Aaron Hernandez remains behind bars at the Bristol County House of Corrections awaiting trial for the murder of Odin Lloyd. Given all the circumstantial evidence we have heard to this point, most people feel that a conviction is merely a formality. Paul Solotaroff of Rolling Stone magazine does not see it that way at all.
Solotaroff is the writer who wrote the lengthy piece about Hernandez that claimed the former tight end is an angel dust user who confided in Bill Belichick about gangsters trying to kill him. In an interview with CBS Sports Radio’s Doug Gottlieb on Wednesday, Solotaroff said he believes Hernandez will eventually be acquitted of his murder charge.
“I think (the case) is not only beatable, (but) I think he will be back in the NFL within three or four years,” he said. “I think they’ve grossly overcharged him based on the case they’re building – no direct eye witness, no murder weapon (and) no plausible motive.”
Solotaroff said he believes it will be easy to convict Hernandez on the five gun charges levied against him. However, he said he cannot see him doing any more than a few years in prison for that. Does that mean a return to the NFL is possible for a man who most have already labeled a murderer?
“As crazy as it sounds, this is a guy with no priors,” Solotaroff continued. “So asking a judge to sentence Hernandez to consecutive prison bids – rather than contemporary ones – is going to be a very hard sell for the prosecution. And if in fact he winds up doing three years behind (bars for) those gun charges – which would be a lot in this case – he’s 26, 27, with very low mileage on those legs of his and a lot of time to heal up. My sources tell me there will be more than one NFL team pursuing him hotly when he walks out of jail in four years.”
It is certainly legitimate food for thought. Based on the evidence the prosecution claims it has against Hernandez, I’m personally hoping there is enough for a jury to convict the 23-year-old. But if there is not, plenty of NFL teams will be willing to give him a look.
Investigators have searched extensively for the murder weapon that was used to kill Lloyd, but they have not — to our knowledge — had any luck in uncovering it. Without that gun, the case against Hernandez will be a lot weaker than prosecutors would like it to be.
H/T Shutdown Corner
