Aaron Hernandez

The NFL Players Association filed grievances on Hernandez's behalf seeking various bonuses and guaranteed contractual payments, which the Patriots disputed following his release and the criminal allegations. The dispute continued for years before being included in a grievance settlement with the team in 2020.

State of the evidence

Settlement

Attribution

Directly implicated

A federal court dismissed Hernandez's daughter's lawsuit against the NFL, finding that the derivative claim was covered and barred by the earlier concussion class-action settlement, to which Hernandez's circumstances were legally subject.

Hernandez was charged in 2014 with the murders of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado, who were shot dead in Boston in July 2012. Prosecutors alleged that he had opened fire following an altercation at a nightclub. In April 2017, a jury acquitted him of both murders and the related witness intimidation charge, but convicted him on one count of unlawful firearm possession, adding a sentence of four to five years.

Attribution

Accused

Hernandez was found dead in his cell at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center, five days after his acquittal in the Boston double murder case. Authorities concluded that he had died by suicide by hanging. His death occurred while his appeal against the conviction for Odin Lloyd's murder was still pending.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

The family announced that examination of Hernandez's brain had identified a severe case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). A lawyer brought an action on behalf of his daughter against the NFL and the Patriots, alleging that they had deprived the family of knowledge about the risks associated with head injuries.

State of the evidence

Documented

Alexander Bradley, formerly close to Hernandez, alleged in a civil lawsuit that Hernandez shot him in the face outside a Miami club, causing him to lose the use of one eye. After several years of proceedings, the parties reached an out-of-court settlement in February 2016, the terms of which were not disclosed.

Attribution

Accused

At the sentencing of Oscar Hernandez Jr. (no family relation), the US Department of Justice stated that Aaron Hernandez had participated in a conspiracy to purchase and transport firearms from Florida to Massachusetts and had provided 15,000 dollars to fund the purchases. Three firearms delivered to Aaron Hernandez had been recovered during the investigation into Odin Lloyd's murder.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Accused

According to CNN and ESPN, Hernandez allegedly agreed to act as a lookout while one inmate entered another's cell, an incident that escalated into a fight and was considered possibly gang-related. All three inmates were reportedly disciplined, with Hernandez placed in a special management unit.

State of the evidence

Reported by the press

Attribution

Directly implicated

Several media outlets reported that an improvised knife-like weapon, or shank, had been found in Hernandez's cell during a search and that he had been transferred to a segregation unit.

State of the evidence

Reported by the press

Attribution

Directly implicated

While awaiting trial, Hernandez was involved in a fight with another inmate in February 2014 and faced a separate allegation of threatening a guard in connection with an incident in November 2013. A grand jury indicted him for assault and battery and threats of bodily harm. According to media reports, the fight also resulted in a disciplinary sanction of 30 days in solitary confinement.

Attribution

Accused

A shooting in Gainesville in September 2007 injured two men. Police records showed that Hernandez's name had been mentioned and that a witness had at one point identified him before withdrawing the identification. Hernandez was briefly questioned and subsequently invoked his right to legal counsel. In 2013, Massachusetts investigators asked Gainesville police to re-examine his possible involvement.

Odin Lloyd's family filed a wrongful death action against Hernandez alongside the criminal proceedings. The action sought to establish his civil liability and preserve assets potentially available for compensation.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Accused

At 17, while playing for the University of Florida, Aaron Hernandez was questioned following a dispute over a bill at The Swamp bar. He admitted striking an employee in the head; the victim suffered a ruptured eardrum. Police had considered bringing charges, but no criminal charges were ultimately filed.

State of the evidence

Admitted by the person

Attribution

Directly implicated