And what was the reaction at that time and in that setting?
I was in a similar situation, and it was sheer bedlam, the cheering and high fives.
I turned and asked a plant supervisor with whom I was friendly and who happened to be black, what all the uproar was about, since it was pretty clear that he killed the woman.
She said they thought it was a great day in America, since a black man could now buy his way out of conviction just like a white man always could.
Not agreeing or validating, that’s just the unvarnished answer I got from a black coworker, whom I liked and trusted.