straws up his nose. the following is a cnn special report. >> the shocking crime. >> ron and nicole were butchered. >> the riveting car chase. >> 911, what are you reporting? >> this is a.c. i have o.j. in the car. >> now o.j. simpson on trial for murder. >> stop domestic violence! >> this was the perfect soap opera. >> the characters like kato kaelin. >> it seems like you feel like

you were pretty much misunderstood for a really long time. >> 100% misunderstood. >> the moments and mistakes. >> it was like a slow-motion disaster movie for the prosecution. >> two decades later. >> it makes no sense. it doesn't fit. if it doesn't fit, you must acquit. >> "the o.j. trial: drama of the century." it's minutes after midnight june 13, 1994. los angeles police arrive to a crime scene at bundy drive in upscale brentwood. they find no witnesses, no murder weapon. just two victims. >> slashed, stabbed, everything else. nicole was nearly decapitated. it was a very bloody scene. >> nicole is nicole brown

simpson. lying dead beside her, 25-year-old ron goldman. the prime suspect? nicole's ex-husband, football legend o.j. simpson. simpson promises to surrender and then disappears. >> the los angeles police department right now is actively searching for mr. simpson. >> simpson is soon spotted inside a white suv. >> highway patrol. >> yeah, i think i just saw o.j. simpson on the 5 freeway, and he's heading north. >> you've got everybody scared. >> the famous low-speed chase covered live for hours rivets the nation and ends with simpson's eventual surrender at his home on rockingham avenue.

it was just the beginning. >> go, go, go. >> here's what we know right now. >> this was the perfect soap opera. the o.j. simpson murder case was the first true reality show for the country. >> okay, let's go. here we go. >> this was the first wall-to-wall televised trial. >> july 22, 1994, a month after the murders, the legal proceedings against o.j. simpson begin when he enters this defiant plea. >> absolutely, 100% not guilty. >> and to help him prove that, simpson assembles a legal dream team. >> each one of them was famous. >> jeffrey toobin covered the trial for "the new yorker." >> there has never been in american history more prominent defense lawyers on a single trial than in the o.j. simpson case.

>> there's harvard law professor alan dershowitz. >> an ideal intermediary between the ivory tower and the gritty world of trial practice. >> famed criminal attorney f. lee bailey. >> the person you go to when you are really in lot of trouble and can afford it. >> and, of course, johnny cochran who would take the lead. >> flamboyant. outgoing. approachable. fun. and extremely charismatic. while also having considerable mastery of the details of the case. >> and known for defending celebrities like child actor todd bridges, football legend jim brown and superstar michael jackson. but would the all-star strategy work? >> the o.j. dream team was not a dream team. it was a nightmare team. most of the lawyers didn't get along with each other.

there was a lot of competition for the limelight. >> despite all that competition, sisimpson's team comes up with this. they allege that lapd detective mark fuhrman was a racist who planted evidence. >> this is not just any city where an allegation of a racist cop is being made. this is the lapd. >> the racist allegations simmering under the surface come to a boil just days before the trial begins when the defense wants permission to ask fuhrman if he's ever used the "n" word. >> and i'll use the word because i'm quoting him, all the niggers, put them together in a big group and burn them. >> but prosecutor chris darden wants no part of it. >> it is the filthiest, dirtiest, nastiest word in the english language. it will upset the black jurors.

it will issue a test, and the test will be, who's side are you on, the side of the white prosecutors and the white policemen or the side of the black defendant and his very prominent and capable black lawyer? >> cochran immediately fires back. >> not every african-american feels that way. it's demeaning to our jurors to say that african-americans cannot hear these offensive words. >> the battle lines are drawn, and race will help define the trial's outcome. it's january 24, 1995. the trial of orenthal james simpson has begun. >> there was a forest of satellite trucks, satellite dishes, people working in trailers. all built so that this trial could go out to the world.

