Showdowns in criminal law have made history down through the ages. The general public chooses sides and the ultimate verdict is continually debated.
Here are 6 famous criminal cases that have lived on in the history books.
The O.J. Simpson trial
Any discussion of epic criminal cases really has to begin here.
It starts with the accused being a famous star. O.J. Simpson gained fame as one of the best running backs to ever play professional football. He built on that fame with a subsequent career in broadcasting and acting.
Then there’s the nature of the crime and arrest. The victims were Simpson’s ex-wife Nicole and her new boyfriend, Ronald Goldman. As investigators became convinced of Simpson’s guilt, he decided to flee. The result was an incredible television moment, wherein helicopter cameras moved over O.J.’s white Bronco as he drove down a Los Angeles freeway. TV networks cut in on their programming and millions of viewers watched as a swarm of police cars made the arrest.
Then there’s the lawyers. Johnnie Cochrane, a high-profile defense lawyer, became a legal legend after his representation of Simpson. Cochrane wasn’t alone; O.J’s defense attorneys were called “The Dream Team” and also included Alan Dershowitz and Robert Shapiro.
Then there’s the trial itself, which followed the opposite pattern of the investigation. In the investigation, public opinion had largely assumed Simpson was innocent until some key pieces of evidence turned the tide against him. In the trial, public opinion generally thought he would be convicted—until some key pieces of evidence, most famously including a pair of gloves that didn’t quite fit, raised doubts. Enough doubts were raised that the jury decided to acquit.
Then there’s the aftermath. Even allowing the doubts that had been raised, Simpson still remained guilty in the eyes of public opinion. In a subsequent wrongful death lawsuit filed by the Goldman family, facing the lower standard of evidence that comes in civil court, the prosecution was able to win and force Simpson to pay over $33 million to the victims’ families.
Then there’s the book. Simpson collaborated on a work called If I Did It, in which he speculated on how, even though he was innocent, he would have committed the murders if he were so inclined.
Finally, there was the endgame—sort of. Simpson was later convicted on robbery and weapons charges in 2008. He was sentenced to 33 years in prison. Simpson served nearly a third of that term before being released on parole.
All of which adds up to make the case that the O.J. Simpson trial is the most famous criminal trial in the history of the United States—arguably ever. However, it’s not alone in the pantheon of famous cases.
Others include:
- Charles Manson: A cult leader in California in the late 1960s, Manson successfully commanded his followers to carry out murders on his behalf. The victims included actress Sharon Tate. The Manson trial drew national attention and ended with his being sentenced to death in 1971. The state of California subsequently abolished the death penalty, but Manson still remained in prison until his passing in 2017.
- Sacco & Vanzetti: Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were accused of killing 2 men during a robbery in Massachusetts in 1920. Their association with radical elements gave the trial a strong political element. They were found guilty and sentenced to death. Even though another man later confessed to the crime, subsequent investigations didn’t persuade the governor to grant clemency. Sacco and Vanzetti were executed in 1927 with violent protests as the result.
- The Black Sox Scandal: The trial’s connection to the sports world drew public interest. Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of collaborating with gamblers to throw the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. A jury found the 8 players not guilty, but baseball’s leadership was unimpressed. All 8 men were banned from further participation in the sport. The saga was covered in the John Cusack film, Eight Men Out. The fate of the most famous player, “Shoeless Joe” Jackson, is a key theme in the Kevin Costner classic, Field of Dreams.
- Lizzie Borden: In 1892, the parents of Lizzie Borden were murdered with an axe. Public opinion had no doubt of Lizzie’s guilt, as epitomized in the nursery rhyme “Lizzie Borden took an axe. And gave her mother forty whacks. And when she saw what she had done. She gave her father forty-one.” Of course, nursery rhymes don’t constitute evidence and public opinion doesn’t determine guilt. A jury ruled the only evidence against Lizzie was circumstantial and acquitted her of the crime.
- Ted Bundy: Several things stood out to make the Ted Bundy case. Let’s start with the nature of the crime—Bundy was accused of being a brutal serial killer. He also chose to represent himself at trial. As he questioned his girlfriend on the witness stand, he proposed marriage. It all made for dramatic fare in the first trial to be nationally televised. What it did not do was allow Bundy to escape justice—he was eventually convicted and then executed in 1989.