Simpson, Children Attend Ex-Wife's Funeral

LOS ANGELES - O.J. Simpson and his children attended today's funeral for his ex-wife as police investigate whether the former football star was involved in the brutal slayings of her and a friend.

Wearing a black suit, Simpson entered St. Martin of Tours Catholic Church in Brentwood for Nicole Brown Simpson's private service. With him were their daughter Sydney, 9, and son Justin, 6.

Nothing was said by the family as they entered the church, which was bathed in sunshine. Mourners included Olympic athlete Bruce Jenner.

Earlier, at Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks cemetery some 20 miles to the northwest, family and friends gathered to bury Ronald Goldman, who died along with Mrs. Simpson late Sunday.

Police refuse to discuss the case or reports about apparent incriminating evidence linking Simpson to the slayings. A lawyer for the 46-year-old former football star said he was at home when his ex-wife and Goldman were killed Sunday.

But a police source told The Associated Press that the investigation was focusing solely on Simpson and said Simpson would be arrested soon.

Simpson's blood type matches blood recovered at the murder scene outside Mrs. Simpson's condominium, the Los Angeles Times reported today, citing police sources.

This is a potentially important piece of evidence in the investigation of the killings of Simpson's former wife and a man she knew.

Simpson's blood type is different from those of the victims,

Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle Goldman, a source said. Although even rare blood types are shared by many people, any discovery of Simpson's blood type at the murder scene could lend credence to the suggestion he was there, sources said.

A more exact test to determine whether the DNA in the blood sample matches Simpson's has not yet been concluded, sources added.

Simpson's lead attorney, newly hired lawyer Robert Shapiro, was unavailable for comment. Howard Weitzman, who represented Simpson until yesterday and continues to serve as an adviser to his legal team, said he was unaware of any test results concluding that Simpson's blood type matched samples recovered from the scene.

New details emerged yesterday about a matching pair of gloves whose existence Weitzman vehemently has denied. Police sources said investigators found two work gloves, one at the scene of the crime and one outside Simpson's mansion in Los Angeles' Brentwood area.

Both had blood on them, though tests for the blood on the gloves have not been completed, sources said. One source said the glove at Simpson's home was found outside a side entrance near a trail of drippings that have been determined to be blood.

"That would be inconsistent with what I was told," said Weitzman, who has said a police official assured him there was no second glove found at Simpson's home. "Beyond that, I have no comment."

Sources said Goldman's wounds showed he fought fiercely when attacked. They said Simpson had scratches and cuts when police interviewed him several hours later.

Weitzman and others familiar with the investigation said Simpson spent much of yesterday at his mansion, grieving over the death of his ex-wife, surrounded by family members and consulting his legal team.

Shapiro announced that he will seek a second autopsy and private forensic tests and said Simpson is under treatment for depression.

Weitzman, who has defended Simpson's innocence, has given up the lead role to Shapiro, a celebrated lawyer whose clients have included Darryl Strawberry and Tina Sinatra.

Explaining why he has stepped down, Weitzman said: "I have decided because of my personal relationship with O.J. Simpson and my many other professional commitments I can no longer give O.J. the attention he both deserves and needs."

Two black limousines were seen leaving Simpson's mansion yesterday afternoon, and a few hours later he was filmed by a television station as he drove away from O'Connor Laguna Hills Mortuary, where his former wife's body was.

"We had a viewing . . . to send my sister off. We all went and paid our respects," said Denise Brown, Nicole's older sister. "And . . . yes, O.J. was there. But what's the big deal? It's his ex-wife. My God, it's somebody we all love. We just want to let her go in peace."

A source close to Simpson said he visited his children, who are at their grandparents' house in Orange County, before returning home.

In a statement released after he took over, Shapiro said Simpson was at his home waiting for a limousine when Nicole Simpson, 35, and Goldman, 25, were killed Sunday night.

Simpson went to the airport late that evening and caught an overnight American Airlines flight to Chicago. A source said he was the only passenger in the first-class section.

Weitzman had previously said he believed Simpson was in the limousine or at the airport when the killings occurred. An exact time of death has not been released by authorities, although Weitzman has said he was told that it was about 11 p.m. Sunday, supporting his contention that Simpson could not have committed the crime and gone to the airport in time to catch his flight.

Sources have said, however, that police believe Simpson would have had enough time to make the trip, suggesting they believe the time of death may have been earlier.

The Boston Globe reported today that Howard Bingham, a longtime friend of Simpson, said he was on the same flight to Chicago as the former football star. Bingham said Simpson saw him first and called out to him. They chatted before they boarded, during the flight, and again at baggage claim in Chicago, he said.

"He was talking about his golf game. He was waiting to pick up his bags and his golf clubs," Bingham told the newspaper. "He wasn't bleeding. . . . He seemed like always. This whole thing is unbelievable."

Los Angeles police discovered the bodies after midnight and called Simpson at his Chicago hotel Monday morning to tell him his former wife had been found dead. Simpson returned to Los Angeles that morning.