Former New England Patriots star tight end Aaron Hernandez killed himself overnight in his prison cell, the Massachusetts Department of Corrections said Wednesday morning. He was 27. Hernandez hanged himself with a bedsheet and tried to block his single-occupancy cell's door, officials said; he was found at about 3 a.m. and pronounced dead at the hospital about an hour later, after unsuccessful resuscitation attempts.
The former NFL star was serving a life sentence without parole at the Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts, after being convicted of a 2013 murder. Last Friday, he was acquitted of double first-degree murders prosecutors say he committed while drunk in 2012. "The Massachusetts State Police are on scene and the investigation continues," the state Department of Corrections said in a statement. "Mr. Hernandez's next of kin have been notified."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Today's political cartoons - April 21, 2024Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - devilish decrees, biblical blunders, and more
-
5 carefully selected cartoons about the Trump-Daniels jury selection processCartoons Artists take on a stress-free life, rare peers, and more
-
Loire Valley Lodges review: sleep, feast and revive in treetop luxuryThe Week Recommends Forest hideaway offers chance to relax and reset in Michelin key-winning comfort
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA DraftSpeed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
-
South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA titleSpeed Read The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
-
Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA scoring recordspeed read College basketball star Caitlin Clark set the new record in Iowa's defeat of Ohio State
-
Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess historySpeed Read Sivanandan has been described as a 'phenomenon' by chess masters
-
Watch Simone Biles win her record 8th US gymnastics championshipSpeed Read
-
Spain beats England 1-0 to win its first Women's World CupSpeed Read
-
US knocked out of Women's World Cup in stunning exitSpeed Read
-
Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for most world championship titlesSpeed Read