>> walking into the courtroom every day, it was like the red carpet on an arrivals line or at the oscars. how are you feeling today, o.j.? oh, marcia, how you doing? how are your kids? what are you wearing? it's ridiculous. it was crazy. >> outside the courthouse, it's a circus. inside, a real life drama unfolding with millions of people watching. >> the simpson case combined everything that obsesses the american public. it had violence, sex, race, sports, and the only eyewitness was a dog. >> the prosecution's opening statement tells a story of love, lust, and loss of control. >> he killed her because he couldn't have her. >> that trail of blood from bundy through his own ford

bronco and into his house in rockingham is devastating proof of his guilt. >> johnny cochran's opening statement tells jurors a very different story. >> the evidence will show that this careless, slip shod, negligent collection, handling and processing of samples by basically poorly trained personnel from lapd has contaminated, compromised and corrupted the dna evidence in this case. >> coming up, behind the scenes. >> it's the first time i've ever really seen a heisman trophy. >> and in court with a juror. >> so did you ever believe kato kaelin's testimony at all?

put your hand over your heart. is it beating? good! then my nutrition heart health mix is for you. it's a wholesome blend of peanuts, pecans and other delicious nuts specially mixed for people with hearts. planters. nutrition starts with nut. i've had moderate to severe plaque psoriasis most of my life. but that hasn't stopped me from modeling. my doctor told me about stelara® it helps keep my skin clearer. with only 4 doses a year after 2 starter doses... ...stelara® helps me be in season. stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and increase your risk of infections. some serious infections require hospitalization. before starting stelara® your doctor should test for tuberculosis. stelara® may increase your risk of cancer. always tell your doctor if you have any sign of infection, have had cancer,

or if you develop any new skin growths. do not take stelara® if you are allergic to stelara® or any of its ingredients. alert your doctor of new or worsening problems including headaches, seizures, confusion and vision problems. these may be signs of a rare, potentially fatal brain condition. serious allergic reactions can occur. tell your doctor if you or anyone in your house needs or has recently received a vaccine. in a medical study, most stelara® patients saw at least 75% clearer skin and the majority were rated as cleared or minimal at 12 weeks. stelara® helps keep my skin clearer. ask your doctor about stelara®. (boys?) (music) stop less. go more. the passat tdi clean diesel with up to 814 hwy miles per tank. hurry in and you can get 0% apr plus a $1000 volkswagen credit bonus on 2015 passat tdi clean diesel models.

darker truth, that simpson is a . i did. in fact, i'm earning plenti points right now. but you're not doing anything right now. lily? he's right. sign up, and you could earn plenti points just for being a wireless customer. in the meantime, i just kick back and watch the points roll in. where did you get those noodles? at&t cafeteria. you mean the break room... at&t - the only wireless carrier to be a part of plenti, now when you add a new phone line to your wireless plan you get 5,000 plenti points to use in lots of places. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

this is how we knew o.j. simpson. football star. celebrity pitchman. >> nobody does it better than hertz. >> and movie star. but prosecutors say that dashing public persona hides a much darker truth, that simpson is a violent man who beat his wife.

and it didn't take long before a police detective testifies about an incident in 1989. >> a woman came running out of the bushes to my left, crossed the driveway. she was a female caucasian, blond hair. she was wearing a bra only as an upper garment, and she had on dark lightweight sweat pants and started yelling, he's going to kill me, he's going to kill me! >> then jurors hear it for themselves, another chilling 911 call from simpson's wife in 1993. >> my ex-husband, or my husband, just broke into my house, and he's ranting and raving. >> less than a year before the murder. >> he broke the door down to get in. >> okay, what's your name? >> nicole simpson. >> okay. is he the sportscaster or whatever? >> yeah. >> what is he doing? is he threatening you? >> he's going nuts. >> i was like, wow, he can be

pretty bad. >> 20 years later, juror number 4, david aldana, remembers that moment vividly. >> so that 911 tape made an impact. >> yeah, it did because when you hear somebody pounding on the door like that and hearing nicole say, i think you know his record by now. >> nicole's sister denise tells prosecutors she has seen simpson beat nicole in person. >> he grabbed nicole, told her to get out of his house, wanted us all out of his house, picked her up, threw her against the wall, picked her up and threw her out of the house. >> however, defense attorney robert shapiro counters with a completely different image of o.j. simpson. here he is with the brown family just hours before nicole's murder. >> we played for the jury the june 12th videotape where you saw o.j. simpson at 6:00, 6:30

