O.J. Simpson is no stranger to controversy. And that’s something of an understatement.
But that might be what makes him so uniquely qualified to weigh in on the recent prison sentence given to former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III, who pled guilty to charges of DUI and vehicular manslaughter on Wednesday.
Ruggs was sentenced to three to 10 years in prison for these crimes, with the possibility for parole after three years. The crash, which took place in November 2021, resulted in the deaths of 23-year-old Tina Tintor and her dog.
The sentencing Judge, Jennifer Schwartz, called this “one of the most tragic cases I’ve seen.”
O.J. Simpson Questions Ruggs’ Sentencing
Back to O.J. Simpson, the Hall of Fame running back spent time behind bars as well. In fact, Simpson received a 33-year sentence for his role in a Las Vegas armed robbery in 2007. He wound up serving nine years, getting paroled in 2017 for good behavior.
Simpson weighed in on Ruggs’ sentencing on X.
“I know I went to college on a football scholarship but somehow this math is not adding up to me. You’re driving a car at roughly 160 miles per hour on a public street and end up killing a girl and her dog and you get three to ten years?” O.J. asked.
OJ Simpson says the 3-10 year sentence that Henry Ruggs received wasn’t enough 👀
pic.twitter.com/DAceyk4vL2— My Mixtapez (@mymixtapez) August 9, 2023
O.J. isn’t alone in these thoughts. The terms of Ruggs’ plea agreement can definitely seem lenient given the fatal nature of his crime.
But Simpson is an interesting commentator given his own, shall we say, checkered background.
As most well know, Simpson was arrested in June 1994 for the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ron Goldman. The resulting trial was widely publicized and aptly referred to as “The Trial of the Century.”
And the fact that Simpson would ultimately be found “not guilty” remains perhaps the most shocking verdict in a high-profile court case to this day.
Per this Wall Street Journal article from June 2016, over 69 percent of Americans polled believe that O.J. was guilty after all. Another 20 percent voted unsure. Just seven percent of voters believed Simpson to be innocent.
If you believe that Simpson is guilty, then the irony of him criticizing the leniency Ruggs received is likely not lost on you. Several commenters on Simpson’s video suggested he is trolling viewers. Others still reminded him, in some form or another, the old adage about those in glass houses throwing stones.
Simpson, however, has maintained his innocence for nearly 30 years. That won’t change anytime soon. He even profited off the high-profile court case down the road, publishing a book titled “If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer” in 2008.
In this instance, though, Simpson is steadfast in his belief that in neither his armed robbery case nor Ruggs’ vehicular manslaughter case, do the punishments fit the crime.
“Same courthouse, same city, same state. I don’t know. Somehow just does not add up to me. I’m just saying.”
