The defense for Aaron Hernandez, the former New England Patriots tight end accused of orchestrating the murder of associate Odin Lloyd, took two losses in court on Friday.
Hernandez's defense team attempted to have evidence gleaned from Hernandez's cell phone thrown out on the basis that it was illegally obtained. Judge Susan E. Garsh, however, thought otherwise.
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"The turning over of the phone was a voluntary act. It was not the result of force, threat, trickery, duress or coercion," Garsh wrote in her decision. In the process of protesting the admittance of the phone evidence, laywers argued that Hernandez was in fact coerced into giving information unlawfully, including the pass code to access the phone's contents.
Hernandez testified that the officers were "confrontational" and that he feared for his fiancée.
"I felt helpless in the face of the occupation of my house by the police," Hernandez said. "I was also very concerned about what would happen to my fiance and our baby if I refused to answer their questions. I did not feel free to leave at any time during the search."
Hernandez also claimed he was not read his Miranda rights, and felt like he was not free to remain silent. "Many of the officers carried weapons which were visible to me," he said. "Officers asked me a number of questions, including where my cellphone was and the password for my phone," he said. "I told them that my cellphone was with my lawyers, and I told them the password. I was not given Miranda warnings at any point."
The phone is considered to be an instrumental piece of evidence for the prosecution, since Hernandez reportedly used it to contact his two suspected accomplices, Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz, and set up the killing.
The defense for Aaron Hernandez, the former New England Patriots tight end accused of orchestrating the murder of associate Odin Lloyd, took two losses in court on Friday.
Hernandez's defense team attempted to have evidence gleaned from Hernandez's cell phone thrown out on the basis that it was illegally obtained. Judge Susan E. Garsh, however, thought otherwise.
"The turning over of the phone was a voluntary act. It was not the result of force, threat, trickery, duress or coercion," Garsh wrote in her decision. In the process of protesting the admittance of the phone evidence, laywers argued that Hernandez was in fact coerced into giving information unlawfully, including the pass code to access the phone's contents.
Hernandez testified that the officers were "confrontational" and that he feared for his fiancée.
"I felt helpless in the face of the occupation of my house by the police," Hernandez said. "I was also very concerned about what would happen to my fiance and our baby if I refused to answer their questions. I did not feel free to leave at any time during the search."
Hernandez also claimed he was not read his Miranda rights, and felt like he was not free to remain silent. "Many of the officers carried weapons which were visible to me," he said. "Officers asked me a number of questions, including where my cellphone was and the password for my phone," he said. "I told them that my cellphone was with my lawyers, and I told them the password. I was not given Miranda warnings at any point."
The phone is considered to be an instrumental piece of evidence for the prosecution, since Hernandez reportedly used it to contact his two suspected accomplices, Ernest Wallace and Carlos Ortiz, and set up the killing.
Judge Garsh also denied the defense's motion to have a rifle and ammunition discovered in Hernandez's car thrown out as evidence. Authorities found the gun and bullets in a car in Hernandez's garage while searching his home, but the defense claimed that evidence fell outside the parameters of the warrant they had.
Judge Garsh also denied the defense's motion to have a rifle and ammunition discovered in Hernandez's car thrown out as evidence. Authorities found the gun and bullets in a car in Hernandez's garage while searching his home, but the defense claimed that evidence fell outside the parameters of the warrant they had.
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