Aaron Hernandez Trial---*Guilty*

[NoSaint]

 

In football terminology what Hernandez's lawyer did was throw up a Hail Mary. He knows the best he can do for his client is to try to put enough doubt about who pulled the trigger into the minds of the jurors that Hernandez gets convicted of a crime other than 1st degree murder. I wonder if we might hear from his two buddies at this late hour now that his lawyer tried to throw them under the bus.

even if he didnt pull the trigger, its first degree murder in Massachusetts. essentially the hail mary is that not only did he not pull the trigger but he had no desire to harm the guy in any way, no prior knowledge that they were going to teach him a lesson, no anything..... im not an expert but it read like his defense was essentially that he was a victim of the other guys plans.... which is quite the stretch - a hail mary from your own 1 yard line down by 8.

[GG]

 

In football terminology what Hernandez's lawyer did was throw up a Hail Mary.

 

And we know how those rulings work out for Patriots*

 

So maybe a brilliant strategy, after all

[BillsFan130]

I still think in my opinion that he's going to be found not guilty. Did he do it? Most likely. But no credible eye witnesses, no murder weapon found, no primary motive to do it, combined with his amazing defence lawyers

[LOVEMESOMEBILLS]

I still think in my opinion that he's going to be found not guilty. Did he do it? Most likely. But no credible eye witnesses, no murder weapon found, no primary motive to do it, combined with his amazing defence lawyers

I could be wrong, but I don't remember his lawyers doing a whole lot in this trial.

[KDIGGZ]

if he's not guilty...how long until the Cowboys or Raiders sign him?

[richNjoisy]

I still think in my opinion that he's going to be found not guilty. Did he do it? Most likely. But no credible eye witnesses, no murder weapon found, no primary motive to do it, combined with his amazing defence lawyers

I don't agree but I understand your skepticism. You are right about human witnesses but there IS video evidence, his own lawyer now admits he was present when the murder occurred, and his post crime actions are very suspicious. Have you seen the video shot still image of him leaving a room with sure looks like a gun in his hand? It looks like a gun to me. A jury can convict on circumstantial evidence if they believe, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the accused committed the crime. It seems to me there is enough evidence to convict. I would.

[BillsFan130]

I don't agree but I understand your skepticism. You are right about human witnesses but there IS video evidence, his own lawyer now admits he was present when the murder occurred, and his post crime actions are very suspicious. Have you seen the video shot still image of him leaving a room with sure looks like a gun in his hand? It looks like a gun to me. A jury can convict on circumstantial evidence if they believe, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the accused committed the crime. It seems to me there is enough evidence to convict. I would.

Ya i saw the video, you definitely make good points but it only takes one idiot juror to say he is not guilty. I hope your right because he is a scumbag who should be locked up for life but i don't know. Guess we'll see soon!

I could be wrong, but I don't remember his lawyers doing a whole lot in this trial.

His defence team got huge wins before the trial even started, keeping out huge pieces of evidence and past violent stories regarding hernandez. If he gets convicted it won't be because of their effort

[Hapless Bills Fan]

if he's not guilty...how long until the Cowboys or Raiders sign him?

 

A while kdiggz, a while. It's only his first murder trial, he's got two (completely different) 1st degree murder charges and a 2nd trial to go.

 

As for what Hernandez high priced attorneys achieved, they managed to supress a bunch of rather incriminating evidence - the actual texts where Hernandez was setting up the rendezvous, for example, on the grounds that they were improperly obtained.

 

They were also successful in preventing the former "friend" who Hernandez shot in the eye and left in an industrial park (whoa, where did we hear this before?) from testifying about that incident, which would have been hella damaging since part of Hernandez' defense is that he had no particular motive for murdering Lloyd. Alexander Bradley could testify that Hernandez didn't need any particular motive to shoot a "friend" and dump him in an industrial park. In fact they tried to keep him from testifying at all.

[dwight in philly]

if he's not guilty...how long until the Cowboys or Raiders sign him?

why not have rex and doug bring him in for a look.. imagine the double TE, him and clay.

[kota]

I doubt he gets convicted of first degree murder. Not enough evidence. It's all circumstantial.

[Roger Goodell]

if he's not guilty...how long until the Cowboys or Raiders sign him?

 

Surely you can't be serious.

[SectionC3]

Hernandez lawyer just admitted Aaron witnessed the murder but was "helpless to stop it".

 

Yeh, right.

 

Jury has got to convict him now. Amazed his lawyer admitted this.

 

http://www.espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/12636098/closing-arguments-heard-aaron-hernandez-murder-trial

 

I couldn't resist the urge to join this threat because I do this type of legal work for a living and it's interesting to me to see people take an interest in something like this.

