White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre expressed condalances for the family of late football star and double-murder suspect O.J. Simpson on Thursday, not making mention of victims Nicole Brown Simpson or Ronald Goldman.
"Our thoughts are with his families [sic] during this difficult time — obviously with his family and loved ones," Jean-Pierre said at her regular press briefing.
"And I'll say this, I know that they have asked for some privacy. And so we're going to respect that. And I'll just leave it there."
Simpson died after a battle with prostate cancer, his family announced. He was 76.
"On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace," the family posted on Simpson's X account.
Simpson was acquitted in the stabbing deaths of Brown Simpson and Goldman in Los Angeles in perhaps the most sensational trial of the past 100 years. The murders were never solved and many are of the belief that, despite the acquittal, Simpson was guilty.
Either way, his life was forever changed as he went from sports hero to almost in hiding. He was later sentenced to 33 years in prison for a bungled hotel robbery in Las Vegas in 2007. He was also ordered to pay the families of the victims a total of more than $33 million in a civil suit for wrongful death and battery.
As for football, Simpson was undoubtedly one of the all-time great running backs — first at USC, then with the NFL's Buffalo Bills.
"He became USC's second Heisman Trophy winner in 1968, earning the most first-place votes (855) in the award's history," wrote the Associated Press. "That season, he established a then-NCAA single-season rushing record with 1,709 yards as he guided the Trojans to a Rose Bowl appearance, where they lost to top-ranked Ohio State despite Simpson's 171 yards and 80-yard TD."
Simpson, nicknamed "Juice," then became the No. 1 overall draft pick of the Bills in 1969.
"He was named MVP in 1973, when he became the first to rush for 2,000 yards in a season (doing it in 14 games) while averaging 141.3 yards per game, still an NFL record," the AP wrote.
He spent the final two seasons of his career with the San Francisco 49ers and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in 1985.
