Murder in Brentwood by Mark Fuhrman

So far, I have read a couple of true crime books based on the actual murders, the investigations and the trials but this book - Murder in Brentwood (1997) - is a totally different kettle of fish.  For one thing, it is written by a former LAPD detective specifically to tell his side of the story.  Why?

As you know, Mark Fuhrman is the most pivotal witness of the OJ Simpson trial.  As he takes to the witness stand, he is accused of perjury and subsequently sentenced to three years formal probation and a monetary fine.  His good name has been vilified, defamed and ridiculed and he is forced into early retirement.  Unjustifiably, he became a convicted felon.

Why is a witness who was called to give testimony prosecuted for perjury?  What relevance has it to the Simpson murder trial?  Is he used as an underdog and if so, why?  How can one justify almost destroying an innocent man's life knowing that the charges to his name were not relevant at all to the Simpson murder case?  There is nothing wrong with Fuhrman's criminal investigation on the infamous murder.  There is no evidence that Fuhrman had given any false testimony about his investigative work.

It is inevitable that questions will be asked and perhaps these questions are better answered by reading the book and then deciding for yourself, for there are thousands upon thousands of biased and unbiased opinions and accounts out there.  Once the murder trial starts and you read more into it, you will become more and more puzzled by the proceedings.  Why?

In my opinion, it is because the whole trial is a farce and a waste of time for both the defense and the prosecution and other parties involved.  Most questionings and arguments are totally unnecessary because they have nothing to do with the brutal murder of two young people.  Important evidence are completely ignored and not used or mishandled.  Important witnesses are not called to the stand.  There seems to be a lot of infighting among the parties from the top to the bottom rung and the trial is more about the meeting of egos than the meting out of justice to the person who had so violently taken two lives.  As Vincent Bugliosi (American attorney and author) said, "Throughout the trial, the sad irony was that the defense attorneys seemed to be fighting harder for injustice than the prosecutors were fighting for justice."

There are more than a few versions of the Simpson murder trial told by various people but I have chosen to read one from a cop's point of view.  If it is his way to defend and restore his reputation and also redeem his mistakes, so what?  Everyone deserves a voice.  Everyone deserves to be heard.  Nobody deserves to be so outrageously victimized and denounced especially not a veteran cop who simply told what he saw and was only doing his job.


Murder in Brentwood is a well-documented and well-researched book as befits a good cop and very well-written.  It was a New York Times No 1 bestseller.  I wish Mark Fuhrman all the best.  A highly recommended read.

Former LAPD Detective Mark Fuhrman talks to Oprah on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2010 in these snippets.  This is Fuhrman's second and last interview with Oprah, the first being in 1997:

First Video
Second Video
Third Video

Other books by Mark Fuhrman, now an author and radio host, are

1)  Murder in Greenwich:  Who Killed Martha Moxley? (1998)
2)  Murder in Spokane:  Catching A Serial Killer (2001)
3)  Death and Justice:  An Expose of Oklahoma's Death Machine (2003)
4)  Silent Witness:  The Untold Story of Terri Schiavo's Death (2005)
5)  A Simple Act of Murder:  November 22, 1963 (2006)
6)  The Murder Business:  How The Media Turns Crime Into Entertainment And Subverts Justice (2009)