in the evening of june 12th. you saw him. he was kissing the brown family, shaking hands with lee brown. he picked his son up. he didn't look like a man who was bitter and raging. >> so was simpson a warm family man or a violent attacker who cornered and killed two innocent people? the jurors and simpson take a field trip to his house and the crime scene. >> it was very, very good for the jury, i think, to see the relationship of each of those locations to each other as well as to get a much clearer idea of how very, very small the space was in which ron goldman was attacked and murdered by the defendant. and so i think that this really assisted the jury in being able to understand the evidence better, the testimony better, and how the victims were essentially cornered. >> what do you remember the most about visiting o.j.'s house, actually going to the crime scene? >> i was like, oh, wow, that's

the first time i've ever seen a heisman trophy. you couldn't ask questions. nothing was told to us. don't talk amongst yourselves and don't touch anything. >> and it's this home visit that leads to the very heart of the prosecution's case, the physical evidence against o.j. simpson. >> can you please describe the appearance of the gloves, sir. >> it appeared a dark leather glove, appeared to be somewhat moist or sticky. i didn't touch it, but it appeared that parts were sticking to other parts of the glove. >> defense lawyers are eager to point out detective mark furhman's role in discovering the evidence. >> and now mark fuhrman came up to you and told you he'd made some discoveries, is that correct? >> yes. >> so we're clear, it was mark furhman who allegedly found this glove out there near kato kaelin's room, correct? outside? >> yes.

>> and it was mark fuhrman who allegedly found the spot on the outside of the bronco, is that correct? >> that's correct. >> mark fuhrman would play a starring role in this unfolding drama, as would this man. >> i heard a thumping noise. >> how many thumps did you hear? >> three. >> simpson's shaggy house guest, kato kaelin. did you ever expect what was going to happen when you got up there and took the stand? >> no, not at all. that was my first time in a courtroom in my entire life. and i think i was 35 at the time. >> kaelin's four days on the stand thrust him into the national spotlight. >> i even come up with a thing saying never has a man done so little to be recognized by so many. >> today he testified. he said that o.j.'s maid never really liked him. oh, sure, she had to work for her room and board. >> why was kato kaelin so memorable?

>> he's an idiot. >> really? >> he's so full of [ expletive ]. oh, sorry. >> that's pretty harsh. >> as a matter of fact, when we were doing our deliberations, he was like the no-brainer. the guy's an idiot, and nothing he says -- we can't go with or against it. he's null and void. >> i was called so many things. i was called a celebrity, a pariah, a traitor, a dummy, a freeloader. >> so it seems like you were pretty much misunderstood for a really long time. >> 100% misunderstood. this was something i took so serious that i was making sure i answered everything correctly. so i was in deep thought going, okay, answer this right, kato and that was it. if you pause, people go, he's making something -- he's lying, he's doing this. furthest thing from the truth. it's for me to become even more honest. for me to make sure i answer this thing 100% honest. >> which brings us to the night of the murder. kaelin and simpson make a mcdonald's run.

>> about what time was it when you got home? >> it was about 9:40. >> kaelin goes to his bedroom, and prosecutors say simpson disappears. a crucial hour passes before kaelin hears a loud noise outside. >> where did that noise seem to be coming from? >> from the back of the wall. >> that, prosecutors say, is simpson hitting an exterior wall and dropping a bloody glove. at 10:55, a limo driver waiting to take simpson to the airport spots a black person, 6 feet tall, 200 pounds. >> i saw a figure come into the entranceway of the house. >> allen park says he'd been buzzing the intercom since 10:40 and received no response. proving, prosecutors say,

