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Most Americans Think Simpson is Guilty
- Many adults in the United States believe a former football player might have assassinated his former wife and another man, according to a poll by Opinion Research Corporation released by CNN. 82 per cent of respondents think the charges that O.J. Simpson murdered Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman are definitely or probably true.
Simpson played in the National Football League (NFL) from 1969 to 1979, with the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers. After his retirement from the sport, he appeared in several feature films.
On Jun. 12, 1994, Brown Simpson—who divorced Simpson in 1992—and Goldman were found stabbed to death outside her home in Los Angeles, California. Five days later, Simpson surrendered to police after a low-speed chase. Double-homicide is a capital offence in the state.
Simpson's criminal trial lasted 133 days. After three hours of deliberation, the jury declared Simpson "not guilty" of the charges against him on Oct. 3, 1995. In a subsequent civil process, Simpson was found liable for Goldman's wrongful death and ordered to pay $33.5 million to his family.
Earlier this month, ReganBooks announced that Simpson had written a book, called "If I Did It", which would allegedly describe how he would have committed the murders. Both the book and a two-part interview with Simspon—which was supposed to air on the Fox television network later this month—were cancelled due to public condemnation.
Polling Data
Do you personally believe the charges that O.J. Simpson murdered Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman are definitely true, probably true, probably not true or definitely not true?
Definitely true | 46% |
Probably true | 36% |
Probably not true | 7% |
Definitely not true | 5% |
Unsure | 7% |
Source: Opinion Research Corporation / CNN
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 512 American adults, conducted from Nov. 17 to Nov. 19, 2006. Margin of error is 4 per cent.