After five days of deliberations, the jury in the Aaron Hernandez murder trial has reached a verdict. The former New England Patriots tight end has been found guilty.
The trial proceeded over a six-week period, during which prosecutors tried to prove that Hernandez murdered Odin Lloyd and had his fiancee dispose of the murder weapon. The jury found the conviction was warranted by “reason of extreme atrocity or cruelty.”
Hernandez will serve an automatic life sentence without parole. In addition to first-degree murder, he has also been found guilty of numerous gun-related charges.
In their closing arguments, Hernandez’s attorneys told the jury that the 25-year-old witnessed Lloyd being killed but did not pull the trigger. The jury apparently did not buy that narrative.
