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Legal View with Ashleigh Banfield

Aaron Hernandez Verdict. Aired 12-12:30p ET

Aired April 15, 2015 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[12:00:00] MEL ROBBINS, CNN COMMENTATOR: And it's a - it's a victory for the justice system here in Massachusetts that this jury clearly got this case right.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, it is the final verdict, guilty of first degree murder, life in prison without parole. Mel Robbins and our entire legal time, thanks so much.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Mark O'Mara, great to see you. As always, Mark, thank you very much.

Thanks for joining us AT THIS HOUR. Our special coverage continues with Deb Feyerick right now.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Deborah Feyerick, in for Ashleigh Banfield. Welcome to LEGAL VIEW.

We have a lot to talk about. We're beginning today with breaking news. Former New England Patriots Super Bowl star Aaron Hernandez guilty of first degree murder in the shooting death of Odin Lloyd on June 17, 2013. He was sentenced moments after the guilty verdict was read. He will now serve life in prison without the possibility of parole. Any minute now we are expecting that the prosecutor, as well as the district attorney in the case, will come out and speak live about this case. Of course, we're going to bring you that as it happens.

But this morning, after 35 and a half hours, seven days of deliberations, going over months of testimony, the jury of seven women and five men handed down its unanimous verdict.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Madam foreperson, on indictment 2013-9A3-A charging the defendant, Aaron Hernandez, with murder, what say you, madam foreperson, is the defendant not guilty, guilty of murder in the first degree or guilty of murder in the second degree?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Guilty of murder in the first degree.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Madam foreperson, by which theory or theories deliberate premeditation and/or extreme atrocity or cruelty?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Extreme atrocity or cruelty. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Indictment 2013-983-B, charging the defendant,

Aaron Hernandez, with unlawful possession of a firearm while not at home or work, what say you, madam foreperson, is the defendant not guilty or guilty?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Guilty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Indictment 2013-9A3-C, charging the defendant, Aaron Hernandez, with unlawful possession of ammunition, what say you, madam foreperson, is the defendant not guilty or guilty?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Guilty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your honor, may the jury be polled on count one procedural (INAUDIBLE), please?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat one, is the verdict on indictment 2013-983-A, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat number three, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jury -- juror - madam foreperson, is the verdict that you've announced your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat number seven, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat number eight, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat number nine, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat number ten, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat 13, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat 14, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat 15, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Juror in seat 16, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And juror in seat 18, is the verdict, as announced by the foreperson, your verdict?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Be seated, please, jurors.

No, please remain standing. Thank you.

May the verdicts be recorded?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It may.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Members of the jury, harken to your verdict as it will be recorded by the court, upon your oaths, you do state that defendant, Aaron Hernandez, is guilty of murder in the first degree on indictment 2013-983-A, under the theory of extreme atrocity -

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Lloyd was shot at least five times, possibly six. He was left in an industrial park less than a mile from Hernandez's home in North Attleboro, Massachusetts. And this is the jury that you are seeing right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROWD: No. No. No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He didn't buy the PCP -

CROWD: No. No. No.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The problem is, because of the video, the way they were acting in the video.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's part of it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Going back to when Mr. Sultan (ph) acknowledged he was there, you say you were shocked. I mean was that an important moment for you as you - was it - was it an important admission? Did that affect your decision making?

[12:05:05] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: More corroboration I would think.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And it - yes. And everyone definitely discussed it. I mean that was a definite discussion.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was there any yelling? Anybody get really angry at each other?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did that - did that picture of Aaron coming into the basement with that thing in his hand look like a gun to you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At which time?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Which - what - what video?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) came up - the - what they argued about the most, it looked like the butt of the handle was hanging out, not the part that looked like the iPad but the - the view standing -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The one at the -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At the basement door?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, the basement - by the basement door. (INAUDIBLE) basement door. I mean, you know -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That was not a part of our decision, though. That wasn't -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That wasn't -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was just wondering if it looked like it to you. Everybody's got an opinion what it looked like to them. Did it look like a gun to you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would say yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would say yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) the record (INAUDIBLE) -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But that didn't factor into your decision?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it didn't matter?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We couldn't take that into consideration as far as what the verdict was. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) Bradley's testimony?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was interesting.

