The Aaron Hernandez case involving Odin Lloyd has been in the news as of late and CNN analyzed the case heading into the preliminary trial date in October, as Hernandez's girlfriend Shayanna Jenkins is a key figure, as she may have hid and disposed of the murder weapon in the Odin Lloyd case, as the gun was never recovered and now that could be a major factor for getting a conviction of Hernandez in a trial for Odin Lloyd's death.
According to CNN.com, the prosecution can secure a murder conviction in the Lloyd case despite not having the murder weapon, but legal analyst Michael McCann says that it will be tougher without it. Jenkins is accused of perjury and she may or may not have disposed of the murder weapon, as text messages and surveillance video put her right in the middle of the missing gun. Hernandez was seen with a gun on video the night of the murder and the day after, text messages were sent from Hernandez to Jenkins about disposing of something in the basement.
The report says that Carlo Ortiz and Ernest Wallace confirmed that Hernandez kept a gun in a box in the basement and later Jenkins was seen on video leaving the house with a rigid object in a bag. Later she returned without it and she did not answer questions to the grand jury about where it was disposed.
Aaron Hernandez was back in court for a hearing related to his double murder charges and now he also has tentative trial dates in both of his cases, with Lloyd's trial set for October and the double murder in May of next year.
Hernandez was dressed in a suit and tie in court since after previously being arrested and he answered a number of questions about the conflict, saying that he spoke with his lawyers about it very early on and also saying that he understood the conflict. Hernandez stated that he was okay with the issue and that he also is 23-years-old and attended college for three years, after which he played professional football. Hernandez is accused of murdering 27-year-old semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd and he has been held without bail since the summer.
Hernandez will appear in court for all hearings after his lawyers made that request during the pretrial hearing, saying that due to the gravity of the case, he would like the right to attend. The defense also asked and was granted allowing Hernandez to have his handcuffs taken off while in court. Hernandez is also facing charges in a double murder on top of the Odin Lloyd case and that will be the first in court in October, while the next trial will begin in May 2015.
