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Where’s the Juice?
New Simpson trial attracts significantly smaller spotlight
By Uko Etim
However, what appears most interesting about this case is the amount of coverage or lack thereof in the media. It appears that the average person does not even know what he is being accused of, or that he is in court at all.
There is little doubt that O.J. Simpson’s most recent criminal case has not attracted nearly as much media attention as his infamous murder trial, but its lingering effects still greatly reverberate.
The former collegiate and NFL star, 61, is back in court for his role in a memorabilia store burglary in September 2007. Simpson and a group of men allegedly broke into the Las Vegas hotel room and stole sports memorabilia at gunpoint.
Simpson admitted to the Associated Press that he did take items from the hotel. However, he in turn claims that the merchandise he intended to take, which included his Pro Hall of Fame certificate, was stolen from him by the memorabilia dealer.
Susan Fields, coordinator of African-American Student Academic Services at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, was surprised when she heard about Simpson’s newest legal troubles on the news. “I just scratched my head. Why would he even involve himself in something that even resembled a robbery? He already knows that people are still after him.”
In theory, Simpson may have had no other alternative if he wanted to keep the items for himself. If he would have filed a police report and gotten the items back legally, they would likely have been immediately been seized.
David Cook, an attorney for the Goldman family, has professed to several media outlets that Simpson was allegedly hiding valuable memorabilia to avoid having to legally turn it over to the family. In his civil trial in 1997, Simpson was found liable for the deaths of Ron Goldman and his wife Nicole Brown Simpson. He was ordered to pay $33.5 million to the Goldman family. The Goldmans have yet to receive all of the settlement.
However, what appears most interesting about this case is the amount of coverage or lack thereof in the media. It appears that the average person does not even know what he is being accused of, or that he is in court at all.
“I have been a news junkie because of the up-coming election and I haven’t heard anything about the trial,” said Ms. Fields.
Chair of the UWM Journalism and Mass Communication program Paul Brewer theorized several possible reasons for the lack of media coverage.
“The crime he was being accused of in ‘95 was much more dramatic,” said Brewer. “Also, he was on a pedestal during his first trial. He was seen as this great football player and actor. He was on top of the world.”
Simpson’s prominence played a large role in the case, but historically, the most noted aspect is how race may have played into the final verdict.
“The trial became bigger than just a murder trial,” Brewer recalled.
Eugene Kane, an editorial writer for The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, recently confessed in his column, “I think O.J. did kill two people regardless of the not guilty verdict in his criminal case. BUT I also admit I had no problem with the verdict; O.J. was a rich American who used his money and privilege to beat the rap, just like countless other Americans have done, including Hollywood actor Robert Blake.”
With the exception of Court TV, the upcoming presidential election and the economic problems of the country have rightfully overshadowed coverage of the trial in most mainstream news outlets. However, many are still eager to see the eventual outcome of the case.
“It will definitely be interesting to see how the case plays out.” said UWM Criminal Justice Teaching Assistant Stephanie Sikinger, who was unsure whether it is possible for Simpson to get a fair trial. “People will have their biases,” Sikinger said.
Simpson has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges including: armed robbery, kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon. If convicted on all charges, he could face up to life in prison.
Thus far, Simpson’s defense has seemingly been dealt several blows. Three of the people who were allegedly with Simpson during the robbery have taken plea deals, agreeing to testify against him.
There have also been complaints that the all-white jury appointed for the case is also not good for Simpson.
The evidence in the case does not seem to favor Simpson’s story he lacks both the distracting media circus as well as Johnnie Cochran this time around. However, if history has taught anything it’s that in an O.J. Simpson criminal case, anything is possible.
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