Arrest for the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman Shortly after midnight on June 13, 1994, Nicole Brown and her friend,
Ron Goldman, were found stabbed to death in the courtyard outside Brown's
condo, in the
Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Police determined the murders had taken place on the night of the 12th. Goldman had been there to return to Brown a pair of glasses that her mother had lost earlier that day. The knife used was never found. Simpson was an immediate
person of interest in their murders, and there was never any other suspect found. He maintained that on the 12th, he had been at home, waiting for a limousine to take him to an airport for a flight to Chicago. After police gathered all the evidence, charges were filed and a warrant was signed for Simpson's arrest. a vehicle owned and being driven by his former teammate and longtime friend
Al Cowlings. As Cowlings rode, Simpson's lawyer
Robert Kardashian publicly released a letter from him, saying: "Don't feel sorry for me ... I've had a great life, great friends. Please think of the real O.J. and not this lost person." He was arrested shortly before 9 pm. Tens of thousands of people gathered on Los Angeles streets and highways to view the chase. The incident likely increased sales of the Ford Bronco by an additional 7,000 purchases in 1994 compared to 1993. Many advocates for victims of domestic violence consider Brown's death as instrumental in
Congress prioritizing the passage of the
Violence Against Women Act. The act, passed in September 1994, created the
National Domestic Violence Hotline.
Criminal trial for murder Background , where the trial took place The pursuit, arrest, and trial of Simpson were among the most widely publicized events in American history. Simpson's integrated defense counsel team, named the "Dream Team", included Kardashian,
Johnnie Cochran,
Robert Shapiro,
F. Lee Bailey, and
Alan Dershowitz. The prosecution for the State of California was led by
Marcia Clark and
Christopher A. Darden. The judge was
Lance Ito. The trial ran from January to October 1995, It was televised via a remote-control camera installed above the jury box, and it increased public interest in reality television and understanding of
DNA evidence. It influenced the creation of the LAPD's DNA
crime lab, and California added Section 1109 to the state's Evidence Code, "allowing uncharged conduct and other evidence of prior abuse to be shown to jurors in similar cases." It was produced with
Lawrence Schiller. The other glove in the pair was found at Brown's condo. The defense claimed that the glove found at Brown's condo did not fit Simpson's hand. In response, prosecutors theorized that Simpson had not been taking
anti-inflammatory medications for his
arthritis, which would make his hand swell if he tried to put on the glove during the trial. Johnnie Cochran informed Judge Ito the next day that
Shawn Chapman contacted the Los Angeles County Jail doctor, who confirmed Simpson was taking his arthritis medication every day, and that the jail's medical records verified this. Cochran claimed during the defense's closing argument, "If the glove don't fit, you must acquit." Prosecutors also raised concerns that because the glove had been soaked in blood, and was repeatedly frozen and thawed before the trial, that it would have shrunk. Cochran denied this claim. When Simpson tried the glove on in court, he struggled to put it on.
People magazine wrote that the moment was crucial to his eventual acquittal. The trial came in the context of multiple incidents involving the Los Angeles criminal justice system in the previous years. In 1991,
Latasha Harlins, a 15-year-old Black girl, was shot in the head by store owner Soon Ja Du, who accused her of stealing a bottle of orange juice. A jury convicted Du of voluntary
manslaughter, but a judge only sentenced her to probation. Also in 1991, four police officers allegedly beat
Rodney King, a Black man; in 1992, all of the officers were acquitted. These incidents led to the
1992 Los Angeles riots. The defense alleged that the crime scene had been compromised, and presented
audiotape recordings of
Mark Fuhrman, an officer who was at the scene and collected evidence, repeatedly using the racial slur "
nigger" in an interview with an aspiring screenwriter. Fuhrman was later charged with
perjury for lying about not saying the slur, and pleaded
no contest. This added to the popular perception that LAPD officers were racist, which worked against the police reforms being made by the city of Los Angeles since the beating of Rodney King. taking into consideration the LAPD's
history of corruption, the acquittal of the officers who beat Rodney King, and that Fuhrman, who found the glove at Simpson's home, entered the home without a
search warrant. The defense argued that Fuhrman had planted the glove.
MSNBC's Charles F. Coleman Jr. wrote in 2024 that "Black people didn't love O.J. Simpson, they hated the LAPD." "The evidence given to me to look at, I could not convict. Did he do it? Maybe, maybe not." When asked if she believed Simpson was framed, Woods stated, "I don't know if he was necessarily framed. I think O.J. may know something about what happened, but I just don't think he did it. I think it was more than one person, just because of the way she was killed."
Verdict and aftermath The New York Times wrote that "in the end, it was the defense that had the overwhelming case, with many grounds for reasonable doubt, the standard for acquittal."
