Bristol County DA Wants Hernandez Conviction Reinstated
BOSTON — Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III is urging the state's highest court to reinstate the murder conviction of Aaron Hernandez.
Quinn says it's not fair that the former New England Patriots tight end's murder conviction was thrown out just because he killed himself before his appeal was heard.
The D.A. told the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on Thursday that the legal doctrine that erased the Hernandez conviction "makes no sense," and needs to change. WBZ-TV reports that he is asking the court to do away with the legal principle which allows courts to dismiss the convictions of defendants who die before their direct appeals can be heard. Quinn says the current law is unfair to the victims and their families to void the convictions of defendants like Hernandez. The court is expected to rule sometime in the coming months.
Hernandez committed suicide in prison in 2017 after he was acquitted in two other killings.