DEFENSE ‘FREAKED OUT’
Huge witness list vs. Hernandez
The first wave of jurors in contention to hear the double-murder case against Aaron Hernandez will meet the smiling former Patriot this morning — but behind the scenes, his defense team’s game face is one of unease.
Celebrity attorney Jose Baez, unable to stop the murder trial from moving forward, yesterday told Suffolk Superior Court Judge Jeffrey A. Locke the defense was “freaked out” by the prosecution’s initial list of 200 possible witnesses, and frustrated that they still don’t know who Assistant Suffolk District Attorneys Patrick Haggan and Mark Lee plan to call in the coming weeks. Haggan indicated he’s pared the lot down to 70 or 80.
“I just can’t try this case on a handshake,” Baez said. “I have to insist that we have an exact, correct list of witnesses. I don’t think he’s (Haggan) trying to hide the ball. I think he’s being cautious. But it’s fish or cut bait: Who’s coming and who isn’t? We have to narrow this down. If not now, when?”
Baez also revealed during a pretrial hearing that the defense is having trouble lining up expert witnesses to testify for Hernandez, who at 27 is already imprisoned for life for executing his pal Odin L. Lloyd in 2013.
“It’s very difficult to get experts in this kind of case,” Baez said. “We’ve been trying to get them to sign on the dotted line, but they’re a little bit apprehensive.”
The first 200 of several hundred prospective jurors will report today to be introduced to Hernandez, the trial teams, and to hear a summary of the case involving the July 16, 2012, drive-by shootings of Daniel Jorge Correia de Abreu, 29, and Safiro Teixeira Furtado, 28, in the South End. Hernandez, while a tight end for the Pats earning millions, is accused of shooting the Dorchester men to death in traffic in their car for spilling a drink on him at the Cure Lounge.
Whoever’s not excused today for hardship will be given a questionnaire requiring 52 written responses. A second group of jurors have been called for Thursday. Locke is aiming for Friday to begin face-to-face sitdowns with jurors and the lawyers. Those meetings will decide which jurors make the cut of 16 who’ll be seated to hear testimony and evidence.
Opening statements are set for March 1. After setting the scene of the murders through witnesses, Haggan hopes to take jurors on views that will include the Theater District nightclub and the intersection of Herald Street and Shawmut Avenue, where the victims, who both worked as cleaners, were gunned down in cold blood.
Also today, Locke has scheduled a 4 p.m. hearing to tackle questions nagging the defense about surveillance recording equipment at Cure that went missing when it was replaced some time after the killings for allegedly malfunctioning.