As viewers tune into FX and Hulu’s new docuseries American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez, many may be left wondering: what happened to Aaron Hernandez, exactly? The 10-episode limited series charts the rise and catastrophic fall of the former NFL superstar, but for those looking for an overview of the events that unfolded after the murder of Odin Lloyd, we’re here to piece things together.
On June 17, 2013, the body of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd was discovered in an industrial park in North Attleborough, Massachusetts. In the days following Lloyd’s murder, suspicion quickly fell on Hernandez. Lloyd, who was dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancée, was last seen alive in Hernandez’s company.
As investigators pieced together the events of that fateful night, evidence began to mount against the New England Patriots tight end. The investigation, and subsequent trial, would set in motion a series of events that would lead to Hernandez’s downfall, ending his promising football career and forever altering the course of his life.
What happened to Aaron Hernandez?
Just nine days after Lloyd’s body was found, Hernandez was arrested at his home and charged with first-degree murder. The Patriots wasted no time in cutting ties with Hernandez. Within hours of his arrest, the team released him, effectively ending his NFL career.
Hernandez pleaded not guilty to the murder charge and five related weapons charges. As he awaited trial, he was held without bail at the Bristol County House of Correction. The trial began on January 29, 2015, nearly two years after Lloyd’s murder. Over the course of more than two months, prosecutors presented a case that painted Hernandez as the mastermind behind Lloyd’s killing. They introduced evidence including surveillance footage, text messages, and testimony from Hernandez’s associates, Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz, both of whom were also arrested in connection with the murder.
Interestingly, a definitive motive was never established. However, law enforcement explored various theories, including a particularly sensitive one—the possibility that Lloyd may have been aware of Hernandez’s bisexuality. Investigators considered whether Hernandez, concerned about this information becoming public, might have viewed Lloyd as a threat to his carefully guarded personal life.
The defense team, meanwhile, argued that Hernandez had been present at the scene of the crime but had not pulled the trigger. They attempted to cast doubt on the prosecution’s case and suggested that Hernandez’s associates were responsible for the actual murder. After seven days of deliberation, the jury would eventually return their verdict: guilty.
What happened to Aaron Hernandez after the Odin Lloyd trial?
On April 15, 2015, Aaron Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The former athlete, who had signed a $40 million contract extension with the Patriots just two years earlier, now faced the prospect of spending the rest of his life behind bars.
How did Aaron Hernandez die?
Even as Hernandez began serving his life sentence for Lloyd’s murder, his legal troubles were far from over. He still faced charges in a separate case—a double homicide that occurred in Boston in 2012. Prosecutors alleged that Hernandez had shot and killed Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado after a nightclub encounter. The trial for this double murder began in March 2017. Unlike the Lloyd case, Hernandez was acquitted of these charges on April 14, 2017. However, the victory would be short-lived.
Just five days after his acquittal in the double murder case, on April 19, 2017, Aaron Hernandez was found dead in his prison cell at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. The cause of death was determined to be suicide by hanging. He was 27 years old.
In the wake of Hernandez’s death, some major developments began to surface. A posthumous examination of his brain revealed that he suffered from an advanced form of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease often found in athletes who have suffered repeated head trauma.
The findings from researchers at Boston University were particularly alarming. They observed that Hernandez’s CTE was, in fact, the worst case they had ever seen in a young person. The severity of his brain injury sparked intense debate about its potential impact on his behavior. Dr. Sam Gandy, a neurologist who examined Hernandez’s brain scans, believed it was possible that Hernandez’s actions were influenced by the condition. “It’s impossible for me to look at the severity of CTE in Mr. Hernandez’s brain and not think that that had a profound effect on his behavior,” he said in an episode of the “Gladiator” podcast.
However, the link between CTE and Hernandez’s actions, particularly the murder of Odin Lloyd, remains a subject of controversy. Dr. Bob Cantu, another BU neurologist, pointed out a crucial distinction. While impulsivity is a hallmark of CTE, authorities said the Lloyd murder was planned. Cantu provided a different perspective on the “Gladiator” podcast, saying, “Of all of the brains that the BU researchers examined, not one of those brains with the exception of Aaron were involved with homicide, to my knowledge. They all have CTE. So I think I’ll just leave it at that.”
As experts continued to weigh in on the effects of Hernandez’s brain condition, his case took an unexpected legal turn that would have implications beyond just his own conviction. Initially, because Hernandez died while his case was still under appeal, his attorneys employed an obscure Massachusetts legal doctrine called “abatement ab initio.” This maneuver temporarily vacated his conviction, effectively wiping his record clean in the eyes of the law.
However, this controversial decision didn’t stand for long. On March 13, 2019, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court reinstated Hernandez’s conviction, albeit with the notation that it was “neither affirmed nor reversed” due to his death during the appeal process. More significantly, the court’s ruling marked the end of the “abatement ab initio” doctrine in Massachusetts. The court declared the practice outdated, stating it was “no longer consonant with the circumstances of contemporary life, if, in fact, it ever was,” effectively closing a legal loophole that had been the subject of much debate for years.
American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez is available to stream on Hulu and airs on FX on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, help is available. Call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 for free and confidential counseling.