simpson had not been home. >> this time there was an answer, which was mr. simpson. he told me that he overslept and he just got out of the shower and he'd be down in a minute. >> both park and kaelin notice a dark duffel bag near the rear of simpson's bentley. >> he came out and kato offered to go get the bag. and he said, no, no, that's okay. i'll get it. i'll get it. >> so what was in the bag? and what did simpson do with it? detective tom lang has a theory. >> you want to know what happened to the knife and the clothes? we know that from a witness at the airport, i believe, saw him getting out of the limousine the night of the murders and had his arm buried in a trash container. >> next, with so much evidence, what went wrong? >> that's people's 77. >> chris darden blew it. meet the world's newest energy

superpower. surprised? in fact, america is now the world's number one

natural gas producer... and we could soon become number one in oil. because hydraulic fracturing technology is safely recovering lots more oil and natural gas. supporting millions of new jobs. billions in tax revenue... and a new century of american energy security. the new energy superpower? it's red, white and blue. log on to learn more. when you think of the united states postal service? exactly. that's what pushes us to deliver smarter simpler faster sleeker earlier fresher harder farther quicker and yeah, even on sundays. what's next? we'll show you.

the team prosecuting o.j. simpson for murder has no weapon and no witnesses, but what they do have is a wealth of forensic evidence, evidence that seems to prove o.j. simpson

butchered ron goldman and nicole brown simpson. >> this appeared to me to be an overkill or a rage killing. >> there was blood everywhere, at the bundy crime scene, at simpson's rockingham estate, and scattered along the route in between. the blood, prosecutors say, is simpson's. >> does that mean that these characteristics that mr. simpson has that are also found in the bundy walk bloodstain are only found in approximately 1 out of 170 million caucasians or african-americans? >> yes, approximately. >> and that's not all. blood consistent with both victims was found in simpson's bronco, on that glove discovered behind his house, and on these socks in his bedroom.

>> you described that material, or that bloodstaining, as matching nicole brown, is that right? >> that's correct. >> then there were the bloody shoeprints in the bronco and on nicole's dress. fbi expert william bodziak says those prints came from bruno mali designer shoes in simpson's size, 12. >> can you include him as a candidate who could have worn the shoes that created the impressions in this case? >> yes, i could include him as a candidate for possibly having worn those shoes. >> as the trial goes on, attention turns from socks and shoes to gloves. one found at the murder scene. the other? behind simpson's house. together, prosecutors believe they have proof that simpson's caught red-handed.

>> handing mr. simpson the glove. >> that's people's 77. >> what were you thinking when you heard prosecutor christopher darden request that simpson try on those gloves? >> i was sitting in the courtroom. i couldn't find a seat so i was kind of in the back. and when he did that, f. lee bailey came up to me and he grabbed me and whispered into my ear -- he was kind of laughing -- why the hell did you let him do that? i didn't know he was going to do anything. no. chris is a good man, a good prosecutor, a bright man. he should have known better. >> i remember watching the glove in the courtroom and thinking to myself, he's not going to ask o.j. to put on the glove. that's too much of a risk. you never ask a question in a courtroom, much less do a

demonstration, where you don't know what the outcome is. and it was like a slow-motion disaster movie for the prosecution as o.j. milked the moment for all it was worth and pretended to try on those gloves. >> after the trial, christopher darden would admit to larry king it was a mistake. >> when it happened in court, did you know you were in trouble? >> i knew that it hadn't gone as well as i had hoped it should have gone. >> did you regard it as like earth shattering to the case? >> no, not necessarily. >> no? >> not particularly. it wasn't until i went upstairs and left the courtroom that i realized that people thought it was a monumental failure, a monumental mistake. >> was it chris darden that blew this case? >> chris darden blew this case. marcia clark contributed very heavily to blowing the case, too, but chris garden blew it.

when o.j. was able to walk in front of the jury and say, it's too small, he didn't have to testify because he had already testified in front of the jury, and he wasn't examined. so for us, it was a win-win. >> he appears to have pulled the gloves on, counsel. >> but to juror david aldana, it didn't seem like a big deal. >> so o.j. simpson was right in front of you when he put on that glove. >> he was about two feet away from me. >> what do you remember from that moment? >> you know, a lot of people make a big deal about it. but i was a truck driver. i wear gloves all the time. i know that when my gloves get wet they shrink up. >> after 92 exhausting days of testimony, 58 witnesses and 488 exhibits -- >> we ask the court to receive all of the people's exhibits, and the people rest.

