American Justice System

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In modern America, there is a considerable divide in the wealth and privilege of the highest echelon of citizens and the rest of society. The upper class lives ostentatiously, flaunting their riches with gilded jewelry and expensive luxury cars amongst other things. Meanwhile, the middle class lives modestly, with inexpensive houses and loans and a low amount of luxuries, and the poorest citizens live without homes or a way to pay for the essentials of life. Furthermore, the middle and lower classes must face the American justice system fairly and with the most accurate consequence; however, the rich do not have to abide by the law as they can bypass it with their wealth. Shakespeare’s character King Lear phrases this privilege excellently …show more content…
The case for which O.J. Simpson was charged with two murder charges is a prime example of Lear’s position. Simpson hired perhaps one of the best defense lawyer teams ever assembled (still, the team is known as the “Dream Team”) for millions of dollars, a price tag that not everyone can afford, for his trial. Despite the fact that there was a considerable amount of DNA evidence and anecdotal evidence incriminating him for the crimes, his lawyers were able to successfully convince the jury that the evidence was largely perjury and was reduced to reasonable doubt. Many people not involved in the trial thought for sure that Simpson would be convicted and receive punishment, but instead the defensive team was able to attack and reduce most of the evidence to either falsified evidence created by the police or simply speculation, invalidating most of the evidence and forcing the jurors to vote “not guilty”; most didn't vote necessarily because they actually believed he was innocent but rather, because it was the lawfully correct thing to do. Thus, after an 11-month trial that would not have lasted as long if Simpson’s defense team was comprised of cheaper but quite ineffective lawyers, Simpson was acquitted of his murder charges. Although the truth about the murders will never be clear, what is clear is that Simpson’s wealth allowed him to evade the overwhelming amount of evidence mounted against him and prove Lear’s point that the rich can “plate sin with gold” and cause the “strong lance of justice” to
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