Simpson Under Suicide Watch as D.A. Moves to Indict Him : Crime: But grand jury proceedings hit a snag as the first witness reportedly demands immunity. Arraignment of the football legend is expected Monday.

A day after being captured outside his 5,700-square-foot Brentwood estate, football legend O.J. Simpson spent Saturday under suicide watch in a 7-by-9-foot jail cell, where he is being held without bail as prosecutors prepare to seek murder indictments from the county grand jury.

The 46-year-old Hall of Fame running back, whose bizarre low-speed escapade through freeway traffic Friday capped a week of morbid melodrama, is expected to be arraigned Monday on charges that he fatally stabbed his ex-wife and her male friend in a bloody June 12 attack.

His attorney, Robert L. Shapiro, who failed earlier to surrender Simpson as promised, described his client as distraught and emotionally drained.

“He was morose. He was exceedingly depressed. And he was in tears,” Shapiro said outside the Men’s Central Jail, where a deputy is on guard to keep Simpson from harming himself. “And his words to me were that he apologized to me and to everyone else for what he put people through (Friday).”

Among the day’s developments:

* Prosecutors have convened the Los Angeles County Grand Jury, according to sources, who said that the first witness was called Friday. Officials are using the closed-door proceedings to avoid the spectacle of a preliminary hearing, but they hit a snag after the unidentified witness reportedly refused to testify unless granted immunity.

* Although no decision has been made about seeking the death penalty, Dist. Atty. Gil Garcetti said that he may use Simpson’s attempted escape as evidence of guilt in the brutal slayings of Nicole Brown Simpson, 35, and her friend, 25-year-old Westside waiter Ronald Lyle Goldman.

* Los Angeles Police Chief Willie L. Williams said the suggestion that Simpson was given special police treatment that afforded him the opportunity to flee was “one of the dumbest statements” he had heard. He added that suspects frequently have been given the chance to voluntarily surrender: “The difference was the world wasn’t watching.”

* Simpson’s best friend and former teammate, Al Cowlings, who was arrested for aiding him during the nationally televised two-hour pursuit, was released early Saturday on $250,000 bail. Storming past reporters later in the day outside a friend’s Pacific Palisades home, Cowlings hurled expletives and snarled: “Don’t you have no respect?”

* Several high-powered attorneys acknowledged that they had been approached by friends of Simpson to help mount his defense. Cowlings’ attorney, Donald M. Re, speculated that Simpson’s aberrant behavior Friday could be a sign he is mentally disturbed.

* Although the circus-like atmosphere that surrounded Simpson’s brief time as a fugitive had subsided, sharp emotions continued to swirl. Some feminist advocates reacted angrily to the cheering crowds that rooted for Simpson’s escape, while some African American activists contended that Simpson had been unfairly convicted by the mostly white news media.

* In their first extended remarks since the slaying of their daughter, the family of Nicole Brown Simpson issued a statement Saturday, saying that her young children have demonstrated “the uncanny ability to momentarily set aside life’s bitterness to enjoy life’s goodness” during the past week of tragedy and sadness.

“By no means are things ‘normal,’ so to speak, but with the immense love and support we are all receiving from each other, we will all survive stronger in spirit, stronger as people, and stronger as a family,” said the statement, which was also signed by Jason and Arnelle Simpson, O.J. Simpson’s children from his first marriage.

Sydney and Justin Simpson, ages 9 and 6, have spent the last few days at their grandparents’ home in Monarch Bay riding bikes, fishing, going to the beach and playing handball, POGs and video games with their cousins and friends.

They also received counseling from a family priest, who said he has explained the concepts of God, death and heaven during a discussion with them.

“We talked about where Mom had gone and they asked me some things about heaven and I tried to answer them,” said the Rev. Bruce Lavery, who officiated at their mother’s service Thursday at Ascension Cemetery in Lake Forest.

“The children were very, very aware that something had happened but they acted like any children: They would be solemn for a while and then start playing a game or playing with their toys again.”

Nicole Simpson’s older sister, Denise Brown, said the children were doing “surprisingly great” in their efforts to cope with the traumas of the week. “They’re pretty strong,” she said.

By contrast, the former football star was described as fragile.

About noon, Shapiro and others met for several hours with Simpson in his jail cell. After the visit, much of which Simpson reportedly spent talking to a psychiatrist, Shapiro underscored his concerns for Simpson’s mental state.

“We did not discuss the case,” he said. “Our primary concern now is for his mental and emotional welfare.”

Accompanying Shapiro were Simpson’s civil lawyer, Leroy Taft, close friend Robert Kardashian and attorney Howard Weitzman, a friend of Simpson who had represented him in the early stages of the investigation.

“He is distraught. He is upset, and we are very concerned about him,” Weitzman said of Simpson, who he said was dressed in a jail jumpsuit.

In the first indication of how prosecutors plan to handle the high-profile case, sources told The Times that the district attorney’s office had convened the grand jury Friday. The first witness they attempted to question, however, declined to testify on the grounds that he could incriminate himself, according to sources close to the case.

That sparked heated objections from Deputy Dist. Atty. Marcia Clark, the lead prosecutor. A closed hearing was held, after which Superior Court Judge J. Stephen Czuleger ruled that the witness was entitled to invoke the 5th Amendment.

The witness was scheduled to be called again this week, but it was unclear Saturday whether he would testify. His attorney, William Genego, declined to comment. Prosecutors could not be reached.

Garcetti, the county’s top prosecutor, said in a news conference outside Parker Center that Simpson would probably be arraigned Monday on the two murder charges. He also acknowledged that Friday’s outpouring of support for Simpson could foreshadow problems in getting a guilty verdict when the former football great is brought to trial.

“There is no doubt that O.J. Simpson--the persona, the hero of O.J. Simpson--is something that most people don’t want to let go of,” Garcetti said. “I mean this was a man. A beauty. A grace. A talent. He had succeeded. He had been through tough times and he had made it, made it big. And he was doing good things. Unfortunately, we now have a set of circumstances that change that entirely.”

Garcetti was joined by Williams, who had cut short a trip to Philadelphia to fend off criticism that Simpson had managed to escape because he received preferential treatment.

“We have had hundreds of people in the city of Los Angeles who have committed crimes--robbery, burglary, assault, rape, shoplifting--who have surrendered . . . people who have surrendered to some of you in the media,” Williams said. “The difference was the world wasn’t watching and if the person didn’t show up, we went out and got them that afternoon or the next day and no one knew about it.”

Legal experts said Saturday that Simpson’s strange behavior seems to have generated a degree of sympathy and could be turned to his advantage. Hoping to assemble a high-octane defense team, Simpson’s advisers were busy contacting some of the region’s top legal minds.

Among those approached was Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., who represents pop star Michael Jackson. But Cochran said his close personal relationship with Simpson would make it difficult for him to serve as one of his attorneys.

“I know him, I care about him,” Cochran said. “I just think the way I feel about him would preclude me from giving him the best representation possible. It would be like (defending) a member of the family.”

One member of Simpson’s legal team, respected forensic scientist Henry Lee, reportedly left town Saturday after examining a cut on Simpson’s hand. His lawyers contend that Simpson cut himself after slamming down a water glass upon being informed of his ex-wife’s death. Police sources suspect he was slashed during the fatal attack.

Lee, according to the Chinese Daily News, said there was no proof of that. “There are some indications--circumstantial evidence and motive provided by the police--but there is no direct evidence, so the evidence is not conclusive,” Lee, speaking Chinese, told the paper.

Although Saturday seemed a lull after the previous day’s spectacular events, a growing chorus of criticism about the case suggested that it had sparked a potentially polarizing debate.

“This thing is really a complicated mess all of sudden, once you get past the chase,” said political scientist Raphael Sonenshein, who wrote a recent book on race and politics in Los Angeles.

In the city’s African American community, there was widespread concern that the sensational, wall-to-wall coverage of the case may have had much to do with the fact that the victims were white and Simpson is black. Even before Simpson was booked for the murders Friday evening, a few supporters at his Brentwood estate and at Parker Center were chanting, “Free O.J.!”

“People will be watching very closely around the issues of equity and fairness,” Anthony Thigpen, a South-Central Los Angeles community activist, said in an interview Saturday. “There is a certain concern on the part of the African American community that there has been almost a persecution of him, and his ethnicity has something to do with it.”

Those worries had been voiced the day before in Minneapolis, where the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the president of a national black press organization accused Los Angeles police and reporters of mishandling the case.

“There’s been a trial in the newsrooms before it got to the courtrooms,” Jackson told reporters at the National Newspaper Publishers Assn. convention. “We only hope that justice prevails.”

The Rev. Carl Washington, founder of a South-Central Los Angeles ministers’ group, told a news conference Saturday that he believes Simpson will receive a fair trial and urged young people to “let justice take its course.”

Washington, who works with gang members, called on young people to refrain from gathering at the courts, police headquarters, or the Simpson estate as they have in recent days.

Feminists, meanwhile, were critical of the case for just the opposite reason. They complained that the way reports of Simpson’s past abuse were handled--especially the 1989 New Year’s beating of his wife--exemplified the short shrift society continues to accord women and the issue of domestic violence.

Rather than being unique, the wealthy football star is distressingly typical of battering husbands, said Tammy Bruce, president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Organization for Women.

“One thing O.J. kept saying in the police report was, ‘This is private, this is family. I can handle this. This is none of your business.’ It’s an attitude that runs through the system,” Bruce said.

She added that Simpson’s letter to the public in which he said he felt like a battered husband was “classic.”

