Mark Fuhrman, detective in O.J. Simpson trial, dies at 74

Former LAPD Detective Mark Fuhrman, who gained infamy when his past racist comments came to light during Hall of Fame football star O.J Simpson’s murder trial, has died. He was 74.

Lynnette Acebedo, chief deputy coroner for Idaho’s Kootenai County, confirmed Furhman’s death but said no further information would be forthcoming from the office. TMZ reported that Fuhrman died on May 12 from an aggressive form of throat cancer.

Fuhrman’s testimony in Simpson's 1995 trial transformed what was already a sensational murder case into one nearly as much about racial injustice and law enforcement as the practices and culture of the Los Angeles Police Department came into question.

'The trial of the century'

Simpson, a former NFL and college football star, went on trial in January 1995 for the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, 35, and her friend, Ronald Lyle Goldman, 26. Days after the pair’s bloodied bodies were discovered just after midnight on June 12, 1994, spectators watching Game 5 of the NBA Finals were interrupted by live footage of Simpson in a white Ford Bronco leading police on a low-speed chase along 60 miles of L.A. freeways and city streets.

The so-called “trial of the century” became a wellspring of cultural references and L.A. glam, with running commentary focused on prosecutor Marcia Clark’s hairstyle. It also notoriously featured Simpson apparently struggling to put on the bloody leather gloves prosecutors said implicated him in the murders, which led to defense attorney Johnnie Cochran’s famous closing-argument riff: "If it doesn't fit, you must acquit."

Accusations had arisen during the proceedings that Furhman, a former Los Angeles Police Department detective, had planted or manufactured evidence. Tape recordings played during the case also showed Fuhrman had used a racial epithet despite his testimony claiming to never have done so.

Ultimately, on Oct. 3, 1995, the jury found Simpson not guilty on all charges, with the revelations about Furhman considered key to the outcome. The controversial verdict sparked mixed feelings across the country and raised skepticism regarding minority treatment by law enforcement.

The aftermath

In 1977, a civil jury found Simpson liable for the murders and ordered him to pay $33.5 million to the families of his former wife and Goldman.

Furhman, who went on to serve as a forensic and crime scene expert for Fox News, worked as an analyst for the network during coverage of Simpson’s parole hearing in 2017, after Simpson had served nine years of a possible 33-year sentence at Nevada’s Lovelock Correctional Center for armed robbery and kidnapping.

Simpson died in April 2024 at age 76.

Fuhrman, who had been living in Idaho, also worked as a radio host and authored several books about crime.

Contributing: Kevin Spain, USA Today; Brad Wadlow, USA Today Network-New Jersey