Chris Darden

Christopher Allen Darden (born April 7, 1956) is an American lawyer, author, actor, and lecturer. He worked for 15 years in the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office, where he gained national attention as a co-prosecutor in the O. J. Simpson murder case.

Early life and education

Darden was born in Richmond, California, the fourth of eight siblings. After graduating from John F. Kennedy High School in 1974, Darden enrolled at San Jose State University, where he participated in track and field and joined Alpha Phi Alpha, an African-American fraternity. He received his B.S. in criminal justice administration in 1977. Darden received his Juris Doctor from the University of California, Hastings, in 1980.

Career

Darden took and passed the California Bar Exam in the summer of 1980. Four months afterward, he was hired at the National Labor Relations Board in Los Angeles. Looking for a career change, he applied for and was hired for a position with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Darden was initially assigned to the Huntington Park office before moving on to Beverly Hills, and finally moved to the Criminal Courts Building (CCB) in downtown Los Angeles in late 1983.

During his tenure as a prosecutor at the CCB, Darden served in the central trials and hard-core gang units before transferring to the Special Investigation Division (SID), which investigates criminal activity by public and law enforcement officials, in February 1988. It was in this position that Darden first met Johnnie Cochran, who represented some victims of alleged police violence. Darden and Cochran became close friends, with Darden seeing Cochran as a mentor figure.

Darden initially became involved in the O. J. Simpson murder case after being asked by Deputy District Attorneys Marcia Clark and William Hodgman to lead the prosecution of Al Cowlings, Simpson's friend and the driver of the white Ford Bronco during the infamous car chase. After Darden's work on the Cowlings case ended, Clark requested Darden join the Simpson team as case manager since she and Hodgman were bogged down by various motions and filings from the defense. Darden was also tasked by Clark to prepare the prosecution's witnesses for testimony, including preparing testimony for key witness Detective Mark Fuhrman. After Hodgman was incapacited by stress-related illness in the courtroom shortly before opening statements, Darden was named co-prosecutor. Darden's friendship with Cochran, who was a prominent figure on Simpson's defense team, became heavily strained due to their clashing positions regarding the inclusion of racism in the case. Simpson was ultimately acquitted.

Darden was fired after the Simpson case and joined the faculty at California State University, Los Angeles, where he taught undergraduate criminal law. That same year, he was appointed associate professor of law at Southwestern University School of Law. Darden taught and specialized in criminal procedure and trial advocacy.

Darden is a former legal commentator for CNBC, CNN, Court TV, and NBC, and a frequent guest and commentator on CNN, Court TV, and Fox News Network. He has made guest appearances on ''Touched by an Angel'', '' Girlfriends'', ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'', The Howard Stern Show, ''Muppets Tonight'', ''Roseanne'', the movie ''Liar Liar'' (uncredited), and the TV movie ''One Hot Summer Night'' (in which he plays a disgruntled policeman). He is the former principal attorney in the syndicated legal show ''Power of Attorney''.

Darden is also a writer. In addition to ''In Contempt'', which chronicles his experiences with the Simpson trial, he co-authored (with Dick Lochte) a number of crime novels, including '' The Trials of Nikki Hill'' (1999), ''LA Justice'' (2000), and ''The Last Defense'' (2002).

He appeared on the cover of ''Newsweek'' in 1996 with an article "My Case Against O.J.", which addressed his involvement and prosecution of Simpson.

Darden left the law school in 1999 and started his own firm, Darden & Associates, Inc., specializing in criminal defense and civil litigation. In December 2007, he was considered for a judgeship by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In an interview by Oprah Winfrey that aired February 9, 2006, Darden stated that he still believed Simpson was guilty. He added that he was nearly as disgusted with the perjury of Mark Fuhrman as by the murders of Goldman and Simpson.

On September 6, 2012, Darden accused deceased Simpson defense lawyer Johnnie Cochran of manipulating' one of the infamous gloves", a claim Alan Dershowitz has called "a total fabrication", saying, "the defense doesn't get access to evidence except under controlled circumstances."

Darden represented Eric Ronald Holder, Jr. in his arraignment on April 4, 2019. Darden entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Holder, who is accused of murdering Nipsey Hussle. Darden dropped out of the case May 10, the same day as the court date. Darden received multiple death threats for representing Holder.

, Darden is representing a man accused of pulling a knife on a television crew at a COVID-19 anti-lockdown protest rally in Huntington Beach and forcing them to delete footage.

It was reported in August 2020 that Darden would represent Corey Walker, the alleged killer of rapper Pop Smoke.

Personal life

Darden married TV executive Marcia Carter on August 31, 1997. Together they have five children.

Although rumors persisted of a sexual relationship between Marcia Clark and Darden, both have denied such a relationship existed. Both consider their relationship to be extremely close, a result of the intense pressures of the Simpson trial.

In 1996, he revealed he was a Republican and said he would disclose his party choice at the 1996 Republican National Convention.

Honors and awards

*In 1998, Darden received the Crystal Heart Award from Loved Ones of Homicide Victims, an organization devoted to aiding families that have suffered the loss of loved ones as a result of violence.
* In 2000, he was recognized as "Humanitarian of the Year" by Eli Horne, a California shelter for abused children and women.

In popular culture

* Darden incidentally normalized the term 'n-word', an euphemistic alternative reference to the word "nigger", as the first public figure to use that term, while cross-examining Mark Furman during the OJ Simpson murder case.
* Darden and Marcia Clark were parodied in the Emmy-nominated Netflix sitcom ''Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt''.
* In '' The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story'' (2016), Darden was portrayed by Sterling K. Brown, who won an Emmy Award for his performance.
* Darden and Marcia Clark were mentioned in the lyrics by T-Mo of the hip-hop group Goodie Mob in the song "Soul Food", saying "Fuck Chris Darden, fuck Marcia Clark/Taking us when we're in the spotlight for a joke"
* In 1997, Darden made an appearance on ''the Howard Stern Show'' running the question board for Jeopardy. Also appearing were Geraldo Rivera and Richard Belzer.
* Darden was featured heavily via archive footage in Ezra Edelman's 2016 documentary '' O.J.: Made in America'', which focused on the life and murder trial of O. J. Simpson. Darden himself was contacted by Edelman to participate in the documentary, but Darden declined.

See also

* List of African-American Republicans

References

External links

*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darden, Christopher
1956 births
African-American lawyers
California lawyers
California Republicans
American prosecutors
Living people
O. J. Simpson murder case
San Jose State University alumni
University of California, Hastings College of the Law alumni
20th-century American lawyers
21st-century American lawyers
People from Richmond, California
20th-century American novelists
21st-century American novelists
American male novelists
Businesspeople from California
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers