Aaron Hernandez case takes another twist after prosecution files appeal
The legal battle in the Aaron Hernandez case is still ongoing, despite the former tight end's death
The Aaron Hernandez murder conviction that was overturned following his suicide in April could get overturned again if prosecutors get their way.
Before his death, Hernandez was in jail because he was serving a life sentence after being found guilty for the June 2013 shooting death of Odin Lloyd. Following his suicide, Hernandez's attorney's asked that his conviction in the Lloyd case be vacated due to the Massachusetts legal principle known as "abatement ab initio."
Under that principle, a defendant can have a conviction tossed out if they're not alive to have their final appeals heard. Before his death, Hernandez had been appealing the verdict in the Lloyd case.
On May 9, a judge in Massachusetts sided with Hernandez's legal team and threw out the murder conviction.
That decision didn't sit well with prosecutors in Massachusetts, who are now appearling the court ruling, the Associated Press has reported.
Bristol District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said that there's no reason Hernandez should get off the hook for a murder just because he killed himself.
"This is an archaic rule not based on the Constitution, and it should be changed," Quinn said in a statement. "A defendant who commits suicide should not be able to manipulate the outcome of his post-conviction proceedings to achieve in death what he would not be able to achieve in life."
Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder in the Lloyd case in April 2015, nearly two years after Lloyd's death. After spending two years in prison, Hernandez was put on trial again for a double-killing that took place in 2012.
In that case, which concluded on April 14, Hernandez was found not guilty. Five days after the verdict came out, Hernandez was found dead in his jail cell. Less than a week after the suicide, Hernandez's lawyers filed to have his conviction vacated in the Lloyd case.
