eing influenced by the massive and unprecedented media publicity given to trial. Nicole Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman, were slain on June 12, 1994. The verdict was rendered on October 3, 1995. The jury was sequestered for 266 days, but its members were exposed to the media blitz for more than 9 months and through conjugal visits were at least partially aware of what was being said outside the courtroom during their sequestration.
Media attention was guaranteed by the lurid nature of the crimes and Simpson's celebrity status. Most of the pre-trial publicity tended to point toward Simpson's guilt, as did some of his own actions, such as his bizarre escape attempt which resulted in the Bronco chase and his suicide note. At the same time, Simpson's favorable image as a sports star and his genial television and film personality were re-emphasized. OJ was in the minds of many, particularly blacks, an icon, a stirring example of how far a black with humble origins could go in American society. Public opinion polls taken before and after the trial showed that most whites thought Simpson was guilty and an even greater majority of blacks thought he was innocent (Behind 27). The barrage of pre-trial publicity, therefore, tended to polarize opinion along racial lines as well as fostering pre-conceptions on various aspects of the case.
The decision by Los Angeles District Attorney Gil Garcetti to file charges against Simpson in LA Central rather than in Santa Monica, the district in which the crime occurred, guaranteed that the jury would have a higher proportion of minority participants and a higher percentage of less educated and lower income members (Bugliosi 61).
The publicly televised preliminary hearing on the legality of the police search of Simpson's Rockingham home highlighted the key role of Detective Mark Fuhrman in the decision of the police to enter the property and his later discovery of a bloody glove there
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