>> next -- >> the lapd's laboratory is a cesspool of contamination. >> the defense unleashes a blistering attack. >> how about that, mr. fung? the team jet runners. what we do is fun. but so is what comes next. in fact what originally brought us together isn't the only thing that keeps us coming back. for friends who come together to reach for better we brew a superior tasting light beer with fewer carbs and calories. michelob ultra. the superior light beer. hi, my i'm tom.cliff. my name is eric. and i help make beneful. i help make beneful. i help make beneful. after working here, there's no other food i'd feed my pets. each ingredient is tested by our own quality insurance people. i see all the quality data, everything that i need to know that it's good for my dog. there's a standard. and then there's a purina standard. i make it and i feed my dog beneful.

i feel proud because i know that i helped make that bag of dog food sitting on that shelf. she often has to travel for long periods of time. she's helping sick people so that they can get better. and being away from us is very difficult. i know how much these pictures mean to her. share moments as vivid as life with the nikon d-thirty-three hundred. sending pictures to your phone is so easy, we call it nikon snapbridge. i love getting these pictures. they make me feel like i'm home. the nikon d-thirty-three hundred. made for generation image. and check out the all-new nikon d-fifty-five hundred.

we think the evidence will show that he did not, could not, and would not have committed these particular crimes. >> johnny cochran came roaring out of the gate on the attack and on the offensive. >> the lapd laboratory is a cesspool of contamination. >> citing police incompetence. >> some had gloves. some didn't have gloves. picking up the evidence. >> even suggesting a conspiracy to frame o.j. simpson. >> the fact that blood mysteriously appears on vital pieces of evidence is devastating evidence of something far more sinister. >> but the fireworks really begin here. defense lawyer barry scheck unleashes a relentless barrage of questions on experts like lapd criminologist dennis fung. >> how about that, mr. fung? >> confronting him about not wearing gloves while handling evidence.

>> did you touch that envelope with your bare hands? >> and inconsistencies in his testimony. >> so you did begin evidence collection before the coroners left. >> yes. >> so what you said before wasn't true. >> it was the best of my recollection at the time. >> and then the photos from the rear gate of nicole brown simpson's home. this one was taken by fung 20 days after the murders. as you can see, there's a bloodstain. however, a photo taken just hours after the murders showed no bloodstain. >> where is it, mr. fung? >> look what they did to fung. he needed a vacation after that because they just reamed him. >> i can't see it in the photograph. >> what do you remember the most about fung just being torn apart

by scheck? >> oh, man. >> does that refresh your recollection? is that a concern of yours? >> barry scheck is one heck of an attorney. he just ripped him apart. >> scheck is trying to convince the jury, not only were investigators incompetent, but they tried to frame o.j. for the murders. and juror david aldana agrees. you truly believe that evidence was planted? >> yes. from this day until the day i die, i think it was planted. >> if this was a conspiracy, how do you get blood on socks, blood on the bronco, his own blood? >> it's laughable. okay, let's look at planting the blood. how do we get that blood from simpson who is in chicago to plant blood that's already at the scene? it made no sense. obviously it made no sense. we didn't get simpson's blood until he returned from chicago. none of it made any sense, but nobody cared. it was a great show. >> and the show continues. more testimony from defense experts.

>> have you ever seen a single assailant wear two pairs of shoes? >> no. >> that represents human dna that shouldn't be there, and that's what our definition of contamination is. >> on the stand now, o.j.'s personal physician, robert huizenga. he testifies that simpson was in no way physically capable of murdering ron goldman and nicole brown simpson. >> although he looked like tarzan, you know, he was walking more like tarzan's grandfather. >> the defense is on a roll until prosecutor brian kelberg plays this 70-minute workout video on cross-examination. >> working up a little sweat here, too. >> you bet. >> it was filmed just two weeks before the murder. simpson not only looks fit but even cracks a joke about wife beating.

