Controversial Author Says O.J. Didn't Kill But Knows Who Did
MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- The OJ Simpson murder trial divided the country, but a private eye from North Texas has written a book which points the finger at another possible suspect.
William Dear lives on a large ranch near Hubbard, Texas. The quiet, rural retreat is probably the last place anyone would expect to find evidence that exonerates OJ Simpson, but Dear, a retired police officer and long-time private eye, has turned one of the out buildings on his ranch into his own crime lab. Inside, he claimed, is evidence that supports the case he makes in his new book, "OJ Simpson is Innocent and I Can Prove It."
He's spent 18-years reviewing the facts of the case. Just days after the murder, Dear flew to Los Angeles and walked the crime scene. That's when he began to suspect that police were after the wrong man.
"I realized based on what I had been told that OJ didn't do it. I believe that he had to have been at the crime scene, but I believe he was at the crime scene after the murders."
William Dear says he ruled out a number of suspects before focusing on Jason Simpson, OJ's son from his first marriage. His book paints a picture of a deeply disturbed young man.
"We have a young man who was 24 at the time, 5 foot 11. 235 pounds and when we checked his criminal record, he was on probation at the time of the murder for assaulting his former employer," Dear said.
Under a deal, Jason Simpson agreed to plead guilty to a reduced charge of disturbing the peace and was ordered to stay away from his former boss.
Dear dug through Jason Simpson's trash, where he said he found prescriptions used to treat seizures and possibly a rage disorder. He also claimed to have bought the contents of Jason Simpson's storage locker which were put up for auction after no one paid the bill. Dear said it contained diaries from 1993, personal photos of the Simpson family, a sport coat that looks like the one Jason wore on the day of the verdict, and at the bottom of the box a knife. He's spent about a million dollars pursuing the case, even going so far as to buy a 1993 jeep that he said Jason Simpson owned in 1994.
His book says on the night of the murders, Nicole Simpson had made plans to eat with friends at a restaurant where Jason worked, but changed her mind and went to another restaurant instead.
"I interviewed several people who were there that night and who told me Jason appeared to be very upset, and they attributed that to the fact that Nicole did not show up." Dear said and makes the case that Jason Simpson may have gone to Nicole's home to confront her although a girlfriend told police Simpson spent the night with her. Dear believes under that scenario Jason and Nicole could have gotten into a heated argument.
"She may have gotten in his face; he may have gotten in hers. She's wanting him to go because she's expecting Ron Goldman. Things escalated and as a result the knife came down on the top of her head." Dear said.
His book makes the case that the knife Dear obtained could have been the murder weapon. He cites forensic experts which told him that the bottom of the knife matches a cut on the top of Nicole's head.
The author also believes OJ Simpson went to the crime scene after the Nicole and Ron Goldman were both dead.
"I think he either got in touch with his dad by cell phone or called him or went directly to the house. His dad didn't totally believe him. When OJ came back," Dear goes on to speculate, "he bent down, took off one of the gloves, checked for her pulse and when he did the head went one way, the body went another, he drops the glove, looks up and sees Ron Goldman, panics and he's out of there."
The book contains a photo of Jason Simpson wearing a black knit hat that looks like one found by police at the crime scene.
"We know that a knit cap was found at the crime scene. We know it contained hair from an afro American and a dog. But they couldn't say it came from OJ Simpson," said Dear who wants a grand jury investigation and DNA testing on the hair. But he said no one involved with the case is willing to take a second look at that evidence or any or the many other arguments he makes in his 500 page book.
"I'll let the evidence speak for itself," said Dear responding to the suggestion that he could be wrong about Jason Simpson. "That's why you don't see me saying he did it. He's a major overlooked suspect."
Former O.J. Simpson pal Ron Shipp, a former LAPD police officer, believes his friend committed the murders and no one else. When he first heard about Dear's book, he was stunned.
"When I read a lot of the things in the book, there are so many things in there that are so untrue," said Shipp.
CBS4 News tried to contact Jason Simpson about Bill Dear's book but we could not reach him.
The District Attorney's office in Los Angeles said it has no comment, neither did O.J. Simpson's attorney.
O.J. Simpson remains in prison in Nevada serving his sentence for armed robbery and kidnapping but a new attorney for Simpson is focused on appealing his conviction, alleging the former football star was so badly represented by lawyers in his trial and previous appeals that he deserves a new trial.
