Aaron Hernandez is set to appear in superior court in Fall River on Wednesday at 2 pm for a pretrial hearing in his murder case and after previously appearing in September for an arraignment, he will once again back in court for the next stage in his case.
Hernandez was arrested back in June for the murder of Odin Lloyd and now he continues to face first degree murder charges in the case and could be facing life in prison if convicted on the charges. The body of Lloyd was found in June less than a mile from Hernandez's home in North Attleboro and he was arrested the following week, after which the New England Patriots released him from their team after previously giving him a $40 million contract extension earlier in the year.
On Wednesday, the hearing will be for pretrial issues and scheduling, as well as rulings on multiple motions going on in the case, including one regarding a gag order. The lawyers for Hernandez want the gag order extended to ensure that their client can at least attempt to get a fair trial and the other motion is about discovery, with the prosecution being asked to give over evidence to the defense.
During his last court appearance, the judge in the case said that Hernandez could request bail at a later time and while that likely will not get ruled on today, there is a chance that the lawyers could ask for bail again. Hernandez was previously denied bail twice earlier in the summer.
Hernandez had character issues following him since his days playing for the Florida Gators, but that didn't stop the Patriots from drafting him and giving him the contract extension and now that looks pretty bad. Hernandez reportedly was involved in multiple incidents while playing for the Gators and he also was involved in another shooting incident earlier this year involving an associate named Alexander Bradley. That man claimed Hernandez shot him in the eye and left him bleeding to death earlier this year and now information has come out that he may have been with Hernandez on the night of another murder.
While no official connection has been made, a grand jury was convened to look at Hernandez's possible involvement in a double murder in Boston from last year and now reports have come out that Bradley may have been with him the night of that murder. Daniel Abreu and Safiro Furtado were killed in a drive by shooting last July and the car was traced back to Hernandez's uncle's house and now reports have come out that Bradley was with Hernandez that night, possibly making the shooting of him related to his knowledge of that crime. Hernandez has not been charged in that crime, but a grand jury was convened to look into his possible involvement.