>> i'm telling you, got to get your space in there if you're working out with the wife, if you know what i mean. >> but perhaps the most dramatic and powerful moment for the defense is still to come. >> once he said, never in ten years have i ever used the "n" word, i knew we had him. then my nutrition heart health mix is for you. it's a wholesome blend of peanuts, pecans and other delicious nuts specially mixed for people with hearts. planters. nutrition starts with nut. have my stomach feeling all knotted up. i've tried laxatives... but my symptoms keep returning. my constipation feels like a pile of bricks...

that keeps coming back. linzess can help. once-daily linzess treats adults with ibs with constipation or chronic constipation. linzess is thought to help calm pain-sensing nerves and accelerate bowel movements. linzess helps you proactively manage your symptoms. do not give linzess to children under 6 and it should not be given to children 6 to 17. it may harm them. don't take linzess if you have a bowel blockage. get immediate help if you develop unusual or severe stomach pain especially with bloody or black stools. the most common side effect is diarrhea, sometimes severe. if it's severe, stop taking linzess and call your doctor right away. other side effects include, gas, stomach-area pain and swelling. bottom line, ask your doctor about linzess today. i am rich. on the grounds of my estate, i hob nob with the glitterati and play equestrian sports. out on the veranda, we enjoy finger sandwiches and other assorted dainties.

i wear nothing less than the finest designer footwear. wherever i go, the paparazzi capture my every move. yes, i am rich. that's why i drink the champagne of beers. when you're not confident your company's data is secure, the possibility of a breach can quickly become the only thing you think about. that's where at&t can help. we monitor network traffic worldwide, so we can see things others can't. mitigating risks across your business. leaving you free to focus on what matters most. we're going to start watching a movie in the chevy malibu. ♪ (kids laughing) he's flying ok guys, pause the movie we're going to watch the rest in the toyota camry.

hit play again ehhh. what happened? you can't watch the movie. ugh... no network connection. who wants to go back in the chevy malibu? me! let's go! peace out! chevrolet. the first and only car company to bring built-in 4g lte wi-fi to cars, trucks and crossovers. this is cool. yeah.

it was mark fuhrman who allegedly found this spot on the outside of the bronco, is that correct? >> that's correct. >> at every opportunity -- >> did mark fuhrman have a flashlight when he was over at the bronco? >> -- o.j. simpson's team attacks lead detective mark fuhrman. >> did you have occasion to have a conversation with mark fuhrman? >> f. lee bailey says fuhrman isn't credible and may even be criminal. >> did you go back to the crime scene? >> no. >> did you do any more observations? >> bailey wants to know if he planted evidence at the scene. >> did you wipe a glove in the bronco, detective fuhrman? >> no. >> you did not? >> no. >> but some of the jurors like

david aldana believe fuhrman was up to no good. did you ever for a moment believe that the police wanted to frame o.j. simpson? >> frame him? i think that was in fuhrman's mind. >> but why would fuhrman want to frame o.j. simpson? simple, says the defense team. fuhrman is a racist. >> why did it become so much about race? >> it's amazing because o.j. simpson was as white a black person as you can imagine. he lived a white life, lived in a white neighborhood. >> married to a white woman. >> married to a white woman, working for a major car company. he was not part of the african-american community to speak of, but i think that many african-americans could identify with the police tampering with

evidence and planting evidence. >> were you familiar with the language attributed to you by ms. bell? >> and to hammer home that fuhrman is a racist, bailey repeatedly asks if he'd used a certain racial slur. >> and you say on your oath that you have not addressed any black person as a nigger or spoken about black people as niggers in the past ten years, detective fuhrman? >> that's what i'm saying, sir. >> so that anyone who comes to this court and quotes you as using that word in dealing with african-americans would be a liar, would they not, detective fuhrman? >> yes, they would. >> all of them? >> all of them. >> i was focused on mark fuhrman, his every twitch and eye movement and so forth. i had no notes. i only wanted one thing from him. denial. >> no. >> never? >> no. >> once he said, never in ten years have i ever used the "n" word, i knew we had him. >> when he was asked that

