Thanks to a retirement and the cleaning out of an office, I now have a DVD of the reading of the ’95 Simpson-trial verdict and post-verdict news conference that shows a view I hadn’t seen before — from a camera in the courtroom ceiling.
Since I was there that day nearly 20 years ago and managed the news conference, which was with the defense lawyers and Simpson family, the only surprise was how much I had forgotten. One thing I didn’t remember was what I wore that day, which belies the adage that people often remember what they were wearing during significant events. For instance, I do remember what I had on the day JFK was shot, the day the Challenger Space Shuttle exploded, and my first view of the planes crashing into the Twin Towers on 9/11. So why not the day of the Simpson verdict?
Maybe I was just too busy. My job was to set up and conduct the news conference. Thank goodness I had gained some experience with other high profile cases, it was a pretty tightly run press conference. I had forgotten much of that, too. Watching the DVD reminded my of how orderly and professional the members of the media were during that post-verdict event. No shouting out questions or hogging the floor. Instead, they followed my request and direction and waited their turns. And each who wanted to ask a question, got to do so. Great job!
Anatomy of a Trial blog 