NBC News wrote that "Black residents in parts of Los Angeles spilled out onto the street, cheering and passing celebratory drinks", and that similar scenes happened across the country. In 1994, 22% of Black respondents to a poll believed Simpson was guilty, as opposed to 63% of white people. This change was partially caused by the verdict of Simpson's later civil trial. In May 2008, Simpson's associate
Mike Gilbert claimed that Simpson had admitted his role as the murderer, saying he used the knife that Brown was holding when she opened her condo's door for him that night, and that he had stopped taking his arthritis medicine so his hands would swell in court. During the trial,
Johnnie Cochran informed
Judge Ito that
Shawn Chapman contacted the Los Angeles County Jail doctor, who confirmed Simpson was taking his arthritis medication every day, and that the jail's medical records verified this. Simpson's then-lawyer
Yale L. Galanter said none of Gilbert's claims were true, and that Gilbert is "a delusional drug addict who needs money." Superior Court Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki presided, The trial excluded discussion of racial issues, which were considered "inflammatory and speculative." On February 5, 1997, a civil jury in
Santa Monica, California, unanimously found Simpson liable for the
wrongful death of and
battery against Goldman, and battery against Brown. (The Brown family had not filed a wrongful death claim.) Simpson was ordered to pay $33,500,000 in damages: $8.5 million in compensatory damages to the Goldman family, and $12.5 million in punitive damages to each family. His
net worth at the time was $11 million. In February 1999, an auction of Simpson's
Heisman Trophy and other belongings netted almost $500,000, which went to the Goldman family. The Goldman family also tried to collect Simpson's NFL $28,000 yearly pension, but failed to collect any money. In July 2017 after Simpson was granted parole, Ron Goldman's father Fred inquired about the real estate purchases made by Sydney and Justin Simpson, Brown's children with Simpson. David Cook, a lawyer for Fred Goldman, said he would seek bank records and depositions to follow the Simpson children's money trail and see if any of the homes were bought with their father's cash, which could make them eligible for a
clawback. "The kids' loss is no greater than Fred's, but Fred's loss should be no greater than theirs," Cook said. In June 2022 Fred alleged in court papers (intended to keep the wrongful death and battery judgment viable) that Simpson owed $96 million due to significant interest generated on the initial order to pay damages. On November 17, 2025, it was reported that the Simpson Estate agreed for pay nearly $58 million to Goldman's father to settle the civil claim, but it rejected the $117 million claim that was originally sought.
Other legal troubles In the late 1990s, Simpson attempted to register "O. J. Simpson", "O. J.", and "The Juice" as trademarks for "a broad range of goods, including figurines, trading cards, sportswear, medallions, coins, and
prepaid telephone cards." A "concerned citizen", William B. Ritchie, sued to oppose the granting of federal registration on the grounds that doing so would be immoral and scandalous. In February 2001, Simpson was arrested in Miami-Dade County, for simple battery and burglary of an occupied conveyance, for pulling the glasses off another motorist during a traffic dispute three months earlier. If convicted, Simpson could have faced up to 16 years in prison, but he was tried and quickly acquitted of both charges in October. On December 4, 2001, Simpson's Florida home was searched by the
FBI on suspicion of
ecstasy possession and
money laundering. The FBI had received a tip that Simpson was involved in a major drug trafficking ring after 10 other suspects were arrested in the case. Simpson's home was thoroughly searched for two hours, but no illegal drugs were discovered, and no arrest or formal charges were filed following the search. Investigators uncovered equipment capable of stealing satellite television programming, which was later evidence in a federal lawsuit. In July 2002, Simpson was arrested in Miami-Dade County for water speeding through a
manatee protection zone and failing to comply with proper boating regulations. The misdemeanor boating regulation charge was dropped, and Simpson was fined for the speeding infraction. In March 2004, satellite television network
DirecTV, Inc. accused Simpson in a Miami federal court of using illegal electronic devices to
pirate its broadcast signals. The company later won a $25,000 judgment, and Simpson was ordered to pay an additional $33,678 in attorney's fees and costs. In 2007, the state of California said that Simpson owed $1.44 million in
back taxes. A
tax lien was filed in his case in September 1999.
If I Did It book In 2006, publisher
ReganBooks had planned to release Simpson's book
If I Did It, which was supposed to be his account of how he would hypothetically kill Brown and Goldman. She testified that her father thought about it and eventually agreed to the book deal. Simpson ignores Charlie's advice and continues to Nicole's condo, where he finds and confronts Ron Goldman. According to the book, Nicole falls and hits her head on the concrete, and Goldman crouches in a karate pose. As the confrontation escalates, Simpson writes, "Then something went horribly wrong, and I know
what happened, but I can't tell you
how." He writes that he regained consciousness later with no memory of the actual act of murder: The publishing deal allegedly started when ReganBooks employee
Judith Regan received a phone call from Simpson's lawyers, who said he was ready to confess to the murders. Regan claimed the word "If" was put in the title so that Simpson would have
plausible deniability when his children read the book, because "he couldn't tell them that he had done it." The book was scheduled for release in November 2006, but was cancelled beforehand due to public outcry. He claimed that Simpson was advanced $1 million for the book deal and interview, and that they were made to "cheat the family" of the damages owed. In August, a Florida
bankruptcy court awarded the book rights to the Goldman family, to partially satisfy the unpaid civil judgment. The family published the first edition of the book later that year, and they renamed it to
If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer. They also reduced the word "If" in size to such an extent that it appears within the large red "I" in the title, making the title appear to read
I Did It: Confessions of the Killer. Additional material was added by the Goldmans, Fenjves, and investigative journalist
Dominick Dunne. Simpson admitted to taking the items, which he said had been stolen from him, but denied breaking into the hotel room; he also denied that he or anyone else carried a gun. He was initially released after questioning. Two days later, Simpson was arrested, and he was initially held without bail. Along with three other men, Simpson was charged with multiple felony counts, including
criminal conspiracy,
kidnapping, assault, robbery, and aggravated assault. Bail was set at $125,000, with stipulations that Simpson have no contact with the co-defendants and that he surrender his passport. Simpson did not enter a plea. By the end of October 2007, all three of Simpson's co-defendants had
plea-bargained with the prosecution in the
Clark County, Nevada, court case. Walter Alexander and Charles H. Cashmore accepted plea agreements in exchange for reduced charges and their testimony against Simpson and three other co-defendants, including testimony that guns were used in the robbery. Co-defendant Michael McClinton told a Las Vegas judge that he too would plead guilty to reduced charges and testify against Simpson that guns were used in the robbery. After the hearings, the judge ordered that Simpson be tried for the robbery. On November 8, 2007, Simpson had a preliminary hearing to decide whether he would be tried for the charges. He was held over for trial on all 12 counts. Simpson pleaded not guilty on November 29, with an initial setting for trial in April 2008, although it was soon set for September to give the defense more time for their case. In January 2008, Simpson was taken into custody in Florida and was extradited to Las Vegas, where he was incarcerated at the
Clark County jail for violating the terms of his bail by attempting to contact co-defendant Clarence "C. J." Stewart. District Attorney David Roger of Clark County provided District Court Judge Jackie Glass with evidence that Simpson had violated his bail terms. A hearing took place on January 16. Glass raised Simpson's bail to US$250,000 and ordered that he remain in county jail until 15 percent was paid in cash. Simpson posted bond that evening and returned to Miami the next day. The trial began on September 8, 2008, in the court of
Nevada District Court Judge Jackie Glass, before an
all-white jury, in stark contrast to Simpson's earlier murder trial. Simpson and his co-defendant were found guilty of all charges on October 3. On October 10, Simpson's counsel moved for a new trial (
trial de novo) on grounds of judicial errors and
insufficient evidence. Simpson's attorney announced he would appeal to the
Nevada Supreme Court if Judge Glass denied the motion. Simpson faced a possible
life sentence with parole on the kidnapping charge, and mandatory prison time for armed robbery. On December 5, 2008, Simpson was sentenced to a total of 33 years in prison, with the possibility of parole after nine years, in 2017. In September 2009, the Nevada Supreme Court denied a request for bail during Simpson's appeal. In October 2010, the Nevada Supreme Court affirmed his convictions. He served his sentence at the
Lovelock Correctional Center as inmate 1027820. He worked as a gym janitor there. A hearing was held beginning May 2013, to determine if Simpson was entitled to a new trial. In November, Judge Linda Bell denied Simpson's bid for a new trial on the robbery conviction. In her ruling, Bell wrote that all Simpson's contentions lacked merit.
Release from prison On July 31, 2013, the Nevada
parole board granted Simpson parole on some convictions, but his imprisonment continued based on the weapons and assault convictions. The board considered Simpson's prior record of criminal convictions and good behavior in prison in coming to the decision. At his parole hearing on July 20, 2017, the board decided to grant Simpson parole, with certain parole conditions such as travel restrictions, non-contact with co-defendants from the robbery, and not drinking excessively. He was released on October 1, having served almost nine years. In December 2021, Simpson was granted an early discharge from parole by the Nevada Division of Parole and Probation, for good behavior. == Personal life ==