question by f. lee bailey about using the "n" word, everybody in the world knew he was being set up but him. what i didn't know was we also had him on tape. >> four months after bailey versus fuhrman, the defense gets an unlikely tip. screenwriter laura hart mckinney had interviewed mark fuhrman for a fictional script she was writing, and she still has the audio recording. despite a court order to keep the tape sealed, some of the startling contents are leaked. >> he's just a real racist scum. >> now what we're going to look at is fuhrman and what a scumbag he is. >> and to ron goldman's father, fred, the tapes are a devastating distraction. >> this is not now the fuhrman trial.

this is a trial about the man that murdered my son. >> judge lance ito has ruled that the jury will be able to hear portions of taped interviews with now retired lapd detective mark fuhrman. >> fuhrman says the "n" word dozens of times on the tapes, but judge ito decides the jury will only hear two. the excerpts are brief yet powerful and disturbing. >> they don't do anything. [ indiscernible ] >> after the excerpt ended of the fuhrman tapes, you broke down and cried at the moment. why? >> because i was worried at the ramifications because i watched them with this look of horror and disgust, you know, and watched them turn. i was like, that's it.

>> that's it. fuhrman had lied on the stand and had used an abhorrent racial slur. it throws a whole new light on defense assertions that he planted evidence, a charge he denies today but would not address at the time. >> detective fuhrman, did you plant or manufacture any evidence in this case? >> i assert my fifth amendment privilege. >> he refused to answer that question on the grounds it might tend to incriminate him. what more does anyone need? >> fuhrman is disgraced and dismissed from the case. coming up -- >> mr. simpson, would you please stand and face the jury. >> -- the dramatic verdict.

♪ we call ourselves the freedom hikers. the turtle cove fin club. the team jet runners. what we do is fun. but so is what comes next.

in fact what originally brought us together isn't the only thing that keeps us coming back. for friends who come together to reach for better we brew a superior tasting light beer with fewer carbs and calories. michelob ultra. the superior light beer.

nine long months, the trial of the century has been a national obsession. >> stop domestic violence. stop the code of silence. >> but a casualty of the constant hype is the freedom of 14 men and women. the jury has been sequestered since before the trial started. >> we were told it was going to be about three months. and then when the third month

came, and then it was four. and then five. and it kept going -- it just went on and on and on. >> but, says david aldana, there were bright spots, like several secret field trips. >> i actually got to fly the good year blimp. we went to a dodger game and i caught a foul ball. >> there was even a barbecue. >> one day that all my friends came to visit me. and they all brought cases of beer and we got plastered. >> back in court, o.j. simpson cites the jurors' fatigue as one reason he's not going to testify. >> i'm mindful of the stamina of this jury, a jury i have confidence a lot more it seems that ms. clark has of their integrity and that they will find as the record stands now that i did not, could not, and would not have committed this crime. >> four days later, the end is finally in sight. >> you have heard all the evidence.

>> no more witnesses. no more delays. just closing statements. first up, lead prosecutor, marcia clark. >> let me come back to mark fuhrman for a minute. just so it's clear, did he lie when he testified here in this courtroom saying that he did not use racial epithets in the last ten years? yes. is he a racist? yes. but the fact that mark fuhrman is a racist and lied about it on the witness stand does not mean that we haven't proven the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. >> how this this country -- >> then comes defense attorney barry scheck. >> there is no doubt fuhrman is a liar, and a genocidal racist. there's no doubt about that. but there's really no doubt either that they played with the sock, is there? and if that can happen, that's a

