Nineteen years ago, on June 17, 1994, O.J. Simpson captivated the American public by leading the LAPD in an hour-long police chase around Los Angeles.
Simpson had been charged with the double-murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, but police gave Simpson the chance to turn himself in.
After failing to meet the LAPD's timeline, the police issued an all-points bulletin. Recognizing he was probably trying to flee after a tip to police from a motorist, law enforcement began tracing his cell phone and eventually tracked him down at 6:45 p.m. Former football player Al Cowlings was driving the white Ford Bronco while he told police that Simpson was in the backseat threatening to kill himself.
A band of police tailed Cowlings and Simpson back to Simpson's home in Brentwood around 8:00 p.m. where Simpson would eventually surrender.
All three major networks abandoned what they were airing to follow the pursuit, including NBC, which cut away from Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the Rockets and Knicks. The big winner of the chase was Domino's Pizza, which reported the chain sold a record number of pizzas during the chase. The loser? Ford, for the worst product placement the car company could probably ever hope for.
After a lengthy trial, Simpson was acquitted of the double-murder charges that prompted this highly-watched chase.
In 2007, Simpson would later find himself in trouble again. He was arrested and later convicted on charges of armed robbery and kidnapping for a Las Vegas hotel-room raid when he and several other men attempted to retrieve memorabilia Simpson claimed had been stolen from him.
Simpson, now 65, is currently serving 9 to 33 years in a Nevada prison but has appealed for a new trial.
