Infamous OJ Simpson chase 30 years ago overshadowed sports history in real time

LOS ANGELES (AZFamily) — 30 years ago Monday, the infamous O.J. Simpson white Bronco slow-speed chase captivated the country and kept people glued to their TV screens.

It was a true crime moment that dominated the news cycle all the way through the trial.

But this day in history has so much more to it. It marks one of the only times a crime event like that would overshadow the entire sports world, changing history forever.

“This helicopter from KCBS with a famous pilot on board gets basically the exclusive for about 30 mins while the world is, ‘Where is OJ?’ And suddenly OJ is in the back seat of the white Bronco,” said former Arizona’s Family reporter Mike Watkiss.

Before his stint in Phoenix, Watkiss was reporting in LA and on the scene the day Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman were found murdered at their Brentwood home.

“The crime tape had gone up and they had just discovered Ron and Nicole’s bodies. Getting there fairly early with my crew, you could feel that this one was just different. Bigger. Crazier,” Watkiss said.

Then, days later, there was a warrant out for O.J.’s arrest for the killings, and the historic freeway chase began.

The thing is, June 17, 1994, was a crazy day in and of itself.

That same day, the Rangers celebrated their Stanley Cup parade in New York, the U.S. hosted its first World Cup match, Seattle Mariners slugger Ken Griffey Jr. tied Babe Ruth’s record of 30 home runs before June 30, Golf legend Arnold Palmer teed off for his final U.S. Open Round and it was Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and the Houston Rockets.

A picture shows media there covering the game gathered around a small TV, watching the Simpson chase.

“All of that was just completely forgotten because of these two men in this white Bronco, in this moment in time, with one helicopter flying above it, and the world was galvanized,” said Watkiss.

Watkiss said it was a moment in time that changed the desire for a 24/7 news cycle. It was the rare event where only one thing seemed to matter, bringing everyone together.

“This nation, and most of the world, was looking at one event playing out in real time on the freeways of Los Angeles,” said Watkiss. “There are so few moments when we’re all watching the same thing at the same time.”

Later that night, Simpson was taken into custody, but in 1995, he was acquitted of the murders of Brown Simpson and Goldman.

Watkiss said he spent time with both the Goldman and Brown families in the months and years after the murders and said the fact they had to deal with the immense media attention on the case made it even more difficult.

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