Friday 17 April 2015

Aaron Hernandez blew it all away because of uncontrollable anger


Aaron Michael Hernandez (born November 6, 1989) is a former American football player who was found guilty of the first-degree murder of Odin Lloyd. According to Hernandez’s mother, his father's death greatly affected him, leading him to rebel against authority figures.
                   

He was an exceptional football player; of that no one has any doubts. Hernandez signed a 7 year $41 million contract with the Patriots that came with $16.5 million in guaranteed money and a $12.5 million signing bonus. He was set to earn $1.3 million in 2014, $2.3 million in 2015, $5 million in 2016 and $6 million in 2017. He would also have been eligible for a variety of lucrative bonuses based on performance and tenure and no doubt, money from sponsors. He was going to be a very rich man.


He had been dating Shayanna Jenkins since 2007. They have a daughter, Avielle Janelle, who was born in November 2012. That same month, Hernandez purchased a 7,100 square feet (660 m2) four-story home, with an in-ground pool, in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, for $1.3 million.         


His life was the envy of millions upon millions of people. However, he had a flaw. Of course, we all have flaws in our lives but his flaw ruined him. Uncontrollable anger was his flaw. When he lost his father, the loss made him angry and cold with others. A trivial incident in his life triggered one of the time bombs in his mind and that was what destroyed his career and caused him to lose his freedom for life. His temper was triggered by seemingly inconsequential incidents, including having his drink spilled, may have been a factor in the three murders that Aaron Hernandez was accused of being involved in of which he was convicted of one of the murders on April 15, 2015.   


In 2012, Hernandez went to the Rumor nightclub in Boston. One of the persons in the nightclub—Daniel Abreu accidentally bumped into Hernandez at the nightclub, spilling Hernandez's drink. Hernandez told a friend he thought the man was “trying” him, and surveillance video outside the club showed Hernandez pacing back and forth while his friend tried to calm him down. The fuse in one of the time bombs in his head had been lit and no one was going to put it out. A valet who drove Hernandez’ car to the front of the nightclub later told the police that he saw Hernandez tuck a gun into his waistband when he got in his car.


 Hernandez waited in his car until he saw the man who had accidentally spilled his drink on him get into his car with two other men.  He followed them in his silver SUV and when they were all stopped at a red light, he lowered his window and fired his gun at the three men. Safiro Furtado and Daniel Abreu were killed and the third was injured and survived. The second time bomb had exploded in his head.


Hernandez was arrested and charged with the two murders and with the wounding of the third man. Believe it or not, he was actually released on bail. That was a very big mistake on the part of the judge conducting the bail hearing. I don’t care how famous a suspected multiple killer is or how high the bail is, Hernandez should never have been released on bail. My reasoning is obvious when you consider what followed his release.                    


In February 2013, he shot Alexander Bradley, one of his friends in his face and left him for dead in an industrial park in Florida. The reason? It was over an argument the two had. This time, a second time bomb had exploded in his head.


He was concerned about things that anyone who knew him would know about him.  Odin Lloyd aged 27 a landscaper who played semiprofessional football and who was a going with the sister of the Hernandez’s girlfriend knew things about him and that was of considerable concern to Hernandez. Trust was important to Hernandez, who often became suspicious of people.

Lloyd apparently saw guns and rounds of ammunition at Hernandez's Franklin apartment, when the two returned there to party with a couple of women a few nights before his death. I don’t know how much Odin knew about the shooting of the three men in Boston but the fuse of the third time bomb in Hernandez’s head was lit again.
 

Hernandez and two accomplices picked up Lloyd, at his home on the pretext that they would party together. Instead they drove through the darkness to an industrial park in North Attleboro near the football player’s spacious home. When they arrived there, Hernandez shot Lloyd several times with a .45-caliber Glock pistol, including two kill shots to Lloyd’s chest as he writhed in pain on the ground. The third time bomb in Hernandez’s head had exploded.


When he returned to his home, he is suspected of giving the gun to his girlfriend and she was seen walking out of the home with a box in her hand. The gun was never found.


Admittedly, the evidence against Hernandez was purely speculative but believable. For example, they found in Lloyd‘s pocket, the key to a car that was rented by Hernandez. There was evidence that Lloyd was with Hernandez when he was killed. The prosecutor didn’t have to prove that Hernandez pulled the trigger. The proof that was needed to convict him of first degree murder was (under Massachusetts law) that he was present when the murder was committed and that he made no attempt to stop the killing of Lloyd.


If his lawyers appeal the conviction, it will be a very steep hill to climb because unless the judge made a serious error while conducting the trial (and the experts say that is highly improbable and the lawyers cant appeal the decision of the jury) then this man will be spending the rest of his natural life in prison.


His property and bank accounts have been seized since there are civil claims filed against him. Obviously the folly of Hernandez is going to bring a fortune to the families of his victims.


In his attempt to achieve his goal of finding relief from his anger resulted in him sinking headfirst into the abyss of folly. What I find that is incredible is that this man actually believed that he could get away with the murders he was accused of. His stupidity cost him his freedom and the millions he earned and was going to earn. Those events in his life will plague him while he spends the rest of his life in prison and since he is 27 now, he could spend between 50 and 60 years in prison if he isn’t killed by another inmate during a fight. 

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