“He’s trying to manipulate us into believing he was the one who was wronged, and that the press is battering him, and after all the good he’s done for everyone, why is this happening to him?” she said. “This is absolutely classic.”

Almost immediately after the bodies of his former wife and her friend were discovered outside her Brentwood townhouse, suspicion began to focus on the famed running back.

Two bloodstained gloves were recovered, police sources said, one at the scene and one at Simpson’s home. Bloodstains on the walkway where the bodies were found reportedly matched Simpson’s blood type--a fact that did not help Simpson’s case, although it did not prove the blood was his. On Friday, sources reported that drops of blood found inside Simpson’s home matched his ex-wife’s type.

After attending her funeral Thursday afternoon, Simpson was taken to the San Fernando Valley home of a longtime friend, where he was sedated by physicians. On Friday morning, he was notified by his lawyer that two murder charges were about to be filed and that he was expected to surrender by 11 a.m.

Although Shapiro said his client was not tipped off that police were on the way, Simpson seized the opportunity to slip out of the sprawling Encino home with Cowlings, sparking a widespread manhunt.

Over the next few hours a phalanx of officers trailed the car while Simpson reportedly held a gun to his head.

The chase ended 60 miles later, on the driveway of Simpson’s Brentwood estate. Cowlings walked out of the car and surrendered. An hour later, the LAPD Special Weapons and Tactics team had coaxed Simpson out. Before being booked, he was allowed to call his mother, use the bathroom and have a drink of juice.

“I’m sorry for putting you guys out,” Simpson told the officers. “I’m sorry for making you do this.”

Times staff writers Jesse Katz, Josh Meyer, Rebecca Trounson and Lynn Smith contributed to this story.

Simpson News Inside

* IN CUSTODY--The special County Jail area, known as the “high power unit,” where Simpson is being housed has held many famous--and infamous--defendants. A13

* COMMUNITY--Once a sleepy enclave and “nice little secret,” Brentwood squirms under the sudden media spotlight. A13

* CHILDREN--Nicole and O.J.’s son and daughter are coping well with the past week’s tragedies, the family says. A14

* MIND-SET--Psychologists say Simpson appeared Friday to be out of control, suicidal and genuinely distraught over his ex-wife’s death. A14

* MORE COVERAGE--Additional stories, photos, graphics. A11-A16

Football Hero to Murder Suspect

A biographical sketch of O.J. Simpson

* Childhood: Orenthal James Simpson is born to Jimmie and Eunice Simpson on July 9, 1947. Second cousin of Ernie Banks, former Chicago Cubs player. Raised in a tough section of San Francisco. Simpson comes close to serious trouble with the law before becoming involved in sports.

* High school: Wins all-city honors as fullback at Galileo High School. Meets future wife, Marguerite.

* Junior college: Attends City College of San Francisco. In a 1965 game against San Jose City College, he gains 304 yards on 18 carries and scores six touchdowns. Over two years, he compiles one of the most sensational records in junior college history.

* College: In his first year as USC, the Trojan football team wins the national title. The next year, as a senior, he wins the Heisman Trophy by the largest margin ever.

* First marriage: Marries Marguerite Whitley in June, 1967. Three children, Arnelle, Jason and Aaren, who drowned as a toddler in swimming pool accident in 1979. The couple divorce the same year.

* Pro career: Buffalo Bills make him the first pick in the college draft in 1969. After holding out, he signs for an annual salary of about $100,000.

* Milestones: Rushes for record 2,003 yards in 1973.

* Team change: Traded to the San Francisco 49ers for five draft picks.

* Retirement: Finishes career in 1979 with 11,236 yards, at the time second only to Jim Brown.

* TV Career: Joins ABC Sports as an analyst in 1979.

* Monday Night Football: Works as analyst on “ABC’s Monday Night Football” broadcasts, 1984-84.

* Hall of fame: Elected to Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985

* Second marriage: Marries Nicole Brown in February, 1985. The couple have two children, Sydney and Justin. Divorced in 1992.

* Domestic dispute: During a fight after a New Year’s Eve party in 1989, he injures wife so severly she requires hospital treatment. He slips away from police but is later arrested. It is the ninth domestic disturbance call at the residence.

* Studio host: Becomes studio host for “NFL Live” on NBC, 1990.

* Murder suspect: Accused in death of Nicole Simpson and Ronald Lyle Coleman. Disappears before police arrive to arrest him. He is arrested after a 60-mile chase.

SPORTS HIGHLIGHTS

* Two-time All-American at USC

* Heisman Trophy in 1968

* Four NFL rushing titles

* Five-time Pro Bowl Selection

* Pro Football Hall of Fame

MOVIES

* The Towering Inferno, 1974

* Killer Force, 1975

* The Cassandra Crossing, 1977

* Capricorn One, 1978

* The Naked Gun series, 1988, 1991, 1994