Aaron Hernandez Found Not Guilty of Murder in 2012 Double-Homicide

Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was found not guilty of murder stemming from the 2012 drive-by shootings of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado. 

Ben Volin of the Boston Globe first reported the news. Tim Caputo of 7News Boston WHDH showcased Hernandez's reaction to the verdict:

According to the Boston Globe's Travis Andersen, Hernandez was formally charged with two counts of murder following a drive-by shooting that left de Abreu and Furtado dead. Hernandez was also reportedly charged with shooting Alexander Bradley "in an effort to silence" him about the killings, per Andersen. 

Bradley, who survived, was reportedly driving the car the night the drive-by shootings occurred. 

"The Commonwealth alleges that Hernandez grew enraged after de Abreu spilled a drink on him earlier in a nightclub," Yahoo Sports' Dan Wetzel wrote. "Unable to let such a sign of disrespect go, the Commonwealth argued that Hernandez later hunted de Abreu and his party down at closing time and ordered Bradley to drive up on their car."

Bradley was later called as the prosecution's star witness. However, defense attorney Jose Baez referred to the testimony as a "deal with the devil" after Bradley agreed to testify in exchange for immunity, per Wetzel. 

"They are handing out immunity in this case like it’s Halloween," Baez said during closing arguments, per Wetzel. "Mr. Haggan is the next Oprah Winfrey: 'You’ve got immunity, you've got immunity, we've all got immunity.’ That’s not how you build a case. You’re not the Oprah Winfrey of immunity."

As it turns out, the defense's arguments—which also alleged that Bradley was the killer, per Wetzel—seem to have been persuasive enough in the jury's eyes to produce a not guilty verdict. 

However, Hernandez will still spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole despite avoiding a guilty verdict Friday due to his previous conviction for the murder of former semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd in June 2013.