Rush Limbaugh and the reason to doubt that O.J. Simpson really was guilty

O.J. Simpson, 76, died April 10, 2024, of cancer. Many in the media believe that he got away with murder. But I was never that convinced.

Before I actually started writing opinion columns, I used to listen faithfully to Rush Limbaugh on radio. On June 12, 1994, Nicole Brown and her friend, Ron Goldman, were found stabbed to death outside her Brentwood home and her ex-husband, O.J. Simpson, was arrested a few days later. I recall Rush surmising that O.J. was probably covering up for his son Jason’s crime. After the lengthy trial that ended with O.J.’s acquittal, Rush never repeated his doubts about O.J.’s guilt, but I had to admit that if I had been on the jury I would also have had reasonable doubt.

Many Americans were glued to the TV for months watching the O.J. trial and its colorful characters who became celebs after the trail ended. Lawyer Johnny Cochran even inspired a character on the Jerry Seinfeld show. I preferred reading about the O.J. news and found myself in a very  small minority in the media who questioned O.J.’s guilt. This simply means that I wasn’t as dead certain he was a murderer because of one small detail that never came out during the trial.

The murder scene was extremely bloody. Bloody footprints, bloody shoes and socks, and blood in O.J.’s Bronco were all discussed during the trial, but I wondered why no blood was found on the car’s foot pedals.  I wrote several columns explaining my position, and surprisingly, some responders who were familiar with the LAPD’s reputation for planting evidence agreed with my skepticism, but most in the media believed that O.J. got away with murder.

Nothing in the newspapers and the tabloids after his death has changed, except for celebrity commentators like Caitlyn Jenner saying, ”Good riddance,” instead of “RIP”.

If we should take anything away from this tragedy, it is that a rush to judgment sometimes leaves the truth buried forever. Perhaps Rush’s first instinctual response to the murders deserved further investigation. Was Jason Simpson a more likely suspect than O.J. as he had a record for violent behavior and, as a chef, had access to knives? Supposedly, he had an alibi for the time of the murder, but that alibi was debunked during O.J.’s civil trial.

So much of O.J.’s behavior was inexplicable to many who viewed him as a great athlete with an affable personality. However, considering his action as a father defending his son rather than that of a guilty man makes more sense.

What if reporters acted like real investigators instead of racing  to be the first out of the stall with breaking news? What if they had bothered to use the worldwide web to access alternatives to O.J. as the only suspect?   If they had done as I finally did, they would find more answers to questions that arose during the trial such as, why the glove didn’t fit.

Did O.J. buy two pairs of gloves with one smaller as a gift for someone? That statement was made by a blogger, RobZ, on the Quora website. Not sure if that’s true, but was it ever checked? Why did the LAPD only test O.J.’s vehicle and not Jason’s jeep? So many unanswered questions will forever remain because no one really cares except the family of the victims who are still owed millions from O.J.’s civil trial decision.

For the next few days, we will read endless statements from past trial participants like Kato Kaelin, confirming that O.J. did commit those murders. I doubt there will be any commentators expressing a different conclusion. Nevertheless, I remain unwilling to commit to that determination until all the questions I still have are finally answered to my satisfaction.

 So, excuse me if the only comment I can make about the death of Orenthal James Simpson is R.I.P.