students instantly celebrated the verdict of not guilty, in full glory - not an inch of exaggeration. It was something to see.

it was a similar reaction at my workplace. people happily cheering 'he got away with it'. it was surreal.

For the Bronco chase I was living in Japan but the memory of that was interrupting the NBA finals

i was a few weeks from having my oldest and feeling very pregnant in the triple digit weather, no cable tv so the only thing on the few channels we had was the chase...............i finaly told dh ENOUGH and we went to blockbuster video to find something else to watch. we watched our rental, turned back on television only to see the chase being replayed and replayed and replayed.

 

[lisaviolet]

I was in high school at the time (not a "rough" school). As a student, our feelings on the matter were...complicated. I think, that, for one, we didn't want to believe he did it - he was a guy many of us liked. It was easy for us to see it as an overzealous prosecution - young people are prone to that. Considering that DNA evidence was new and didn't make sense to us, the very believeable idea that the LAPD would plant evidence (even if they didn't need to), and the generally messy prosecution case, it felt like a vindication. Really, despite the fact that it seems pretty clear that he did it, I think that to this day, if I were on that jury with that exact case presented, it'd be hard to convict. Many people feel that the jury got it wrong, but it was the prosecution that botched it.

On a side note, as this was going on, we were Seniors reading Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment. The project culminated in the before lunch and after lunch AP Senior English classes enacting a mock trial using evidence from the book. My class was the defense, and we patterned everything off of OJ's defense. Another class served as the jury, and we won, much to the teacher's chagrin. She didn't like our class because while we were smart, we were that kind of "lazy smart" where things came easily so we didn't work hard. I'm not even sure we all read the book in it's entirety. We still won. Take that class with valedictorian and saludttorian!

I completely understand.

It was simply something to see, nothing more.

Their excitement was indescribable - dancing, cheering, running. The energy was insane. There must have been a tv or radio on in the library office, as I can visualize those double doors just flying open.

The reason I used rough was in tune with your first thoughts, not to denote that one had to run with tougher crowds to feel that way. I used it simply because many students there had had unfortunate situations with police, multiple times. Some of their own accord but quite a few that were hard to take in and hear - even thinking back today. Just as you said, about not trusting the police.

Of course many teenagers thought OJ was innocent - not to mention some adults - I simply communicated poorly.

 

[BrianL]

I completely understand.

It was simply something to see, nothing more.

Their excitement was indescribable - dancing, cheering, running. The energy was insane. There must have been a tv or radio on in the library office, as I can visualize those double doors just flying open.

The reason I used rough was in tune with your first thoughts, not to denote that one had to run with tougher crowds to feel that way. I used it simply because many students there had had unfortunate situations with police, multiple times. Some of their own accord but quite a few that were hard to take in and hear - even thinking back today. Just as you said, about not trusting the police.

Of course many teenagers thought OJ was innocent - not to mention some adults - I simply communicated poorly.

No, it makes sense. I mean, after recent events witht he LAPD, I know a lot of young people didn't trust them at all. We wanted OJ to be innocent because he was a football hero and actor, and when the defens put forth the idea that LAPD just might have acted corruptly, that ws pretty believeable.

We were not allowed to listen to the verdict live, though our teacher told us just before class was let out. Most kids did cheer.

 

[HopperFan]

Such a strange spot in history. We were traveling and watched much of the chase in a hotel room. I was in a place where I could watch the whole trial. As someone who was always reading Nancy Drew, watching Perry Mason and everything like that growing up ....... the trial was truly a real life learning experience of how things work. So many personalities and each person had their own strange part in it. I don't think you could have written a fiction movie any better.

At the end while I 1000% believed he was guilty, everyone especially the police department made a complete mess of the case. It was a disaster and they themselves provided a bucket full of reasonable doubt. I kept saying then and still now ~ high profile case means to tape the entire area, no one enters, you wake up and call in your top level in every department, a neighboring department if you are inept, and you don't screw up the case for the prosecution. The police were an accessory to him getting away with it. Hopefully many departments across the country learned proper procedure and not just anybody can walk in to a scene and handle it properly. I'd rather admit I need higher level help than admit I lost the case for them.

And I agree, back then we just didn't want to believe that an football hero could do such a thing. Now I think we are well prepared for anyone to do anything and not be surprised ... maybe even realize that crime happens just as much or more from folks who think they can get away with it.

There are theories out there that the son committed the murders, OJ just covered up to protect his son.

He wasn't quite six years old ...

 

[Moliphino]

He wasn't quite six years old ...

Not his son with Nicole, his son from his first marriage was about 24 at the time

 

[focusondisney]

He wasn't quite six years old ...

The theory is about Jason, his older son from his first marriage, not his young son with Nicole. Jason was a young adult at the time.

https://www.businessinsider.com/oj-simpson-murders-and-jason-simpson-2014-6

 

[Stratman50th]

I was a police officer at the time and while I didn't watch the trial as it was happening I did keep up with it. When my coworkers-fellow officers would discuss we saw a lot of holes in the defense and what we considered weak points In the prosecution. We were pretty shocked at the verdict.
As a side note, I had that very same Bronco. Color and everything. It took many years before the jokes stopped coming.
OJ is now where he belongs.

 

[Captain UP]

Number one trending person on X yesterday was OJ. Number two? Norm McDonald.

You know something went wrong when the person most remembered on the day of the your death is the guy who spent two decades mercilessly taunting you.

 

[CdnCarrie]

Number one trending person on X yesterday was OJ. Number two? Norm McDonald.

You know something went wrong when the person most remembered on the day of the your death is the guy who spent two decades mercilessly taunting you.

RIP Norm.

 

[HopperFan]

The theory is about Jason, his older son from his first marriage, not his young son with Nicole. Jason was a young adult at the time.

https://www.businessinsider.com/oj-simpson-murders-and-jason-simpson-2014-6

Oh. Don't recall any of those discussions. Just quick googling it seems just one person they call "an obsessed private detective" not involved with case, pursued this story. Jason was never a suspect by authorities.