Stupid question...

[callahwj]

It might be dumb or inflamatory to ask this, but I searched and couldn't find the information.
What knife was used in the murders that OJ Simpson was tried for?

Thanks,

 

[Razoredj]

I don't think there's a definitive answer for that. I believe it's widely thought to have been a locking Wenger Swiss Army Knife, though during the trial Simpson's previous purchase of a Kissing Crane stiletto-style lockback caused people to theorize (for a time) that it was the murder weapon.

 

[Gollnick]

Given the huge amount of investigation and resources that went into this "case", it's quite surprising that the actual murder weapon was never definitely determined. It's just one of the many aspects of this "case" that really cast doubt on what actually happened, enough doubt to bring about a quick innocent verdict from the jury.

 

[Junglejim308]

Do ya'll remember the big envelope that was give to the court? Some ruling was used that it couldn't be opened, or whatever was in it couldn't be used in court. More or less it went into a court approved black hole.

I'm betting that it had the knife in it.

 

[Razoredj]

If I remember correctly, there was indeed speculation that the envelope contained a knife -- or possibly pieces of a broken knife -- that had been recovered from a trash receptacle at the airport, or some such business. (I could be remembering incorrectly.)

 

[Bods Oddkin]

I understand that the sealed envelope contained the Kissing Crane stiletto, and would be opened (the envelope, that is) at the request of O.J.'s attorneys only if the prosecution claimed that it was the murder weapon. Since it wasn't, the defense could then further humiliate the woefully unprepared and incompetent prosecutors. The coroner reported that the murder weapon had a serrated blade, and that a single pass at Nicole's neck stopped just short of decapitating her.

 

[Elvislives]

The prosecutors certainly didn't think this a stupid question, but they didn't get their answer either.

 

[Bugs3x]

Many of you read Outrage by Vincent Bugliosi? A very frustrating process, but also quite interesting. I agree with his theory that the trial was lost before it ever began, because Marcia Clark thought she knew more about women than the jury expert the county hired. If that expert's advice had been followed, the dumbest group of 12 people ever gathered in American history wouldn't have happened.

 

[cerulean]

Almost all of the documents involved with the O.J. case are on the internet somewhere. The knife stuff is somewhat interesting to read, if a little bit morbid. There's a lot of testimony on specific knife wounds and sharp force injuries in general.

I do remember hearing about the speculation that an SAK was the murder weapon. However, I think that in the case the experts couldn't agree on what type of knife caused the wounds. The testimony in the trial really showed how difficult it is to look at a set of wounds and try to get an idea of what kind of knife caused them.

 

[RGRAY]

Originally posted by Bods Oddkin
I understand that the sealed envelope contained the Kissing Crane stiletto,...

As I remember he bought a knife similar to this a few months earlier, but it was never determined that was the knife in the bag.

 

[R.W.Clark]

There was also some evidence given that showed wounds that were a series of equaly spaced deep scratches. The spacing of the wounds exactly matched the serrated saw of the SAKs. You know the cross cut saws. Another interesting factor is that in the first photos taken of OJs house, there is a box for a brand new SAK. It was sitting on top of a sink in one of the bathrooms. The box later disappeared and was never taken as evidence. However from the photo they could tell what model it was (I now have forgotten exactly what model it was but it was one of the larger multi blade types, maybe a camper or champion), and big surprise in would have contained a cross cut saw. And BTW OJ was unable to acount for the knife, even though it was purchased the day before the murders.

 

[Bods Oddkin]

To RGRay:

An old acquaintance of mine from my policeman days who now works for the district attorney in Los Angeles tells me the envelope contained one stag handled Kissing Crane stiletto. That's not to say that it is one that O.J. ever bought or owned himself. This information was never entered into any court documents or officially released by the D.A.'s office.

 

[Wirebender]

So somebody has claimed that you can murder TWO people with a SAK? And cut one of their heads almost off? That's a hell of a lot of sawing with a SAK.