Orenthal James “OJ” Simpson, the former NFL star and actor, who was acquitted of the 1994 murders of his ex-wife and her friend, has died at age 76 after battling cancer.
Simpson was a pro-abortion advocate who spoke out against the overturning of Roe v. Wade. He was also accused by his ex-wife Nicole Brown of pressuring her to abort their son, Justin.
The Simpson family released a statement on X (formerly known as Twitter) announcing his death. “On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer,” they wrote. “He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace.”
Simpson played football for the University of Southern California, where he won the Heisman Trophy; he then played for the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League (NFL), where he was selected numerous times for the Pro Bowl. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. After his football career ended, Simpson garnered more fame as an actor, appearing in commercials for Hertz and starring in all three films in the “Naked Gun” trilogy.
READ: IN MEMORY: After a cancer diagnosis while pregnant, she fought for her life and her child’s
His career quickly took a nosedive, however, after the murders of Brown and Ronald Goldman. Simpson and Brown married in 1985 and Brown repeatedly accused Simpson of abuse, with an alleged 62 separate incidents. They divorced in 1992. On June 4, 1994, Brown and Goldman were brutally murdered; the ensuing trial caused a media frenzy in what was dubbed the “trial of the century.” Though Simpson was acquitted in the criminal trial, he was found liable for Brown and Goldman’s deaths in a civil trial.
His alleged abuse appears to have included pressuring Brown to have an abortion. In 1996, Simpson said that Brown was pregnant four times, and that she had two abortions. It’s questionable, however, whether Brown actually chose freely to have the abortions; in her diary, she wrote that at least on one occasion, while pregnant with their son, Simpson called her a “fat pig,” ordered her to get an abortion, and drove her out of their house at gunpoint.
She recorded having undergone three total abortions in her diary.
As highlighted in a 2022 Rolling Stone article, Simpson reacted to the fall of Roe v. Wade with dismay.
My Tweet, My Opinion pic.twitter.com/xWcW1Q5DlG
— O.J. Simpson (@TheRealOJ32) June 26, 2022
“I thought it was a horrible decision,” he said of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, which led to the fall of Roe. “I think women should have the right to decide what happens with their bodies, especially in cases of rape and incest. I’m a little surprised that some of these alleged evangelical women who have been speaking out against, I guess abortion… look, if you believe in God, you should know, it’s gonna come down to whatever person and the Lord one day. So, let’s leave it up to Him when that time come. We’re all gonna have to face Him.”
Simpson served nine years in prison after being convicted in 2008 on 12 counts of armed robbery and kidnapping two sports memorabilia dealers at gunpoint in a Las Vegas hotel. He was not married at the time of his death, and is survived by his four children.