 

I haven't followed the trial very closely, but I'm familiar with the basics. There is a mountain of circumstantial evidence that, among other things, strongly suggests that Hernandez was at the scene of the murder. I assume Hernandez was charged with what in New York State would be intentional murder (murder in the second degree) on the basis of accessorial conduct. In other words, the People probably alleged that Hernandez either pulled the trigger or had the same intent (to have the vic shot and killed) as the person who pulled the trigger.

 

So the defense, without exaggeration, was brilliant. In a nutshell, the defense beat up on the prosecution witnesses during the prosecution's case and highlighted the obvious flaws in the People's case - no murder weapon, no triggerman, no motive (not that a motive is needed). Then, and this is where the brilliance comes in, the defense acknowledged Hernandez's presence at the murder scene but explained how the murder could have occurred without his involvement through the PCP point - one of the other two guys present snapped b/c of the PCP use and unexpectedly shot the vic.

 

At the end of the day, the case probably comes down to whether the jury thinks the security cam in the house shows a gun in Hernandez's hand, and how the jury views Hernandez's destruction of the surveillance system and his phone (assuming, safely I think, that both of the latter points are in evidence). Ultimately I suspect those will be the things that do him in, and I think we'll get a guilty verdict by the middle of next week. Had the jury been sequestered, I suspect this would have been done by Friday afternoon.

 

I will also say this: many times the questions the jury asks during deliberations provide insight as to what's going on in the jury room. Here the jury asked for an exhibit list at the outset of deliberations, which makes me think that it's a deliberative group that will do its job carefully. It may also mean that there are some sticklers in the room who may have a problem convicting someone of a murder charge based only on circumstantial evidence and who therefore want to review all of the evidence before voting the case. What really caught my eye, though, was the request for a supplemental instruction on the gun charge. It's tough to evaluate the request without knowing the wording of the charges against Hernandez, but it made me wonder whether the jury might buy the PCP defense on the murder charge and was thinking of moving on to the gun charge. (The murder count is the most serious charge against Hernandez and, based on the chronology of the court's instructions, the jury would likely consider that charge first.) Although I don't like to read tea leaves, it wouldn't shock me if Hernandez gets a hung jury or even a not guilty verdict on the murder charge. The possibility is a very small one, but it's there. And it's more than I would have thought to have existed at the outset of the trial.

Edited April 11, 2015 by BuffaloPowerEye

[ALF]

Aaron has the megabucks, his crew does what he tells them to do

[SectionC3]

Aaron has the megabucks, his crew does what he tells them to do

 

Agreed. But what if he wanted his two banger pals to merely throw a beating into the vic and one of them took it a step further than was anticipated, brought the gun into the mix, and put half a dozen bullets into the vic while Hernandez had his back turned? I know it sounds unlikely, but it is possible. That's why the PCP defense was outstanding, and it's why at least the murder charge isn't a sure thing for the People.

[NoSaint]

 

Agreed. But what if he wanted his two banger pals to merely throw a beating into the vic and one of them took it a step further than was anticipated, brought the gun into the mix, and put half a dozen bullets into the vic while Hernandez had his back turned? I know it sounds unlikely, but it is possible. That's why the PCP defense was outstanding, and it's why at least the murder charge isn't a sure thing for the People.

I believe we've seen articles on Massachusetts law from pft or the like saying that a beat down gone bad is still a conviction on the charge?

[SectionC3]

I believe we've seen articles on Massachusetts law from pft or the like saying that a beat down gone bad is still a conviction on the charge?

Depends what the charge in Mass is. The equivalent charge in NYS is probably murder second, which is found in Penal Law 125.25. Subdivision 1 of that section (there are several parts) states that

 

"A person is guilty of murder in the second degree when . . . [w]ith intent to cause the death of another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person . . . ."

Ergo, no intent to cause death = no murder conviction. In this state the "beat down gone bad" theory could still result in a conviction on a lesser charge, such as manslaughter in the first degree. Someone is guilty of that crime when "with intent to cause serious physical injury to another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person." Serious physical injury has its own definition, which I won't get into here, but the obvious difference between murder and manslaughter in this context is the difference in intent.

Assuming that Mass has similar penal laws of this state, and assuming that those similar laws are in play in the Hernandez trial, if the jury believes that Hernandez did not have or share the intent to kill the vic, there can be no murder conviction. So again, this is why the PCP defense is genius.

[BarleyNY]

Surely you can't be serious.

I am serious..........and don't call me Shirley.

[BuffaloBillsForever]

I doubt he gets convicted of first degree murder. Not enough evidence. It's all circumstantial.

Strong circumstantial evidence is all you need to convict someone.

[aristocrat]

guilty on all counts

[LeviF]

haha love it