Thank you. May it please the court, ladies and gentlemen of the jury. First of all, I could have caught you earlier. I could have caught you late. I'm catching you late today. I'm going to ask you to stick with me a little bit. First of all, as a reminder, my name is John Kelly. As a mentioned to you before, I represent the estate of Nicole Brown Simpson and working with me also is Paul Callan, you'll see working with me here during the course of the trial. Now today you've heard a lot about DNA, RFLP, PCR, DNA, EDTA and lot of other terminology. What I'm going to try to do now is put all that aside and get focused a little bit more on people in relationships. Both Petrocelli, Mr. Brewer have given you a detailed overview of both the quality and the quantity of the evidence you're going to hear in this case. With that aspect having been addressed already, what I want to do is just basically look at what the evidence will demonstrate in terms of the nature of the relationship between Nicole Brown Simpson and Mr. Simpson. Namely, the ebbs and flows, the good and the bad. The passion that was there, the rejection that was exhibited and the irreversible deterioration of the relationship with which ultimately led to murder. During this trial you're also going to hear a lot about Nicole. You're going to hear about her as a mother, you're going to hear about her as a daughter. As a sister, as a friend, and as a wife. People loved Nicole. Her family loved her, her friends loved her. She loved them. Men, women and children loved her. She loved them. They were black people that loved her, and black people that she loved as well as white. And so many people were deprived of the -- of a substantial and irreplacable part of their lives when she left us. And with regard to the evidence in this case, as I indicated to you, I'm not going to put you through revisiting the whole thing. But I think as you sit there, what I'm going to ask you to do is keep the simplest and clearest of all evidence in mind at all times. And I just want to mention a couple of things again. One of them is the Brown leather, extra large Aris leather, light glove that was found at Bundy on 12, 13, AM on June 13, 1994. The second thing that was seen there right as a first officer arrived on the scene were those bloody impressions and the bloody foot prints made by the size 12 Bruno Magli Lorenzo, style Silga soled shoes leaving the premise and leaving the murder scene. The third thing to keep in mind are those drops.
I'm going to ask the -- object to him asking the jury to keep anything in mind. This is opening statements.
The third thing I'd ask you to keep in mind are the drops of blood of Mr. Simpson leaving the scene. The final thing when Mr. Simpson returned from Chicago, he had cuts and gouges on his left hand. Keeping that in mind, what you will see put into evidence in this case is photographs of Mr. Simpson wearing those identical Brown Aris leather light extra large gloves as well as Nicole's receipt in purchasing them prior to the murders. You will also see put into evidence of this case, Mr. Simpson wearing those exact Bruno Magli Lorenzo style Silga soled shoes, photographs taken prior to these murders. These photographs that evidence is not planted, it is not tainted. It is not contaminated. You will see the gloves on Mr. Simpson's hands and the shoes on his feet before these murders occurred. And I will ask you to just keep that evidence in mind and consider it in the context of Mr. Simpson's unique strength and agility and his previously exhibited rage. You will also hear during the course of the trial that Mr. Simpson had the unique opportunity to commit these murders. He and Nicole were alternating every other weekend the care of their two children. And on Saturday and Sunday nights at Nicole's house, that is when her housekeeper would not be home on Sunday nights when these murders occurred on a Sunday night also. The second thing is, and you will hear this from Mr. Simpson's testimony himself that he had called Nicole's house, Bundy at approximately 9 p.m. on June 12, 1994. And he knew that Nicole was home at that time and that the children were getting ready to go to sleep. You've also heard that Mr. Simpson had the keys to her property and that he did not have to leave for Chicago until after 11 p.m. that night. You've heard all the other evidence also as if Mr. Simpson left a note pinned to these two bodies indicating that he committed these two murders.
