Saturday 5 March 2016

Marcia Clark Reacts to Knife Reportedly Found at O.J. Simpson’s Former Estate

“We have to find out what this means—what the truth of this is.”
BY
JULIE MILLER

On Friday, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that it was investigating a knife reportedly found at the Brentwood property where O.J. Simpson was living when his ex-wife Nicole Simpson Brown and her friend Ron Goldman were murdered in 1994. The knife was allegedly discovered in 1998 by a construction worker helping to raze Simpson’s mansion, and handed over to a traffic cop who incredibly did not report the weapon to authorities. Hours after the L.A.P.D.’s press conference confirming the existence of the knife, Marcia Clark, the lead prosecutor during the murder trial, weighed in on the late-breaking twist and what it could mean over two decades after Simpson was acquitted.

“I think it’s a remarkable development if it does turn out to be connected to the murders of Ron [Goldman] and Nicole [Simpson Brown],” Clark cautiously told Entertainment Tonight. “It would be interesting if there was some evidence on that knife that pointed to who might have helped to bury it, if indeed someone else did.”

As for what Clark thinks of the shock development, the retired prosecutor revealed that she is just as confounded as the rest of America.

“I really don’t know what to think of it,” Clark said. “I can’t believe someone gave a police officer what appears to be, could be, important evidence in a case—even if it is closed—and takes it home. I don’t know what to say about that except I can’t believe it, but it’s apparently what happened.”

Clark was careful to point out, however, that authorities are still unsure of the knife's authenticity.

“It might be a hoax, it might be somebody who planted it and then just pretended to find it and gave it to the off-duty police officer, you don’t know,” Clark explained. “But, of course, I’m glad the L.A.P.D. is taking it seriously and subjecting it to testing so we can find out.”

Even though Clark confirmed that “the likelihood of any prosecution stemming from this is very, very slim” due to double jeopardy, she appeared eager for authorities to get to the bottom of the development.

“We have to find out what this means—what the truth of this is,” Clark said.

During a news conference on Friday reported by the L.A. Times, the L.A.P.D.’s Captain Andy Neimansaid that authorities only learned of the knife's existence last month, 18 years after it was reportedly given to a traffic cop who was working on a movie set at the time.

Attorney Carl Douglas, who was a part of Simpson’s defense team, called the story “ridiculous” on Friday, adding, “It's amazing how the world cannot move on from this case! And it, and the media, is apparently still fascinated by everything O.J. Simpson.”

Similar detractors include Mike Weber, the owner of the construction company that demolished Simpson’s home. When the L.A. Times tracked him down on Friday, the 70-year-old said, “I think it’s a joke. No one on my crew found anything. . .I give this story no credibility.”

Late Friday afternoon, NBC News reported that “the utility-style knife” that was discovered was “inconsistent with the 1994 murders of the former football star's wife and her friend,” according to multiple law enforcement sources who spoke to the outlet.

Coincidentally, the Simpson murder trial is currently playing out on FX’s The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.

Meanwhile, Simpson is presently serving a prison sentence in Nevada for kidnapping, robbery, burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, and other charges for trying to reclaim sports memorabilia in a hotel-casino that he said belonged to him.
THE DEFENSE
Johnnie Cochran

THEN: Johnnie Cochran was the Dream Team’s ultimate showman, a razor-sharp defense attorney decked out in Technicolor suits. His most triumphant moment came during closing arguments, when Cochran delivered the now immortal line: “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”

NOW: Cochran’s star power continued to grow after the trial. He scored numerous TV appearances and even had his own show, Cochran & Grace, co-hosted by everyone’s favorite lawyer turned talking head, Nancy Grace. Cochran died in 2005 from an inoperable brain tumor. His funeral was attended by family, friends, and former clients, including O.J. Simpson, Michael Jackson, and Sean Combs.

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