Friend says Simpson is overly optimistic

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- A friend of O.J. Simpson says the incarcerated former football star remains optimistic despite possibly facing life in prison for a Las Vegas robbery.

Clarence "C.J." Stewart, who was convicted with Simpson in October, said the former NFL great tries to avoid any news about his upcoming sentencing on robbery charges and attempts to have a positive outlook, the New York Post reported Sunday.

"O.J. doesn't watch the news or read the news about anything bad that happens to him," Stewart told the newspaper. "He just blocks it out. In his mind, it doesn't happen.

"Every day is a new day with this guy."

Simpson was convicted of robbery and kidnapping charges Oct. 3 for hold up two memorabilia dealers in a Las Vegas hotel and is facing a possible life prison sentence.

Stewart told the Post Simpson, who gained notoriety in 1995 when he was acquitted in the deaths of his wife Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman, is still hopeful for the future.

"This event may have changed my life," Stewart quoted Simpson as saying. "I've got to become a better man. I just want one more chance in life."