One of the attorneys on O.J. Simpsons‘ defense team from his double murder trial weighed in on the televised interview that aired over the weekend, where Simpson gave a hypothetical description of how he would have committed the crimes if he had been guilty. Shawn Holley, who worked for Johnnie Cochran at the time, said she didn’t think Simpson’s interview was proof that he was guilty, but she did have some strong words about it.
Holley told TMZ that Simpson is a lot of things, but “one of the things that he is not, is stupid.” Therefore, she said, he wasn’t going to give a true confession, and that he made sure to say that everything was hypothetical. What he did was assume the character and persona of the murder, she said, after being told to do so.
“And that’s disturbing,” she said, saying that it’s uncomfortable for someone to go along with being told to act as if they had killed their spouse.
“I would say to you that any person asked to do that in a situation where they had strong feelings for the victim, I just feel that it would have the effect that it did on the viewer, which is extremely disturbing. Extremely disturbing. And it was disturbing to me to watch it.”
As far as it coming off as a true confession, Holley said, “The setup is such that that’s what they want us to think.”
Despite her take on the nature of the televised interview, however, that’s not necessarily a reflection on Holley’s belief regarding Simpson’s innocence or guilt. She was unwilling to definitively say if she believes O.J. committed the murders, but she did have some telling words.
“At the time that we represented him we believed that he did not do this. A lot of years have gone by since then. A lot more evidence has come out since then.”
[Image via TMZ screengrab]