reasonable doubt for this case. period. end of sentence. end of case. >> finishing for the defense, johnnie cochran, with probably the most memorable quote of the trial. >> if it doesn't fit, you must acquit. >> but now, two decades later, we learn that wasn't cochran's phrase after all. >> he didn't invent that. that was done by the dean of the santa clara law school, jerry owemen, who was the most unknown person in our defense team. >> so 20 years later he is getting the proper credit. >> he's getting the credit. he deserves it. >> however, regardless of their source, the words, it doesn't fit, hammered cochran's message home. >> did not use that word -- >> and after nine months of testimony, hundreds of exhibits, more than 260 days isolated in a hotel, jurors are finally sent

to determine o.j. simpson's fate. >> we talked into that room while -- let's see. what do you want to do first? well, let's just see where everybody stands. we went around the room, guilty, not guilty. >> it's two votes guilty, ten not guilty. after reviewing testimony, they prepared to vote again. now you guys had been sequestered for nine months. you were tired. you hadn't seen your families, your kids, your friend. you wanted to get out of there. from the majority of you working hard to get those two to come on board? >> actually, no. huh-uh. it wasn't aring or yelling or anything like that. we just came to the -- took another vote, and the other two came on board, and they said not guilty. and it wasn't because they thought that he was innocent. it was because the prosecution just didn't prove it. >> and aldana, for one, also

believed the defense argument that the police framed o.j. how is it that with all this evidence against o.j. that he's set free? >> some of that stuff was planted. and when some of it was planted, what was and what wasn't? >> how did mark fuhrman play a part in your decision when it came down to the verdict? >> quite a bit. because everything that he had anything to do with pretty much got thrown out. i knew he was dirty. after a while, you get a sense of people. >> do you truly believe that the police, the detectives, the criminalologists were as incompetent as the defense had made them out to be? >> yeah. i think so. >> mr. simpson, would you please stand and face the jury.

>> deliberations take less than four hours. >> we the jury in the above entitled action find the defendant orenthal james simpson not guilty of the crime of murder in violation of penal code section 187-a. >> they read it and we heard that and then i just fell apart. >> fred and kim goldman were devastated. >> it was as if your insides got yanked out of you. everything that we knew to be certain, that he had killed ron and nicole, suddenly as if, wait a minute, how is that possible? >> and then our side was in shock. and then you hear the cheers and the jubilee going on on the other side. >> not guilty of -- [ cheers and applause ] >> that division became what was seen across the tvs for several

days. it was blacks cheering, and whites crying. >> when you think of the verdict now, what are your thoughts? >> i feel betrayed. i feel really let down. i feel confused. emotionally, i don't get why they chose to acquit him. logically, i get it. it was because it was a racial thing. it was, you know, you're the messenger. and i'm sad. i'm sad that we as a country couldn't rise above -- >> above it. >> and make a decision -- >> and realize that two people were murdered, slaughtered. and that you do the right thing at that moment. >> jury number 1 as to count 2 is this your verdict? >> all right! >> as for simpson, he returned to his home in brentwood, vowing to spend his time looking for the real killer. but first, he has a phone call

to make, to cnn. >> with us on the phone now is o.j. simpson. how are you? >> i'm doing fine. and, one, i want to thank you -- >> could you believe that he called in? >> no, could not believe it. so he calls in. we put him on actually. and johnnie cochran is there, and he thanks him for his help. >> most of all i want to thank that man, mr. johnnie cochran for believing from the beginning, listening and putting his heart and soul on the line to send me home. >> he said i'll come on soon, and i'll tell you the -- i'll give you the whole story, larry. >> do you believe o.j. simpson is innocent? 20 years later? >> i found him innocent, and i believe he's innocent. >> you still believe that 20 years later? >> yep. >> with all your heart? >> all my heart. there is nothing -- if i was

given that same evidence again, i would find him not guilty again. the following is a cnn special report. >> this is 911. what are you reporting. >> this is a.c. i have o.j. in the car. >> o.j. simpson, on the run. >> the los angeles police department right now is searching for mr. simpson. >> and on the edge. >> he's still alive, but he got a gun to his head. >> was that gun loaded? >> oh, yeah. it was a real gun, real bullets. >> and real drama. >> they are going through orange county. >> news helicopters hovering above as the bronco drives past stunned onlookers. >> people wer