Fuhrman Introduces Cliff-Hanger Evidence To Jury Shovel, Towel, Large Plastic Bag Allegedly Found In Simpson’s Bronco Shown To Jurors In Final Moments Of Testimony Friday
Why did O.J. Simpson have a long-handled shovel, a towel and a large, heavy-duty plastic bag in the back of his bloodstained car on the night his wife and her friend were murdered?
That is what the jurors in his murder trial were left to contemplate over the weekend as prosecutors ended Friday’s court session on a dramatic note by introducing the items into evidence during the last 15 minutes.
Police Detective Mark Fuhrman testified that he found the items and the blood on the car when he arrived at Simpson’s Brentwood mansion in the hours just after Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were killed.
Deputy District Attorney Marcia Clark offered no explanation as to why the items were being introduced, but she may have been laying groundwork for a suggestion on premeditation on the part of Simpson.
Clark, who guided Fuhrman through his testimony, asked him to display the shovel, the heavy-gauge 3-by-5-foot plastic bag and the towel before the jury.
The dramatic flourish ended a day during which Fuhrman methodically described his actions at the scene of the crime, the decision to drive to Simpson’s home and to scale the wall into the enclosed compound.
It was the second day on the stand for Fuhrman, the officer the defense contends is a racist who planted a bloody glove at Simpson’s home in order to frame the former football star. Clark sought to dispel a defense theory that it was Fuhrman’s idea to go to Simpson’s estate to notify him of his ex-wife’s death.
Furhman said another detective, Ron Phillips, asked him to guide investigators to Simpson’s Brentwood residence a few miles from the crime scene.
Fuhrman said that he led the officers to the home on Rockingham Drive, where the four tried for 35 minutes to rouse someone inside.
Fuhrman testified that he wandered away from the others and spotted what he believed to be blood on the door and frame of Simpson’s white Ford Bronco parked around the corner from the residence’s main gate.
After pointing out the apparent blood stains to the others, he said, the situation became critical.
“We had previously discussed our concerns with another possible victim, or a kidnap-type robbery, murder-suicide,” Fuhrman said. “We had no idea what we were confronted with at that point.”
Prosecutors and police have argued that they entered Simpson’s home that morning because they feared he or someone else might be injured inside.
When court adjourned Friday Fuhrman was about to testify about finding the glove. He was scheduled to return to the stand Monday.