Kato Kaelin is reflecting on the one reaction to OJ Simpson’s not guilty verdict he will never forget.
Kaelin, who appeared as one of the witnesses in the “terrifying” murder trial, recently spoke with PEOPLE about who he was with when the verdict was announced. It was none other than 20/20 Barbara Walters.
“It was just her and I sitting and she asked me, ‘What do you think of the decision?’” Kato Kaelin recalled. “I just said, ‘I think the jury made a mistake.’”
Speaking about his chat with Walters, Kaelin said he had seen her three or four times on shows or when he visited Los Angeles. She also recalled that Walters nodded in agreement when she made her comment.
“I think she agreed,” Kato Kaelin said. “I think she nodded and that was it.”
OJ Simpson was known as the main suspect in the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ron Goldman. The two were murdered on June 12, 1994. Simpson notably had a history of violence with Brown. After his infamous low-speed police chase through Los Angeles, Simpson was arrested and charged with the murders.
After almost nine months, the considered “trial of the century” ended with Simpson’s acquittal of the murders. However, his legal problems did not end there. He was sued by the Browns and Goldman. He was found responsible for the deaths of Nicole and Ron and ordered to pay both families $33.5 million.
Years later, Simpson was arrested for robbery and kidnapping. He was convicted and sentenced to 33 years in prison, but only served nine years before being paroled in 2017.
Simpson died on April 10 from prostate cancer. She was 76 years old.
Kato Kaelin reflects on meeting Nicole Brown and moving into a guest house before the murders
In addition to talking about the trial, Kaelin recalled his first meeting with OJ Simpson’s second wife, Nicole Brown, during a trip to Aspen with General Hospital star Grant Cramer.
“They all became instant friends,” Kato said. He had also become close to Brown while she was dating one of her friends.
Kaelin then reflected on when he first moved into Nicole’s condo guest house in Brentwood.
“At the time I lived in Hermosa Beach, California,” he said. “And I drove from Hermosa to some of Nicole’s parties and she had a guest house. And after I met Sydney and Justin, her kids, they loved me and I said, ‘Hey, can I live in a boarding house?’ And that’s how it all started and that’s how we became friends.”
Kaelin later said that he never saw a physical fight between OJ and Nicole, but he noted that the couple had their problems. “Well, I’m not a fan of yours, that’s all I’m saying,” he pointed out.
While he described the former athlete as charismatic and “faded by people,” Kato revealed that OJ and Nicole had their differences. “I thought he was a guilty person.”
Kato Kaelin said his acting career declined significantly after appearing as a witness at Simpson’s trial. He wonders what his career would have been like if he hadn’t testified against Simpson.
“I was auditioning,” he added. “Then the trial happened. Would he have been a star? I don’t know. I doubt it. But he maybe he would have been a working actor.”
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn