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 Alexander Bradley, who had been friends with the former tight end,
was permitted to tell jurors that Hernandez had access to the type
of pistol he is accused of using to murder semipro football player
Odin Lloyd, but not about a separate 2013 incident in which Bradley
contends Hernandez shot him in the face.
Hernandez, 25, is charged with killing Lloyd, who was dating his
fiancee’s sister. Lloyd was found shot dead in June 2013 in an
industrial park near Hernandez's home in North Attleborough,
Massachusetts.
Bradley, who has sued Hernandez over the February 2013 shooting,
testified he saw someone handing Hernandez a black Glock pistol in a
Florida hotel. The murder weapon in the case has not been recovered,
but prosecutors have said it was a black Glock pistol.
"Mr. Hernandez held it, looked at it, and that was pretty much it,"
said Bradley, adding that Hernandez put the gun on a chair when the
two left the hotel room.
Earlier, the judge in the case, Susan Garsh, allowed that testimony,
on the reasoning that it "could have been, might have been, the
murder weapon."
Bradley testified he was Hernandez's marijuana dealer before they
became friends, and described him as a "chain smoker" who bought the
drug in quantities of up to 4 ounces (113 grams) at a time.
Bradley charged in a civil lawsuit last year that Hernandez shot him
in the face, causing him to lose his right eye. Bradley never filed
a criminal complaint.
Prosecutors contended that incident is relevant to the Lloyd murder
since it shows that Hernandez had no trouble shooting his friends.
The defense has argued that Hernandez would not have killed Lloyd
because of their friendship.
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Bradley testified that Hernandez told him he had a hard time
trusting people and believed that some of his friends were
ungrateful.
"He also indicated to you that he didn't like people knowing his
business. Is that true?," asked Assistant District Attorney William
McCauley.
"That's true," Bradley replied.
Hernandez's lawyers challenged Bradley's credibility, presenting a
court record in which Bradley was quoted as telling a grand jury he
never sold marijuana to Hernandez. Bradley denied saying that.
(Editing by Scott Malone and Gunna Dickson)
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