Kris Jenner's Relationship to Nicole Brown Simpson and the OJ Simpson Trial
Considering that Kris Jenner sits at the center of many of Hollywood's juiciest dramas, it should surprise no one that she is linked to the O.J. Simpson trial of the '90s.
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The reality TV fixture was once married to Robert Kardashian, who served as part of Simpson's defense attorney "dream team" and will be played by David Schwimmer in FX's upcoming The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story. Which was emotionally complicated for Jenner, considering that Nicole Brown Simpson — O.J.'s ex-wife and one of two people he was charged with murdering — was one of her best friends.
"It was horrible," Jenner recently told People in an interview. "I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that she had been killed in such a horrific, violent way."
Jenner and Kardashian had four children — Kim, Khloé, Kourtney and Robert Jr. — before they divorced in 1991. During the marriage, Jenner came to view Simpson as "a big brother," she told People, because he was such close friends with her husband.
Indeed, it was Kardashian who found Simpson on June 17, 1994, the day Simpson was supposed to have turned himself over to the Los Angeles Police Department for the murder of his ex-wife and Ronald Goldman. According to CNN, Simpson was holed up in Kardashian's house — specifically, in Kim's room — and threatening to shoot himself, which Kardashian persuaded Simpson not to do.
"My little girl Kim sleeps here," Kardashian told Simpson. "I can't have my little girl in this bedroom, and every time I come in here, I'm going to see your body lying in this. You can't do that." He then toured his Simpson around the premises in search of a more suitable spot, distracting him in the hours leading up to the infamous white Bronco police chase that ended in arrest.
Kardashian also received criticism for his removal of a garment bag from Simpson's residence one day after the bodies of Goldman and Brown were found. Goldman's father later alleged that the suitcase contained critical evidence, which attorney-client privilege prevented Kardashian from having to reveal at trial.
That Kardashian took such pains to protect Simpson was difficult for Jenner to swallow. In a September LMN documentary, she said Brown had told her, on multiple occasions, "He's going to kill me and he's going to get away with it."
Which may be why the not guilty verdict left Jenner feeling "stunned" and "numb."