(CROSS TALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Take it for the person.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) shoot him in the face?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We found out after.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We found that out -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We found that out. We just found that out.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And when you found out these things, the double murder and Alexander Bradley (ph), I guess what was your - what is your reaction after going through all of this, then you hear all of that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That we made the right decision.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That we did the right thing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you wish you had known that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pardon me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That we did the right thing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you aware of the text message that Odin's -- Odin and his sister exchanged? Are you aware of the context of the text?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We found out today.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We actually found out today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Found out today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How would you factor this experience of the last couple of months with the rest of your life? I mean will it be all - will it be something that will define you do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think we'll all remember it for the rest of our lives. It will definitely be a part of us. Absolutely (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I never want to do it again.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Now we can get taken off the list, I think everyone would like that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you paying attention to the Boston trials?

CROWD: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've been having so much on our plate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was going to say, that's what we're looking forward too, catching up on current events.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's going to happen in the next couple - three or four months, you'll be paying attention to what happens in the trial?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Probably.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. This has definitely made us think about -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) yes, keep my eye on it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did I understand you right when I asked, do you wish you had known that about Alexander Bradley being shot and maybe the Boston murder as well. I think you said absolutely?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, we understand why we couldn't know that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She told us why we couldn't. But had it been presented to us in the beginning, yes, it would have - just like any of the other -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why would you (INAUDIBLE) to know that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why wouldn't we?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You said the judge told you all this new information?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Forgive me if this has been asked. Would it have made a difference to you had he taken the witness stand?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It depends on what - what he had to say.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It depends on what - yes. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were you hoping he might?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think we ever expected him to, to be honest.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Guys, what is it -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) the trigger man?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not going to answer that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was it hard - I mean what do you - what do you make of the fact that there's no murder weapon to be found? There was no really hard to find motive and no eyewitness saying that he did it? Did that make it hard? Did it - is that something that went through your minds? Or what was your - what are your thoughts about that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just reviewing all the evidence.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We went through everything step by step and -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The evidence out - jut outweighed all that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What about some of the more compelling witnesses or evidence you heard that was really decisive to you as you listened to it?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I couldn't hear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The example of one or two (INAUDIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, maybe the 22 that was found being linked with the same serial number from the one down in Florida. I think that, to us - because when it was first introduced, we were like, we didn't know how that was going to tie in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE). How it was relevant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The one that was tossed into the -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right, in the woods.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And then after that one, we seen (ph) the serial numbers matching. That was kind of - that was a shocker for us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: that was mind-blowing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the lack of a murder weapon?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did that - how did that play with you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, the law - if we don't - going by the law, we didn't need the murder weapon, so -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there any -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) trash bag -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But you charged him for unlawful - you convicted him for unlawful possession of the murder weapon. So can you talk a little bit about why you were willing to do that without actual physical evidence?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unlawful possession of a firearm, not the murder weapon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A .45.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's -- the .45, that's all we had to say.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you say what you thought of the video of Shaneah taking out the bag that was as large as her out of the house?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-uh.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think the gun was in it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did that -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We couldn't - we couldn't speculate and we certainly couldn't speculate (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have no idea.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know - this is not a specific of what you discussed, but did you start with the weapons and as you went through the case, did you start with ammo weapons and then get to --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Again, we're not here to discuss what happened in the jury room.

[12:10:01] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did you think of Shaneah Jenkins' testimony?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think we can do that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Emotional.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You could see she cared about him.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pardon?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You could see that she cared about Odin.

(CROSS TALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did any of you hold back tears at any time in the past couple of months?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, yes. Absolutely. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because on the jury it was very hard to read your emotions as you were very straight faced. Was that hard to do just -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Out of -- out of - out of respect for all parties, it's - it's something that had to be done.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, out of respect.

(CROSS TALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Guys, there is a- there is a juror that left under some controversial circumstances. Can you give us - sort of enlighten us of what happened there? Perhaps she had expressed a view previously. Can any of you - any of you tell us what happened there? We know that some -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know more than we do.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. We have never heard.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have any lingering questions about - about the events that unfolded? And do you wonder why he got in the car that night with them? Decided to take that ride?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The questions that we can answer, we've - for our peace of mind, we have and the questions that we can't, we can't. And you move forward.