As you heard before, we are not required to prove why Mr. Simpson committed these murders. No one can explain the most complex integrate workings of the human mind, especially one that snaps in that fashion. But I'm sure, as you people sit here with your collective human sensibility, you're going to ask that very question why these murders
occurred. And I want to address that. I will suggest to you that the evidence you will hear during the course of this case indicates that the answer lies in Mr. Simpson's own larger than life ego that was publicly pierced its core, not once but twice by Nicole Brown Simpson. In that -- in June, 1994, after she had left him for the second time, that it was his frustration, his growing loss of control and his exclusion from her life in that family that resulted in these murders. You're going to hear testimony of a complicated dynamic and passional relationship of extremes between these two human beings. And no one is going to question whether these two people loved each other for more than a decade. And when things were good between them, they were really good. But when things were bad between these people, they were very bad also. And like many good relationships, and despite the good qualities, it was fatally flawed. You are going to hear that Mr. Simpson was possessive of Nicole. He was controlling of Nicole. And he constantly required public adulation. On the contrary, Nicole Brown Simpson was devoted, loyal, a very private person and committed primarily to her family above all else. And because of these fundamental differences in their relationship, it slowly and irrevocably started to unravel. The passion died and the anger, the hostility and the resentment grew. What we'll do is we'll start with the look at the outer veneer of Mr. Simpson. The charismatic individual, the impeccable dress irresistible smile. But then the evidence and the testimony will take you beneath the polished veneer to a sometimes dark and a violent an frightening world of uncontrollable rage. It was a world that Nicole Brown Simpson lived in and tried to leave. And she was finally able to do so but in a time in a place and in a manner selected by Mr. Simpson. Not herself. What you are going to hear is evidence that is going to demonstrate that Mr. Simpson did have the propensity, the mind set and the requisite disposition to commit such a heinous act as these murders were, even with the children there in the house at that time. Mr. Simpson and Nicole met in Beverly Hills in 1977. She had just moved out of her paraphernalia's house down in Orange county and was working up in a restaurant in Beverly Hills. Nicole was just 18 years old. A teenager, a kid. She was a beautiful young girl and she was full of life. She was also down to earth. She was casual, she was fun, she loved being with her family, her sisters, and she had good friends. Likewise, Mr. Simpson was older. He was 30 years old and he was bigger than life. He was a super star on the football field and he was a darling of corporate America. Mr. Simpson was married at that time and had two children. But that marriage you'll hear, ended in separation and then divorce. But by all accounts, when Mr. Simpson first met Nicole, he was -- it was literally love at first sight. This was a passionate and immediate bonding of the two. You'll also hear there was a strong relationship, that it was kept private during Mr. Simpson's pending separation and divorce, but that when that divorce became final, Nicole moved into his residence at Rockingham. And it was there that Nicole lived with Mr. Simpson for approximately five years during this period of time, up through 1984, where they lived as a couple and lived without children. During this period of time, going up through 1984, you'll hear of confrontational incidents between them during this period of time, some more commonplace that you people might be able to identify with. You'll hear about Nicole repeatedly, after being in fights with Mr. Simpson, packing up her belongings, throwing them in the car, and going back home to mom and dad and her sisters. You're also going to hear some strange things. For example, you're going to hear all of Nicole's clothes being thrown out of an apartment window, scattered and strewn over parked cars and on the street, up in San Francisco. But in spite of these instances, these flare-ups, Nicole loved Mr. Simpson. She wanted to marry him; she wanted to have children. But at that time, Mr. Simpson did not want to get in another legally binding relationship, and insisted on a prenuptial agreement before they could ever get married. On the other hand, Nicole Brown Simpson wanted children, but she didn't want them unless she was married. These differences were ironed out; the problems were solved, and these two were married on February 2, 1985. Now, this marriage between Nicole Brown Simpson and Mr. Simpson represented everything that could be good in our society. You had two families, one black, one white, accepting each other. Mr. Simpson was a super celebrity, and Nicole was as sweet an as beautiful as they come. They were constantly surrounded by their friends, whether it was at Rockingham or whether they were on vacations. And within four years, they had two beautiful children, Sydney and Justin, who were growing up in a color-blind world. Just prior to them getting married and after they were married, the complexion of the relationship changed. And when they did get married, and Nicole was pregnant, after she had children, Mr. Simpson's controlling personality took over. You are then going to hear of incidents that exhibited unacceptable behavior for a husband, for a father, for a man. You're going to hear, for example, of the time Mr. Simpson broke the windshield of Nicole's car with a baseball bat. You're also going to hear on several other occasions where Mr. Simpson was demeaning and abusive to Nicole in the presence of others. And you have to ask yourself, Mr. Simpson has the temerity and the gall and the lack of self-control to act this way in public.
