O.J. Simpson Will Be Cremated & His Brain Won’t Be Examined for CTE

In the aftermath of the death of O.J. Simpson on April 10 following a cancer diagnosis, his longtime lawyer Malcolm LaVergne announced that the Hall of Fame football player will be cremated and his brain will not be donated for scientific research.

“I’ve been getting calls from medical centers that are doing CTE testing asking me for O.J.’s brain…that is not happening,” LaVergne told People days after Simpson’s death.

CTE, otherwise known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy, is a brain disease that has been widely diagnosed in deceased professional football players believed to be caused by repeated head trauma. Common symptoms of CTE include difficulty thinking, depression, impulsive behavior, short-term memory loss, and emotional instability.

LaVergne shared with New York Post that the Simpson family gave a “hard no” to scientists who asked to study Simpson’s brain for the condition. He added that Simpson’s four children still have yet to sign off on the paperwork.

“His entire body, his brain, everything, his fake hips, his fake knees, everything. That all goes into the crematorium,” said LaVergne.

Simpson’s final will was filed in Clark County, Nevada, on April 12 two days after his death. LaVergne was named the executor of the estate; Simpson’s son Justin Simpson was named as his successor. Simpson requested his property be placed in The Orenthal Simpson Revocable Living Trust and that anyone person who seeks to “set aside the administration of this Will” will “receive, free of trust, one dollar and no more in lieu of any claimed interest in this will or its assets.”

Previously, LaVergne told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he does not want the family of Ron Goldman to acquire any money from the estate. “It’s my hopes that Goldmans get zero, nothing,” he told the outlet.

Simpson was controversially acquitted of the 1994 murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Goldman who were both found dead at her home in Los Angeles. Attorney for Goldman’s father David Cook has said Simpson owes the family more than $100 million. In a 1997 wrongful death lawsuit, Simpson was ordered to pay the Goldman families $33.5 million, which he never did and has grown in interest since then.

“I will do everything in my capacity as the executor or personal representative to try and ensure that they get nothing,” said LeVergne.

In a statement by Simpson’s family posted on X on April 11, the former football player’s death was formally announced and it was asked that others “respect their wishes for privacy and grace.” Meanwhile, LaVergne said arrangements for the funeral have yet to be finalized.