(CROSS TALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) extreme cruelty or atrocity, why did that - why did you decide that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The shots. There were six of them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that's -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's extreme.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that each of us may have had different opinions as to why we reached that conclusion. There were seven different sectors or bullet points, you know, that comprised the extreme atrocity or cruelty and I think some of us got there for different reasons but still reached ultimately the same conclusion.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did that -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were there tears in the jury room?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At times? Men and the women?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ah, women. Women.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did that indicate there was premedication, that - versus the - the atrocity?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think that it indicates that there wasn't premeditation. I just think that we couldn't - excuse me, unanimously conclude that there was evidence of premeditation. However, we all agreed that there was evidence of extreme atrocity or cruelty.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With it being such a big trial, many think that there's money to gain from being on the jury pool. What happens next? Any book deals, television or any (INAUDIBLE)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To be - to be honest with you -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to be left alone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: None of us - none of us even wanted to come into this room (INAUDIBLE). So I don't - I don't see that for any of us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What kind of a strain did this put on your lives these last two and a half months being here like eight hours a day and not going to your regular jobs?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can imagine (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was our - it was our duty to do - I mean whether - whether we're serving our company or our country, it was our responsibility to give it 100 percent. And I - you know, everyone in here, you know, came in here and, although we all have our personal lives and responsibilities and distractions, I think everyone focused 100 percent on this case from the moment we walked through the doors to the moment we left.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: During the voirdire (ph), either during the case or when you were being chosen as jurors, was it awkward to you to having Hernandez standing right there over you, especially toward the end of the trial the judge had to bring you in to speak to you? What sort of - one of you is nodding. Is that awkward?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, it was uncomfortable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it was uncomfortable, absolutely.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was uncomfortable for everybody to be standing around us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's like you're in this -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What was your impression of Hernandez during the trial when you would sneak peeks at him?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I can speak for myself. I tried not to form any opinion because, again, I think that would just be speculation. We haven't - you know, for the fact that we didn't really know exactly what happened, I tried not to gauge his facial expressions or gestures in any way.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You all seem, at this point, just very sure about your decision.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-huh.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Uh-huh.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was there a point during this trial where you were almost as sure the other way, that perhaps he did not do it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You try not to - to form an opinion until --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You tried -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And assume.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've seen the evidence.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We followed the court's orders, assume that the man sitting in that seat is innocent until the prosecution proves he's guilty. And that's what happened today.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Uh-huh.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did any of you know who Robert Kraft was before he came in and what was the impact of his testimony when you saw him in the chair?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I knew who he was.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't know who he was.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I had no idea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From our point of view, that was some of the most compelling testimony. Would you guys agree? Mr. Kraft?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I - I agree that it was compelling.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And we all felt bad because we thought he was sick.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) cold. (INAUDIBLE) a cold.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, he had a cold.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We felt bad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's difficult to say what witness was more compelling than what witnesses and there was hundreds of them, 130, if you want to get down to it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you guys take a poll when you first went - when you start deliberations, did you take a poll right away or do you - I know you don't want to go into deliberations, but - but did you take a poll right off the bat?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not going to talk about what happened -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I tried.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Going back to - going back to Kraft. In what way was his testimony compelling for those of you who thought it was?

[12:14:57] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One - well one part for me was Aaron's alleged statement that he wished at the time that Odin was murdered would be - was made public because he was at a club at that time. To this day we just went through a three-month trial, this is now a year and a half - or two years later. We still don't know the exact time of Odin's murder specifically. So I don't know how Aaron would have had that information two years ago, if even today, after medical examiners review, still don't have that exact information. So for me that's -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) do you all feel you can sleep peacefully?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm hoping.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we don't have any recorders (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: After a beverage.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm hoping.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Without going into detail, was it difficult to keep track of all the evidence and all the witnesses who testified and sorting out what's important and what's not? I mean what's less important I mean, you know, what -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think everything we heard in that room was important. And that's why some of us had four up to eight notebooks, you know, making sure we got all the information so we can factor all of that. So I think it was all, at the time, equally important.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How hard was it to follow the phone records? It was tough for me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was difficult.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was difficult.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was difficult for everyone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right, thank you, guys.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Would you be - would you be willing to identify yourselves now? We will have a list later today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Or the - can the ones who -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The ones who may wish to -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The ones who spoke. The ones who spoke could just say and spell your name so -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If anybody might want to say who they were.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And if you don't -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, if you wouldn't mind, the ones who spoke.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The lady in the blue. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They already have it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Number four, right? Or number three.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You were all very (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Number three.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm an alternate and my name is April Blanchard (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pardon me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: April Blanchard.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Blanchard like the store?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: H-a-r-d.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm an alternate.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think we're done (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And where are you -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're done (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where are you from or -

