Aaron Hernandez was a 23-year-old star tight end for the New England Patriots. He had recently moved to his suburban Boston mansion with his fiancée and young daughter. Life seemed pretty good for him in the summer of 2013.
Fast forward nearly 2 years later, and Hernandez sits at his defense table in Fall River District Court accused of murdering his friend Odin Lloyd, and waiting to hear from 5 men and 7 women who will essentially determine the rest of his life. When this case is resolved, he awaits a separate trial in Boston on a double murder charge. What exactly led to all of this? Hernandez let fame get to him and sadly ended up ruining what could have been a promising career.
Aaron lost his father when he was 16 years old. Unfortunately, he has let the pain and agony of losing him derail his own life. After multiple run-ins with the law during his time at the University of Florida, Hernandez dropped to the third round of the NFL draft. It seemed every time there was an issue, Hernandez was right in the middle of it.
He began smoking tons of marijuana, and when he would return to his hometown of Bristol, Conn., he always seemed to be running with the wrong crowd. The Patriots gambled on Hernandez twice, first when they drafted him and second when they signed him to a long-term extension. They were convinced he was past his old ways. They quickly learned that their gamble had backfired in a way they could have never imagined. Hernandez has continued his old ways as a troubled, angry young man that has never fully matured.
It is impossible to predict which way the jury will decide a case. Prosecutors called on 135 witnesses, and Hernandez’s defense team called three. A possible sign they think they will win the case?
It may be difficult to convict Aaron Hernandez without a murder weapon, witnesses, and no clear motive. Hernandez’s defense argues that one of his two confederates from the streets of Bristol, Ernest Wallace or Carlos Ortiz, committed the killing. Regardless of the verdict, it’s a tragedy that a young man lost his life, and another one threw it all away.
