North Attleboro, Massachusetts police are questioning New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez in connection with the death of a 27-year-old man. They may also seek permission (or a warrant) to search Hernandez’s home. However Hernandez is not considered to be an official suspect in the investigation.
Sports Illustrated are reporting that the body of the 27 year old man was found dead by a jogger on Monday in a North Attleboro clearing, less than a mile from Hernandez’s home. A rental car, a 2013 Chevy Suburbun, that had been registered to Hernandez was also found at the scene.
ABCnews is indicating that the deceased is an associate of Hernandez, and that the home has already been searched. They also state that Hernandez has been uncooperative with police.
Hernandez, his agents and his lawyer have all declined to comment publicly on the case.
Stacey James, a New England Patriots official, said on behalf of the team, “I am aware of the reports, but I do not anticipate that we will be commenting publicly during an ongoing police investigation.”
Hernandez was a 4th round pick in the 2010 NFL draft. He was named to the Pro Bowl following the 2011 season. Last season Hernandez caught 51 passes and scored five touchdowns for the Patriots in just 10 games. He was sidelined for several weeks after suffering a high ankle sprain.
Edit: Update 9:30pm. Multiple sources are now reporting that the police have obtained a search warrant and are searching Hernandez’s home.
Legal Analysis*: This is bad for Hernandez. The police may be seeing that he is not a suspect, however a judge has given a search warrant for the home. There must be some reason to believe that there is evidence in the home that will lead the police to the killer. In my opinion this likely means that either Hernandez, or someone living in the home must be a viable suspect, as typically speaking the courts do not hand out search warrants on private homes easily.
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*Legal analysis is not advice…. If you find yourself in a similar situation, find a lawyer immediately.
