(RNN) - O.J. Simpson’s parole hearing will take place Thursday, July 20, and there is a possibility that the former football star will be granted parole that would set him free by Oct. 1. Here are a few things you should know about the hearing that will decide the fate of the former football star and actor who was acquitted of murder but convicted of burglary.
What is the parole hearing about?
In 2007, Simpson and five men confronted a pair of sports memorabilia dealers in a Las Vegas hotel room and angrily told them that what they were selling rightfully belonged to him. He took the collectibles. A tape of him shouting at the dealer during the robbery was released on TMZ. He told police he was only taking what was rightfully his. They arrested him and charged him with robbery.
In 2008, Simpson was found guilty of kidnapping, armed robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, burglary and conspiracy charges.
He was sentenced to nine to 33 years in prison at Lovelock Correctional Center in Nevada.
In 2013, Simpson won parole on some of his convictions, but would have to serve at least four more years.
The parole hearing will take place in Carson City, NV, and the Nevada Board of Parole Commissioners will meet to determine Simpson’s future.
The board will weigh 11 categories to reach the decision, and Simpson will need four out of six possible votes to be paroled.
If he is denied parole, the current timekeeping records show a projected expiration date of Sept. 29, 2022 for his release.
Who is O.J. Simpson?
Orenthal James Simpson was one of the premier running backs in football history.
He won the 1968 Heisman Trophy as a running back for The University of Southern California. The award goes to the most outstanding football player in college as decided by a panel of voters.
He played 11 NFL seasons with the Buffalo Bills and the San Francisco 49ers. He ran for 11,236 rushing yards and 75 all-purpose touchdowns in his professional career, which was the second-highest total ever at the time. Simpson now ranks as the NFL's 21st all-time rusher.
He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.
1995 murder trial
In 1994, Simpson was investigated for the fatal stabbing of his ex-wife Nicole Simpson and friend Ronald Goldman inside her Los Angeles home.
Simpson was ordered to surrender, but instead he led police on a slow-speed chase in a white Ford Bronco.
The chase was broadcast nationally live on all networks. The Bronco was followed by many police cars, lights flashing, until he finally surrendered at his mansion in the posh Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles.
In 1995, the Simpson murder trial was one of the most notable murder trials in history. It was nationally covered by multiple media networks. It was the top news story in the nation for months, and the lawyers representing the prosecution and defense became celebrities. In Oct. 1995, Simpson was acquitted of murder charges, which shocked the nation and polarized the races.
In a 1997 civil suit filed by the victims' families, Simpson was found liable for the deaths and ordered to pay $33.5 million.
The star's trial has been made into a 10-episode TV drama "The People v. O.J. Simpson, American Crime Story," and a five-part documentary series on ESPN called "O.J.: Made in America."
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