RECAP: The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story — O.J. Refuses to Let Johnnie Cochran Join Team [Episode 3]

The dream team is coming to town! During this third installment of “The People vs. O.J. Simpson” we learn how the dream team came to be, who was in, and who wasn’t wanted. In a surprise twist, we learn that O.J. originally didn’t want Johnnie Cochran. They man who coined the phrase, “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”

Every plot line needs a sub-plot. Enter, lots of scenes portraying the Kardashian as kids. Were Robert Kardashian’s kids more important than O.J.’s kids? No. And when I watch it, I keep thinking, that little girl is going to make a sex tape and become very famous one day. But when dad takes the kids to a diner, they receive their first taste of royal treatment. The kid’s say their mother, Chris (who just married Olympian Bruce ‘I am Cate” Jenner) thinks O.J. did it. Their father says he didn’t do it. Robert tells the kids that being a Kardashian means being a good friend and loyal, and that’s way more important than being famous – fame is fleeting and love is not. Creative license? Probably.

Becoming disgusted by the tabloid coverage, Shapiro picks up the phone and calls F. Lee Baily. He was Sam Shepherd’s attorney back in the day. The original trial of the century about a man wrongfully convicted of murdering his wife. He stayed in jail for 12 years before being acquitted with Lee’s help. A television series and movies were made called “The Fugitive” based on his story of searching for the one armed man. Welcome aboard Lee, though Shapiro unloads on him.

Shapiro sees an interview with “the most famous lawyer in the country,” Alan Dershowitz, who was saying he’s wasn’t impressed with Shapiro’s skills as a litigator. That’s when Lee began earning his money. He said, “Look, there’s only one way to shut up Dershowitz. Hire him.”

The minute Alan walked into the room, he and Shapiro clashed. But Alan was the one who introduced Barry Sheck to the team. This was the DNA guy. And Barry had a plan.

“I’m not going to contest the DNA matches,” Barry explained. “I’m going to keep them out of court entirely.”

This shut Shapiro up. Barry explained he would cast doubt on the shoddy job police did at the scene of the crime and get the jury to question “every single molecule of evidence.”

During this time, Time and Newsweek magazines run the same mug shot of O.J., on their covers, however, Time darkened their photo of O.J. The media ran with this, concerning the prosecutor’s office that a repeat of outrage triggered by the Rodney King beatings, could happen again.

A “gift” is given to the dream team via knowledge that the prosecution’s star investigator who collected most of the evidence at the scene, Mark Fuhrman, has “file after file” documenting his violent thoughts toward the black community.

To keep the momentum going, Shapiro agrees to an interview with a reporter from The New Yorker, planting the seed that this case is about race, and his client is being framed. And it worked. Soon, across the nation, the court of public opinion on O.J.’s guilt or innocence is racially divided.

O.J. is not interested in the dream team and the new strategy because:

“I’m not black!” he stresses. “I’m O.J.!”

The New Yorker reporter calls Christopher Darden to learn more about Mark Fuhrman. Darden gives Marcia the 411 on what’s going on in the court of public opinion. Then, someone leaked the 911 tapes from Nicole about O.J. beating her. After O.J. hears this, he agrees to the dream team addition of Cochran.

Will Johnnie Cochran join the team? Not until he looks O.J. in the eyes and believes he didn’t kill his wife. When O.J. breaks down and cries, Johnny joins the dream team.

 

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