On Jan. 24, 1995 former NFL football player Orenthal James Simpson, better known as O.J. Simpson, was on trial for murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman. On Oct. 3, 1995, Simpson was acquitted. This case was described as the most publicized criminal trial in history.

Although the crime took place over 20 years ago, it recently resurfaced in a new documentary on the Discovery Channel, “Is O.J. Innocent? The Missing Evidence.” Let’s break the case down.

Blood Samples  

According to USA Today, there’s a lot of evidence against O.J., ranging from eyewitnesses to DNA samples.

At the scene of the crime were bloody shoe prints leading away from Brown’s and Goldman’s bodies, as well as along the gate at the back of the house. Both blood samples were found to have Simpson’s genetic markers. Simpson also had a cut on his left middle finger when the police interviewed him.

Simpson’s defense responded with a claim that the samples were “sloppily collected and poorly handled,” making the DNA useless. They also said the cut on O.J.’s finger was only a minor cut, not large enough to drip as much blood found at the scene of the crime.

Shoe Prints

A size 12 Bruno Magli shoe made a bloody footprint at the scene of the crime. This shoe is a rare, expensive type of shoe. Simpson wore a size 12 shoe. The defense argued that the rarity of the shoes was illegitimate and that many people have bought this type of shoe. Also, the actual shoes were ever recovered, and there was no evidence Simpson bought this type of shoe.

Hair Found at the Crime Scene

At the crime scene, a dark knit cap was found, and hair similar to Simpson’s was found on the cap, including fibers from the floor of his car. Eyewitnesses the night of the crime claim to have seen Simpson wearing a dark sweat suit, possibly tying him to the dark blue fibers found on Goldman’s body.

Defense said the only connection to Simpson and the hair found was the fact that the color was black, which was the hair color of 10 percent of L.A.’s population then. The dark blue sweat suit witnesses claimed to have seen Simpson in was never located. Another point brought up was that a detective laid a blanket over Brown’s body from Simpson’s home, which could have possibly spread evidence.

While there is much more evidence, including blood in Simpson’s Bronco, the timeline of events the night of the murders, and Simpson’s past violence with Brown, none of it was enough to prove Simpson guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

This case was one that left many upset and looking for answers, both then and now.