Lawyer: Ex-NFLer Aaron Hernandez, now in prison, low on cash
May 22, 2015, 11:25 AM
Sporting a new neck tattoo former New England Patriots NFL football player Aaron Hernandez sits at the defense table during his arraignment on a charge of trying to silence a witness in a double murder case against him by shooting the man in the face at Suffolk Superior Court, Thursday, May 21, 2015, in Boston. Hernandez was convicted last month in the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia, Pool)
(AP Photo/Stephan Savoia, Pool)
NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) — Former NFL player and convicted killer Aaron Hernandez is running out of money after hiring a platoon of lawyers for all his criminal cases, his attorney said.
Attorney John Fitzpatrick told a judge in New Bedford on Thursday that Hernandez was paid for only one year of his now-terminated $40 million contract with the New England Patriots.
“Despite some pretty wild and baseless speculative allegations made about piles of money, there are no piles of money,” Fitzpatrick said.
In addition to paying lawyers, Fitzpatrick said, Hernandez is supporting his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins, and the couple’s 2-year-old daughter.
Hernandez was convicted last month of the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd, who was dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancee. Lloyd’s mother, Ursula Ward, has sued Hernandez, and her lawyers are trying to track down his assets. Court records indicate Ward could be awarded more than $5 million in the case.
In court Thursday, Moses ordered a 60-day extension of a restraining order barring Hernandez from selling his 2005 Hummer and keeping the money. Ward’s attorneys filed a temporary restraining order after the vehicle turned up for sale at a used car lot in Wrentham.
The judge advised attorneys for Ward and Hernandez to come to an agreement on the sale of the vehicle, and he ordered that the proceeds be held by the court. A status conference on the sale of the vehicle was scheduled for July 20.
Ward’s attorneys have placed an attachment on Hernandez’s $1.3 million house in North Attleboro, meaning it cannot be sold without them being notified.
Fitzpatrick told the judge that he didn’t know whether Jenkins and her daughter were still living in the home.
Ward’s attorney, Douglas Sheff, said after the hearing that the next step is filing a motion for discovery to learn more about Hernandez’s assets. Sheff said the Hummer was the “tip of the iceberg.”
“If he has someone working on his behalf for a vehicle, imagine what he could be doing with millions of dollars. We really need to find out where things are now,” Sheff said.
In a separate hearing Thursday in Boston, Hernandez pleaded not guilty to a witness intimidation charge that prosecutors say is related to a 2012 double murder he’s also charged in.
Prosecutors say Hernandez shot friend Alexander Bradley in 2013 in Florida a night after Bradley made a remark about the double slaying in Boston. Hernandez has pleaded not guilty to fatally shooting two men in a car over a spilled drink in a bar; that case is pending.
Bradley has said Hernandez retaliated against him by shooting him in the face, resulting in the loss of his right eye.
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