UPDATE (4:50 p.m. ET): Aaron Hernandez suffered from Stage 3 (out of 4, the most severe form) chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Dr. Ann McKee, director of Boston University’s CTE Center, announced Thursday in a statement, via the Boston Globe.
ORIGINAL STORY (4:10 p.m. ET): Aaron Hernandez, the former New England Patriots tight end convicted of murder who killed himself in April, had “severe” CTE at the time of his death, his lawyer announced Thursday.
Jose Baez, a lawyer for Hernandez, announced at a Thursday afternoon press conference that the former Patriots star was dealing with “the most severe case of CTE” researchers had seen in someone of his age, per the New York Times.
Baez also revealed he will sue the NFL and the Patriots on behalf of Hernandez’s daughter, per The Boston Herald’s Bob McGovern Jr.
Hernandez was just 27 years old when he was found hanged in his cell at a state maximum security prison in Shirley, Mass. Hernandez was serving a life prison after being convicted in 2015 of the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd.
He killed himself five days after his acquittal of separate double-murder charges, stemming from 2012.
Thumbnail photo via The Sun Chronicle/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports