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from - originally from Tauton (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Was it devastated to be called as an alternate?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good question.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Was it frustrating?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Absolutely. Because I have put in just as much time as everybody else here and I had no play in any of my opinions that I had. So it was very difficult.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And - and you still couldn't talk about it either?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Correct. It was very difficult. And I was there in a room while they were also doing their part and I thank each and every one of them because they made the right decision.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're all done. Thank you, guys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Does anybody else who spoke want to - if you want, say your name and spell it so we know who you are?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They just asked that (INAUDIBLE) cameras to stop. I think (ph). I think. You may ask them to clarify -

(CROSS TALK)

FEYERICK: And you are watching the jury there responding to the guilty verdict they rendered against Aaron Hernandez. Aaron Hernandez, the charismatic $40 million super star with the New England Patriots will serve life in prison. He was found guilty of murder in the first degree, along with other charges.

Lloyd, just to remind you, was a semi-pro football player. Aaron Hernandez called him in June of 2013. They went out for a ride at about 2:45 in the morning. He and other friends took him to an industrial park. Four men drove into that industrial park. Only three drove out. And now Aaron Hernandez is standing - is guilty in that murder.

We are joined by a very intelligent panel. Susan Candiotti, who has been in the court in Fall River for the last several months. Also joining us to speak about this case, CNN legal analyst and defense attorney Danny Cevallos, CNN legal analyst and former prosecutor Sunny Hostin, as well as CNN legal analyst and defense attorney Paul Callan. Also with us, CNN correspondent Jean Casarez. All of them very knowledgeable about this case.

But, Susan, I want to stay with you. You have been up there for the last four months watching the intricate details of this case. Aaron Hernandez, so charismatic, and yet when the first guilty verdict was read, he didn't really flinch. He stood there, as he always has. But that began to change, I believe, as you noticed.

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. He looked stunned. He certainly didn't show any emotion. But the first thing he did when he had the opportunity was to look past his lawyers, to look at his mother and his fiance, who started crying even before the verdict was read. By now they were openly weeping. And he kept looking back at them, looking back at them, and trying to mouth the words it appeared as though he said be strong or don't worry.

But he also glanced over at the mother. At that point, the victim's mother, Ursula Ward, to me one of the most lasting images. When first degree murder was read, she looked up and did this with her fist as though to say, thank God. She's a very religious woman and has been here each and every day. That family crying too because they have been here each and every day of this trial.

[12:20:02] But as far as Aaron Hernandez goes, this is a young man who had everything going for him. Twenty-three-years old. A rising star in the NFL. He had a baby. He has a baby. A little girl. A fiance. His family. And this jury found he threw it all away when he murdered Odin Lloyd. Deborah.

FEYERICK: And it certainly isn't - and it certainly isn't over, Susan, because now he's going to stand trial for the murder of two other people. So he's still got a very long way to go, right, Susan?

CANDIOTTI: Absolutely. He is indicted for the double murder of two young men in Boston in July of 2012. And incredibly, listen to this, the only way they were able to solve that case is because after Odin Lloyd was murdered, during the course of searching his family's house, relative's home in Bristol, Connecticut, that's when they found an SUV that matched the description of a car that was described as being the getaway car in the shooting death of those two men a year earlier. So that's how they were able to link him. It was a car that was - he was driving for promotional reasons and that linked him to that crime. It was one of many things that linked him. In that case, arguably, even stronger evidence. Police say they have recovered the murder weapon in that case. And they have an eyewitness, eyewitnesses, including Alexander Bradley, the same Alexander Bradley who testified against him in this case, who was - who has accused Aaron Hernandez of shooting him in the face.

FEYERICK: Right.

CANDIOTTI: It's - his troubles are far from over.

FEYERICK: Yes, there's no question about that. And it will be very interesting to see how these two cases do, in fact, overlap and that will probably happen at the second trial.

But I want to go to our panel because we heard from the jury. I was a little bit surprised and maybe it was just relief, maybe it was nervous tension that had been building up, that they seemed happy. They were laughing a little bit at times, which did surprise me because a man is now going to jail for the rest of his life, to prison for the rest of his life. The first question that was asked - first of all, the demeanor of the jury. Danny, did you see anything odd about it?

DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, if you're talking about the fact that they were prone to little laughing fits here and there, listen, they've been through such a solemn, long process, emotionally they're exhausted. I think it's very natural psychological thing to let some tension out, let some steam off. By laughing and seeing some - some sort of not humor in the process, but sort of the humor in the deliberations and the highs and lows that they went through. Look, they're exhausted. It's emotional. It's how we cope with things. And as a group, they've grown very close and that's exactly how they feel - they probably feel like a family at this point.

FEYERICK: And it's very interesting because one of the reporters asked whether they would write a book and all of them seemed to suggest, no, they had no intention of doing that.

But I want to ask you, it was interesting, one of the first questions concerned the other two men in the car with Aaron Hernandez, two men who Aaron Hernandez called that night and said, come on, we got to go. The defense argued that those men were on PCP, it was likely then, and Aaron Hernandez ultimately was a 23-year-old kid who witnessed a murder. Kind of striking. What was - the jury didn't buy it. What was your take on that?

SUNNY HOSTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, the jury didn't buy it and it didn't make a lot of sense I think to me when I heard that and especially under the law. I mean just the fact that he was there and participated in it, even if he didn't pull the trigger, it's still - he could still be found guilty. So I was sort of thrown off by that defense tactic.

But I will say this, when I looked at the jury, I saw a cohesive unit. I mean I think it's rare, quite frankly, that you see every single juror speaking to the press after --

FEYERICK: No question about that.

HOSTIN: After a verdict and sort of standing very closely next to each other, finishing each other's sentences. That really goes to show you, I think, that this jury was - although they deliberated for quite some time and I was actually concerned that they would be hung, they were a very united jury, follow the law. And it almost sort of gave me more confidence in our jury system because I think we've seen a lot of high-profile cases recently that perhaps we didn't get the verdict that we expected. But this is - this jury was almost a prosecutor's dream -

FEYERICK: Right.

HOSTIN: Because this was a circumstantial case. Those are very difficult cases for prosecutors. I've tried them.

FEYERICK: Yes.

HOSTIN: They've given me a lot of angst. And this jury was able to sort of just put these pieces together and that is difficult.

FEYERICK: Which is very interesting because Aaron Hernandez's lawyer did raise interesting doubt.

Paul, one thing I found interesting is that they were asked how they voted, murder in the first degree but with extreme atrocity or cruelty. And one of the jurors said, we all got to that point but different ways. What do you think the different factors were that allowed them to reach that collectively?

[12:25:00] PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, I found it to be a very interesting answer because the Massachusetts first degree statute gives them a choice of extreme atrocity or cruelty in the murder or premeditation. And I think the juror also said that they didn't agree on premeditation, but they had found atrocity and extreme cruelty. Now, you would think, given the theory in the case, that Hernandez had orchestrated picking up Lloyd, drove him to this remote field, and then he was killed at the field. It looks like there was a lot of premeditation. So that, it seems to me, would have been an easier place to go than extreme cruelty. Now, under Massachusetts law, if the victim suffered excessively, if he was killed in a certain way, but also if the defendant was indifferent to the killing -

FEYERICK: Yes, and by all accounts very indifferent.

CALLAN: Yes.

HOSTIN: That was the key.

CALLAN: And so what did Hernandez do when the killing was over? He goes back to his house. He starts hanging around with his kids around the pool.

FEYERICK: In the poor. Right, in the pool with his (INAUDIBLE).

CALLAN: Passing his children, by the way, to Ortiz and Wallace, who his defense attorneys were saying were the true killers and he was afraid of them.

HOSTIN: Just killed someone.

FEYERICK: Right.

CALLAN: Which I - you know, I thought it made that defense such nonsense. So I think the indifference after the killing was a really, really big thing. Of course it was a cruel death. Any death by gunshot is a cruel death.

FEYERICK: Of course.

HOSTIN: Yes.

FEYERICK: And it was so fast. They drove into that industrial park and had been there - they drove in, four men in the car, and they leave one behind. And it didn't seem like Aaron Hernandez called anyone after that. If Odin were, in fact, his friend and he had just witnessed this horrible murder.

CALLAN: You know the other thing he said -

FEYERICK: But what we're going to do -

CALLAN: OK.

FEYERICK: Because we have so much to talk about and we've got a full 30 more minutes to do it, we are going to take a quick break and we'll be right back after this very quick break. See you soon.

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