Dominick Reuter / Reuters
Ex-New England Patriot Aaron Hernandez was found guilty of murdering semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd in 2013 by a jury Wednesday. Barely an hour later, a judge sentenced Hernandez to life in prison without parole for murder and two other convictions on gun and ammunition charges. Before Hernandez goes to prison, he will stand trial in May for two other murders.
Lloyd was dating Hernandez’s fiancée’s sister when he was murdered and subsequently found in an industrial park with gunshot wounds. Surveillance footage of Hernandez holding a Glock in his house after the murder was presented by prosecutors. Hernandez’s defense team initially claimed the footage was unclear and that the object might have been an iPad but later admitted it was a pistol.
Hernandez is also charged with murdering two other men in a drive-by shooting one year before Lloyd’s murder. (He's pleaded not guilty to the charges. Just two months later, Hernandez signed a five-year, $40 million contract with the Patriots.
Hernandez appeared unmoved in the courtroom Wednesday, mouthing “it’ll be OK” and “be strong” to his fiancée, Shayanna Jenkins.