We need not speculate as to what may have gone on in private between Nicole Brown Simpson and Mr. Simpson, because on the early morning hours of New Year's Day, 1989, Nicole Brown Simpson opened the iron gates to the entrance of Rockingham and gave us a look inside. And this is what the evidence will show and the testimony will show as to what happened on that particular day: At approximately 3:30 a.m. on that morning, police officer Edwards responded to a 911 emergency radio call at 310 North Rockingham, which was the Simpson estate. As police officer Edwards pulled up to the gate, he exited the car and pushed the electric call-box button by the front gate. First, the housekeeper answered. A female said, "Everything is fine; the police are not needed." But Edwards told her that he needed to speak to the woman that made the 911 call and he was not leaving until he did. Officer Edwards' presence of mind to stay there then may have saved Nicole's life that night.
At the same time that this was going on, Nicole came running out of some bushes near the house, wearing only a bra and some sweat-type pants, with some mud down the right leg. Nicole then ran across the driveway to the post containing the gate release button. She collapsed on the post, pushing the button several times. All the time while she was doing this, she was yelling, "He's going to kill me. He's going to kill me." And as she said this, the gate opened, and Nicole ran out to police officer Edwards. Edwards asked Nicole who was going to kill her, and she replied, O.J. Police officer Edwards, not knowing that he was at the home of Orenthal James Simpson, asked Nicole if she meant O.J. Simpson, the football player, and she said yes. Edwards will testify that at that time when Nicole ran out to him and was yelling, he's going to kill me, he's going to kill me. He will testify that Nicole's face was badly beaten, with a cut lip, a swollen, black and left eye and cheek, and that Nicole had a hand imprint on her neck. Edwards asked Nicole what had happened to her, and she replied that Mr. Simpson had slapped and kicked her. Nicole was shaking. Police officer Edwards gives her his uniform jacket and puts her in the patrol car. As she was interviewed by Edwards' partner, she said, "You never do anything about him; you just talk to him and then you leave." She indicated to the police officers that she wanted him arrested; she wanted Mr. Simpson arrested, and she wanted him out of there so she could get back to her kids. At this time, while Nicole was in the car, Mr. Simpson came out to the gate just inside the yard and started yelling. Even with the police there and with the two small children upstairs in this house, Mr. Simpson could not control his rage. He screamed at Nicole and he screamed at police officer Edwards. After, when Simpson stopped yelling, Edwards told Mr. Simpson that Nicole wanted to press charges for his beating her. Mr. Simpson lost his temper again and started yelling that he did not beat her up, that he simply pushed her out of the bedroom, nothing more. Edwards indicated that he could clearly see the evidence of a beating on Nicole's face and that he was going to have to arrest Mr. Simpson. And Mr. Simpson's response to that was, the police have been out here before, and now you're going arrest me for this? This is a family matter. Why do you want to make a big deal out of it? We can handle it ourselves. Because Mr. Simpson was only wearing a robe, police officer Edwards gave him the courtesy of allowing him to go back inside the house by himself and change before he's going to be arrested and taken down to the station. While this was going on, the housekeeper came out to the car, tried to
