Aaron Hernandez, a onetime star tight end for the NFL’s New England Patriots, was convicted Wednesday of first-degree murder in the 2013 killing of his fiancee’s sister. Hernandez, who once enjoyed a salary of nearly $10 million per year, now faces life in prison as well as two more murder charges.
The former Pro-Bowler looked to his right and pursed his lips after the jury forewoman read the verdict, which came as a bit of a surprise to experts after the jury took nearly a week to deliberate. The conviction in the murder of Odin Lloyd, a 27-year-old landscaper and amateur weekend football player, carries a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Hernandez’s mother, Terri, and his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins, cried and gasped when they heard the verdict. Shayanna Jenkins wept on his mother’s shoulder. Hernandez mouthed to them moments sitting back in his chair, “Be strong. Be strong.”
The former football pro was also found guilty on firearm and ammunition charges.
Hernandez’s lawyer acknowledged during closing arguments that he was at the scene when Lloyd was killed, but argued the shooting was perpetrated by two of Hernandez’s friends, saying his client was a 23-year-old kid who didn’t know what to do.
But prosecutors effectively argued Hernandez planned the killing and then helped cover it up.
Lloyd was shot six times in the middle of the night on June 17, 2013, in a deserted industrial park near Hernandez’s home in North Attleborough. Prosecutors presented a wealth of evidence, largely circumstantial, which showed Hernandez was with Lloyd at the time he was killed, including home security video from Hernandez’s mansion. Witness testimony and cellphone records also tracked Lloyd’s movements.
Hernandez’s lawyer, James Sultan, acknowledged for the first time during closing arguments that Hernandez was there when Lloyd was killed.
Prosecutors have suggested Lloyd may have been killed because he knew too much about Hernandez’s alleged involvement in a deadly 2012 drive-by shooting in Boston. However, the jury was not allowed to hear that information because the judge said it was speculation.
As a result, they never offered a motive save for saying Hernandez was angry at Lloyd while a nightclub two nights before the killing.
Hernandez’s legal troubles are far from over. He is awaiting trial on murder charges in the drive-by shooting, and is accused of gunning down two men over a spilled drink at a nightclub.
The former tight end grew up in Connecticut, where he starred for Bristol Central High School. Recruiters sought him out in droves and he initially decided to play for the University of Connecticut, before opting out in favor of the University of Florida, where he played from 2007 to 2009. With the Florida Gators, he became a starter as a sophomore, and starred in the 2009 BCS National Championship Game in which Florida beat the Oklahoma Sooners, 24–14.
The very next season, Hernandez was named a first-team All-American.
Hernandez declared for the NFL draft after his junior year, and was selected by the New England Patriots in the fourth round.
But trouble and warning signs soon followed, as it was only days after he was selected that The Boston Globe reported he had failed multiple drug tests while in college at the Gator Nation. As a pro, Hernandez became a rookie starter and scored six touchdowns in 14 games. He was named a Pro Bowl alternate in his second season, in 2011, and helped lead the Patriots to Super Bowl XLVI, which the team lost to the New York Giants 17-21.
After cutting Hernandez, the team immediately voided the remaining years on the contract and moved to recoup all of the signing bonus. Less than a year later, he was arrested for the murder of Lloyd and was soon cut by the Patriots, winners of this year’s Super Bowl.
