O.J. Simpson Has A Parole Hearing In July

After spending nine years in prison, O.J. Simpson could walk free later this year. CNNreports that Simpson has a parole hearing in July that could set him free as early as October. If Simpson's parole isn't granted, he could remain locked up for more than two decades.

Simpson's story has garnered media attention from the start. Back in 1995, he was charged and tried in the killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman. Simpson was famously acquitted of the charges, despite widespread suspicion of his alleged involvement in the murders. The trial captivated television audiences in the '90s, and it once again grabbed the attention of millions last year during FX's 10-episode dramatization The People v. O.J. Simpson.

While his real-life story entertained millions last year, Simpson himself completed his eighth year in prison for a different crime. In 2008, Simpson was sentenced to up to 33 years in prison for an incident in Las Vegas in 2007. He was convicted of kidnapping, armed robbery, and assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly trying to steal pieces of his sports memorabilia at gunpoint. For his part, Simpson said in 2013 that he had been "trying to retrieve for my family my own property that was stolen from me."

Simpson, a former professional football star, will turn 70 in July, shortly before his parole hearing. Since his conviction in 2008, he has spent the past nearly-nine years in a medium-security prison in Nevada. His July 20 parole hearing will also take place in Nevada.

According to ESPN, Simpson wasn't the only one to go to prison for the 2007 incident. His friend Clarence "C.J." Stewart was also convicted and was sentenced, similarly to Simpson, to seven-to-27 years. Unlike Simpson, though, Stewart was released after just 27 months, when the Nevada Supreme Court reportedly ruled that Simpson's fame adversely influenced Stewart's trial.

Despite his low-key time in prison, Simpson's notoriety hasn't quelled much in the last decade. In addition to the FX program, ESPN made a documentary about Simpson's life story, O.J.: Made In America, particularly focusing on the 1995 trial.

The anniversary of Simpson's infamous car chase down a Los Angeles highway was last week on June 17. Several social media users, including ESPN, marked the occasion by sharing videos and accounts of the chase.

If Simpson is released in October, there's little doubt that all eyes will be on his next move.