pull Nicole out of the car and told Nicole, don't do this. Come back inside now. Police officer Edwards told the housekeeper she was interfering with an investigation and to get out of there. The housekeeper went back inside the house. Perhaps three minutes after the housekeeper then left, police officer Edwards saw Mr. Simpson, now dressed, peek over the wall. Mr. Simpson again complained that Edwards was the only one to make a big deal out of something like this. Edwards once again told Mr. Simpson that, based on Nicole's visible injuries, he was going to have to arrest him. When Edwards' supervisor then arrived on the scene, Mr. Simpson disappeared. As Edwards explained the situation to his supervisor, he saw Mr. Simpson get in his Bentley, go out the other gate, and take off at 35 to 45 miles an hour. He fled the scene at this time after this incident. The police officers searched for a period of time for Mr. Simpson, but they could not find him. Nicole declined to go downtown and press charges at that time, or receive medical treatment or have photographs taken downtown. All she wanted to do was get back to her kids. What Edwards did was get her to a local police station and take three photographs of her, her physical appearance reflecting the way she appeared when he dove up that morning. And you'll see those three photographs. Nicole was returned home, and a second call came in to the police again, another 911 call from Nicole, saying that Simpson had returned to the residence again. The police went out there again. They waited up the street, hoping to catch Mr. Simpson. After a period of time when they didn't see anybody, they checked the house again. Nicole told them that he had fled a second time. I'd like to talk about some of the implications of this. First of all, it's quite clear from the evidence --
The evidence will reflect, first of all, and the testimony will reflect -- and you've heard already that the police officers on the scene tolerated Mr. Simpson's screaming at them and screaming at others in the situation.
I understand that, Your Honor. I'm indicating what the testimony will be with regard to this incident.
Mr. Baker, I heard you the first time. Restrict your statements to an opening statement, Counsel.
Yes, Your Honor. What you will hear is the LAPD didn't push Nicole to press charges at this time; they didn't publicize the occurrence, and they did nothing to get Mr. Simpson at that time. Likewise, did Mr. Simpson respond in kind to the courtesies and the deference shown him? Absolutely not. He took off in his car. And I think what you have to keep in your minds on top of is Nicole hiding in the bushes, half naked.
After the police left the second time, you'll hear how Nicole was left alone to care for Sydney and Justin. You will hear that what Mr. Simpson did this day, on New Year's Day, was not to return to the house. What he did was, he went to the Rose Bowl to watch a football game with his friends. And in doing that, you will hear that although Mr. Simpson may not have been concerned about Nicole, Mr. Simpson's best friend was. And you will hear testimony to this effect. It was A. C. Cowlings who kept an eye on Nicole that day, who worried about her, who checked on her well-being. And it was A. C. Cowlings who, after watching Nicole's face swell and darken with bruises, took her to the emergency room that New Year's Day evening, for fear she had a concussion. And Mr. Cowlings, like Mr. Simpson, was a professional football player. And you will hear from his own testimony that it was his own familiarity with the injuries, that of bruises to the head, that can cause -- that gave rise to his concern for Nicole. This was no pushing or shoving incident; this was a beating. This incident in 1989 was the beginning of the end for this relationship. There is no doubt that the fear and humiliation that Nicole suffered that day was permanently impressed in her mind. You'll see letters from Nicole to in Simpson in 1990 and 1991 expressing exactly that. And there's no indication that Mr. Simpson ever struck Nicole again, physically struck her again after this date, until June of 1994. But you'll also see evidence that after this incident in '89, there was a written agreement entered into that Mr. Simpson's antenuptial agreement would be voided if he ever struck her again. Your Honor, is this a good time.
He's going to kill me. He's going to kill me.
You never do anything about him; you just talk to him and then you leave.
This is a family matter. Why do you want to make a big deal out of it? We can handle it ourselves.
the answer lies in Mr. Simpson's own larger than life ego that was publicly pierced its core, not once but twice by Nicole Brown Simpson
as if Mr. Simpson left a note pinned to these two bodies indicating that he committed these two murders