reuters - O.J. Simpson holds up his hands to the jury wearing the infamous gloves found at the crime scene and his home in this June 15, 1995 file photo. More than a decade after he was acquitted of charges that he murdered his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman, O.J. will describe in a televised interview how he would have committed the crime if he was the one responsible in a special to air on the Fox Network November 27 and 29, 2006.

Publisher considers OJ Simpson book 'his confession'

NEW YORK (AP)

O.J. Simpson created an uproar with plans for a TV interview and book titled "If I Did It", an account the publisher pronounced "his confession" and media executives condemned as revolting and exploitive.

Fox, which plans to air an interview with Simpson November 27 and 29, said Simpson describes how he would have committed the 1994 slayings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman, "if he were the one responsible."

Simpson was acquitted in 1995 of murder after a trial that became an instant cultural flashpoint and a source of racial tension. The former football star was later found liable for the deaths in a wrongful-death suit filed by the Goldman family.

Denise Brown, sister of Simpson's slain ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, lashed out at publisher Judith Regan of ReganBooks for "promoting the wrongdoing of criminals" and commercialising abuse. The book goes on sale November 30.

Brown added: "It's unfortunate that Simpson has decided to awaken a nightmare that we have painfully endured and worked so hard to move beyond."

Regan refused to say what Simpson is being paid for the book but said he came to her with the idea.

"This is an historic case, and I consider this his confession," Regan told The Associated Press.

Simpson has failed to pay the US$33.5 million judgement against him in the civil case. His NFL pension and his Florida home cannot legally be seized. He and the families of the victims have wrangled over the money in court for years.

double jeopardy

The victims' families could go after the proceeds from the book's sales to pay off the judgement. But one legal analyst said there are ways to get around that requirement - such as having proceeds not go directly to Simpson.

"Clever lawyering can get you a long way," said Laurie Levenson, a Loyola University law school professor and former federal prosecutor who has followed the case closely.

Levenson noted that the criminal justice system's protection against double jeopardy - being tried for the same crime twice - means Simpson's book, explosive as it may be, should not expose him to any new legal danger.

Simpson did not return numerous calls for comment. Simpson's own attorney Yale Galanter said he did not know about the book or the interview until this week.

"The book was not done through our office," Galanter said.

He said there is "only one chapter that deals with their deaths and that chapter, in my understanding, has a disclaimer that it's complete fiction."

On Amazon.com on Wednesday, the 240-page book was being offered for US$16.47. An image of the cover featured Simpson's face and the title "If I Did It," with "If" highlighted in white and the other letters in red.

Other publishers and publishing industry observers practically fell over each other to criticise ReganBooks, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, and Simpson.

Otto Penzler, who runs Otto Penzler Books, a crime imprint of Harcourt, said he would have a moral problem with "carrying a book like that and enriching this lowlife in any way."

ReganBooks has gained a reputation for publishing some less-than-highbrow material, including Jose Canseco's "Juiced," billed as a tell-all on steroids in baseball, and books about the slaying of Laci Peterson.

Patricia Schroeder, president and chief executive of the American Association of Publishers, described the developments as sickening.