SIMPSON SPEAKS!

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On the morning that both sides finally rested, O.J. Simpson provided all the fireworks with a brief courtroom speech outside the presence of jurors: "They will find as the record stands now, that I did not, could not and would not have committed this crime." The speech stunned a furious Marcia Clark, who just minutes before had requested that Simpson not be allowed to make a statement if he would not testify. James Willwerth reports from the trial that Simpson's statement took everyone in the courtroom by surprise. "Ito did not intend to let him make a statement. He simply asked O.J. if he waived his right to speak in court. O.J., so to speak, had the ball, saw his opening and ran through it to present this obviously rehearsed speech." Clark is worried, Willwerth says, that the speech might influence sequestered jurors if they learn about it during conjugal visits while they are in deliberations.