SIMPSON MAY TAKE STAND NEXT WEEK.

Byline: Linda Deutsch Associated Press 

O.J. Simpson was ordered to honor a subpoena to testify next week in his wrongful-death trial. The order was issued just hours after his name was first placed on the witness list and an alternate juror was ousted for sleeping.

Following a conference call Friday between judges for Simpson's conflicting wrongful-death and child custody trials, Superior Court Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki ordered Simpson to appear.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Nancy Wieben Stock said the custody case does not meet Fridays and Simpson would not be needed Nov. 25 or 26 because he has already testified in that case.

A white, 19-year-old alternate juror was removed from the civil case after being accused of sleeping through most of the trial.

According to transcripts of a Thursday sidebar conference, defense lawyers made the request moments after Fujisaki stopped testimony because the juror nodded off.

``(She) was asleep through most of this case,'' lead defense attorney Robert Baker complained, according to the transcript.

Fujisaki agreed and suggested the woman ``seems to have some sort of metabolic problem that causes her to have an inability to stay awake.''

She was the second alternate removed since the trial began. A man complaining of stress was excused after falling ill during the showing of gruesome crime scene photos. Six alternates remain.

But plaintiff lawyer Daniel Petrocelli told the judge one of the jurors, an elderly woman and the only African-American on the jury, should also be removed for sleeping in court. The judge said: ``I'll keep a further eye on her.''

The possibility that Simpson could take the stand within a week generated anticipation among reporters and spectators. But Simpson, who made a brief appearance in court Friday, seemed unmoved by the news.

Asked about it, he shrugged and said he had been ready to testify ``since two years ago.'' Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were killed June 12, 1994.

Simpson did not testify in his criminal trial, which resulted in his acquittal on charges of killing his ex-wife and her friend. Now, the victims' families, unsatisfied with the verdict, are suing him in civil court for monetary damages.

Eight witnesses are scheduled to testify before Simpson. Early in the day, attorneys said they could be ready for Simpson by Thursday. But that was pushed back to Friday after the conference call.

The order does not guarantee Simpson will testify then. The plaintiffs can still decide not to call him at that time. But the biggest conflict, the custody trial, was resolved.

Simpson is fighting for custody of his two small children who live with their grandparents, Louis and Juditha Brown. That case was in recess Friday, allowing Simpson to attend the civil trial, but he left in the midst of DNA testimony.

Witnesses scheduled ahead of Simpson include two scientific witnesses, four domestic violence witnesses and two familiar faces - house guest Brian ``Kato'' Kaelin and limousine driver Allan Park.

Department of Justice DNA expert Gary Sims was in the midst of his testimony when the judge, returning from a morning break, abruptly announced the alternate's dismissal.

``One of your number has been excused. You are not to speculate as to the reason,'' Fujisaki told jurors.

Plaintiff attorney Petrocelli objected to the woman's removal, suggesting she be brought in and questioned about ``what she's missed.''

``How do you question somebody about what they missed?'' Baker asked. He said the alternate had been ``heavy lidded throughout most of the proceedings so far.''

Early on, the young woman asked to be excused from jury duty so she could register to attend the University of California, Santa Cruz, but the judge refused, saying if she was not already registered she didn't have a valid excuse. She said she knew virtually nothing about the Simpson case.

After her dismissal, the woman was whisked away from the courthouse in a white van.

Meanwhile, defense attorney Robert Blasier used Sims' testimony to cast doubt on other expert DNA opinions. Sims said:

DNA tests did not rule out the possibility that Nicole Simpson's blood was planted on socks found in Simpson's bedroom. Plaintiff's expert Robin Cotton said it was ``unlikely.''

Of more than 100 blood stains processed by Sims' laboratory, the largest amount of DNA on any item was on the socks, which police initially said showed no signs of blood. Blasier suggested blood was planted on the socks before they reached Sims.

Blood on the back gate of Nicole Simpson's condominium - collected weeks after the killings - contained as much as 270 times more DNA than blood spots collected the day after the killings. Blasier suggested the back gate blood was planted, using the test tube sample.

A hint of Goldman's DNA on Simpson's Bronco console was the result of a ``very weak'' DNA test result. Blasier suggested the result was misinterpreted.