SPORTS HISTORY IN BLACK: O.J. Simpson goes on trial for murder

Pro Football Hall of Fame running back O.J. Simpson was one of the best of his time. He had five 1,000-yard seasons along with being the 1973 NFL MVP and a five-time All-Pro. Unfortunately, he could not play forever and he would retire after the 1979 season, starting a new chapter as an actor.

Then double-murder defendant O.J. Simpson declared, "I did not, could not and would not" commit murder as he addressed the court in Los Angeles, Sept. 22, 1995. The jury was not present. Both sides then rested, finishing the presentation of evidence in one of the most sensational criminal trials in American history. Behind Simpson is late attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. At far right is attorney Robert Shapiro. Photo credit: Pool/Reed Saxon, The Associated Press
Then double-murder defendant O.J. Simpson declared, “I did not, could not and would not” commit murder as he addressed the court in Los Angeles, Sept. 22, 1995. The jury was not present. Both sides then rested, finishing the presentation of evidence in one of the most sensational criminal trials in American history. Behind Simpson is late attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. At far right is attorney Robert Shapiro. Photo credit: Pool/Reed Saxon, The Associated Press

But one night would change the way people viewed him for the rest of his life. In June 1994, Simpson’s ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, were
found stabbed to death outside Brown Simpson’s condo in the Los Angeles area. O.J. Simpson was the main suspect in both murders. On Jan. 12, 1995, the murder trail of O.J. Simpson began.

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