The OJ Simpson trial was referred to as the 'trial of the century'(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

How OJ Simpson got off for double murder of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman

OJ Simpson died on Thursday after a battle with cancer and his death has thrown his double murder trial for the killing of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman back into the spotlight

by · The Mirror

OJ Simpson was found not guilty of brutally murdering his ex-wife Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman following an explosive trial.

The former NFL star, who died on April 10, was the prime suspect in the 1994 killings after Nicole and Ronald were found murdered outside her condominium in Los Angeles. As the trial began, the evidence against Simpson seemed damning. It included blood-stained gloves and a history of domestic violence allegations against Simpson.

However, one bombshell moment saw defence lawyer Johnnie Cochran take out the gloves prosecutors said Simpson wore and reminded the jury how his client struggled to get them on. Cochran said: "If the glove doesn't fit, you must acquit." It became a pivotal moment in the trial, but it wasn't the only thing that led to OJ Simpson getting off for murder.

Constant media coverage

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Viewers watched on as OJ Simpson became involved in a police car chase( Image: Getty Images)

Five days after Nicole and Ron were found dead, OJ Simpson was charged with the murders. It led to a dramatic car chase on the streets of Los Angeles, which was broadcast for all to see.

Simpson, driven by his pal and former teammate Al Cowlings, was spotted fleeing from police in a white Ford Bronco as he crouched in the back seat. News helicopters trailed the truck and millions of viewers watched on in disbelief.

The car chase lasted for two hours. During the dramatic chase, Simpson reportedly held a gun to his head, threatening to commit suicide. Crowds began to gather in the streets as the car passed by.

Former serious crimes detective Gerry Rodgers believes the intense media coverage was part of the reason Simpson was acquitted. Writing on his blog Dying Words, he said: "I have no doubt whatsoever the massive live-media coverage of the slow-speed, white Bronco chase embedded itself in the nation's psyche."

Gerry added: "I can’t imagine the impression the chase, arrest, and the wait-up to the trial took on the Los Angeles jury pool. And I can't imagine anyone able to serve on the jury not hearing of the pre-trial events."

Venue change

Former Los Angeles prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi slammed the decision to change venues( Image: Getty Images)

Former Los Angeles prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi wrote a book about the OJ Simpson trial, which he titled Outrage: The Five Reasons Why O. J. Simpson Got Away with Murder. In the book, he criticised the decision to move the trial to downtown Los Angeles, rather than Santa Monica where the murders took place.

Vincent claimed this resulted in a jury that was hostile to the prosecution team. However, lawyer Jeffrey Toobin said the trial "could never have been held anywhere except the criminal courts building in downtown Los Angeles" because that was the only place which could accommodate it.

Prosecution criticism

Marcia Clark was on the prosecution team( Image: Rex/Shutterstock)

Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden led the OJ Simpson prosecution team. Vincent Bugliosi was highly critical of the team and pointed to several mistakes they made in his book.

One of the fundamental mistakes made in the case was during the preliminary phase when Thano Peratis estimated he drew 8mls of blood from Simpson, while records show only 6.5mls were accounted for. The defence then alleged that 1.5mls wwas missing. The defence team then claimed it was missing due to fraud. And that wasn't the only mistake.

One of the bombshell moments of the trial came when Simpson tried on a pair of gloves he was said to have worn to commit the murders. It was actually prosecutor Darden who asked to have Simpson try on the gloves.

Clark claimed she had begged her colleague not to make Simpson try the gloves on and said they had fought many times about it. Darden had initially accepted, but was tricked by Simpson's team into getting him to try the gloves on.

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