Simpson pleads not guilty; trial in April

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Former football star O.J. Simpson pleaded not guilty Wednesday to allegedly robbing two memorabilia dealers at gunpoint in a Las Vegas hotel room.

The jury trial was scheduled to begin April 7.

"(How) do you plead, Mr. Simpson?" Clark County District Court Judge Jackie Glass asked Simpson.

"Not guilty," he responded.

Two other men, Charles Ehrlich and Clarence Stewart, also pleaded innocent.

All three defendants waived their rights to a speedy trial.

Simpson, Ehrlich and Stewart will stand trial on a dozen counts, including kidnapping, arising from the Sept. 13 incident.

Outside of the courthouse, Simpson defense attorney Yale Galanter said, "I don't think there are any surprises" regarding the trial and anticipates jury selection to be the most "onerous" part.

Simpson, Galanter said, "is glad the arraignment over with and he's glad doesn't have to come back to Vegas until April."

Simpson, acquitted in 1995 in the deaths of his ex-wife and her friend, has maintained he wasn't armed and only went to the hotel room with five acquaintances to recover personal items that belonged to him.

Three former defendants pleaded guilty to lesser charges in exchange for their testimony.