One would think that running back O.J. Simpson avoids going to Los Angeles because that’s where he killed two people 27 years ago. He avoids L.A. for a different, but related, reason.
“I have trouble with L.A.,” Simpson recently told Tim Graham of TheAthletic.com. “People may think this is self-serving, but I might be sitting next to whoever did it. I really don’t know who did this.”
The article, published as part of a countdown of the top 100 players in NFL history (Simpson came in at No. 41), gives Simpson plenty of room to say plenty of the tone-deaf things he has said for years now. Simpson also boasts that he currently has a pretty good life.
“How many Americans, even today, wouldn’t like to live my life?” Simpson said. “I don’t work. I play golf four or five days a week. I go out to dinner a couple of nights with friends. People want to buy me drinks. I’m always taking pictures with people. Ladies hug me.
“People truly care for me. You don’t know who truly cares about you until you’ve gone through some serious stuff, and I’ve gone through serious stuff. The media won’t say it, but that is my life. I’m living a good life now.”
Despite the civil judgment that followed his if-it-doesn’t-fit-you-must-acquittal, Simpson continues to profess his innocence, and to believe that the real killer is indeed out there.
“I figured eventually somebody would confess to something, you know?” Simpson said. “I had one suspect I told my lawyers to look at. I still think he might be involved, but I can’t talk about it.”
He probably can’t talk about it because he’d be immediately sued for defamation. Not that the person he defames would ever see any money; they’d have to get in line behind the families of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman, who are still trying to get the millions that Simpson owes.
Maybe he’s right. Maybe, someday, the real killer will confess to something. And maybe it will happen when the now-74-year-old Simpson is purging his soul as he prepares to meet his own end.