Star witness in Aaron Hernandez trial is grilled by defense

Former New England Patriots football player Aaron Hernandez speaks to defense attorney Michelle Medina during his double murder trial in Suffolk Superior Court, Tuesday, March 21, 2017, in Boston. Hernandez is on trial for the July 2012 killings of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado who he encountered in a Boston nightclub. The former New England Patriots NFL football player is already serving a life sentence in the 2013 killing of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd. (Pat Greenhouse /The Boston Globe via AP, Pool) Former New England Patriots football player Aaron Hernandez speaks to defense attorney Michelle Medina during his double murder trial in Suffolk Superior Court, Tuesday, March 21, 2017, in Boston. Hernandez is on trial for the July 2012 killings of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado who he encountered in a Boston nightclub. The former New England Patriots NFL football player is already serving a life sentence in the 2013 killing of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd. (Pat Greenhouse /The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

By Associated Press March 21, 2017 1 min read

BOSTON (AP) – A lawyer for former NFL star Aaron Hernandez has aggressively questioned the prosecution’s star witness against Hernandez in his double-murder trial.

Attorney Jose Baez grilled Alexander Bradley on Tuesday about his claim that Hernandez killed two men after one of them accidentally spilled his drink at a Boston nightclub in 2012. Bradley said Hernandez opened fire while Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado waited at a stoplight.

Under cross-examination, Bradley acknowledged that he has sold drugs for about 17 years. Baez contended during opening statements that Bradley – not Hernandez – shot the men over a drug deal.

Bradley and Hernandez were once close friends. Hernandez is also charged with witness intimidation and accused of shooting Bradley in the face because he feared Bradley would tell authorities about the slayings.