FALL RIVER, Mass. — Prosecutors rested their murder case against former Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez Thursday, after autopsy photos and graphic descriptions of gunshot wounds left jurors with a stark reminder of the killing Hernandez is accused of orchestrating.
Dr. William Zane, the state medical examiner who performed Odin Lloyd’s autopsy, testified that the 27-year-old from Dorchester, Mass., was shot six times — twice in the chest, once in the arm, once in the shoulder, and once in the back. Three of the gunshot wounds would have been fatal if fired independently, Zane said, and the victim would have died in a matter of minutes.
Zane explained in detail the internal injuries caused by each of the bullets, and declared: “Mr. Lloyd died as a result of injuries to the heart, lungs, liver, and kidney, due to gunshot wounds of the torso.”
Lloyd’s mother left the courtroom Thursday before Zane took the stand, and several jurors winced upon seeing pictures of the gunshot wounds and hearing the medical examiner explain how the bullets shot through Lloyd’s body, destroying his internal organs. Superior Court Judge E. Susan Garsh reminded jurors that they are to decide the case based on evidence, “not sympathy or pity.”
Defense lawyer James Sultan attempted to lessen the emotional impact that the medical examiner’s testimony may have had on the jury.
“As far as we know, Dr. Zane, does an individual suffer conscious pain when he is unconscious?” Sultan asked. Zane said no.
“Your autopsy can’t tell us anything about who caused those injuries, can it?” Sultan asked. Zane said that was correct.
Hernandez sat stone-faced during the medical examiner’s testimony. The former NFL tight end, and several jurors, burst into laughter immediately before Zane took the stand, after prosecutors knocked over a mannequin they brought to identify the location of the gunshot wounds. The light-hearted mood in the courtroom as Bristol County Assistant District Attorney William McCauley re-attached the mannequin’s arm changed abruptly when the prosecutor began his questioning.
Zane was the final witness before McCauley rested the state’s case Thursday. Prosecutors called 131 people to testify since opening statements Jan. 29.
Defense attorneys have not said how many witnesses they intend to call, but have signaled that they do not expect their case to take longer than a day. Hernandez is not expected to testify.
Garsh will hear arguments Friday on a defense motion to allow testimony from Dr. David Greenblatt, a medical expert who would testify about the effect of PCP and marijuana on the human brain and behavior. Two other men from Bristol, Conn., are charged in Lloyd’s murder, and both have prior drug convictions that include the use or possession of PCP, a substance known to cause violent behavior.
Defense lawyers argue that mere presence at the scene of the crime is not enough for conviction. They said in court documents filed Thursday that the state has failed to identify “any motive whatsoever for Hernandez to kill Lloyd.”
Hernandez, 25, is accused of murder and two illegal firearms counts. Prosecutors say he arranged Lloyd’s execution-style death in June 2013, and then made efforts to conceal the crime. The former Patriots tight end, who was preparing for his fourth NFL season, was arrested a week after Lloyd’s bullet-riddled body was found blocks from his $1.3 million North Attleborough, Mass., home. Police found keys to a car Hernandez rented in the victim’s pocket.
Even if Hernandez is acquitted on all charges, he will return immediately to jail, where he is awaiting trial on murder charges in a 2012 double homicide in Boston.
Prosecutors brought double murder charges against Hernandez in the Boston case last year, after evidence recovered in the Lloyd shooting provided them significant leads in a previous cold-case investigation. Authorities have said the Lloyd killing cast light on a pattern of violence that went unnoticed while Hernandez earned millions as a professional football player.
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