I guess the phrase “innocent until proven guilty” doesn’t hold a lot of weight in Foxborough, Mass.
Massachusetts State Police arrested Aaron Hernandez on Wednesday morning, and then the Patriots’ star tight end was no longer a Patriot.
The Patriots unconditionally released the embattled 23-year-old less than two hours after news broke of the arrest. At the time of his release, police had not even announced any charges against Hernandez.
Police later announced that Hernandez is being charged with murder, but when he was arrested, no one outside of the authorities was aware of that.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft decided trials are overrated and became the judge, the jury and the executioner all rolled into one.
The Patriots moved quickly because they were fed up with the media circus surrounding the investigation. The news media has lived on Hernandez’s front lawn for more than a week, giving around-the-clock updates on every rumor that surfaced.
If that negative attention wasn’t enough, the organization probably didn’t like when Hernandez lived out a classic scene from “Goodfellas” by driving into work with a police helicopter following him. The chopper hovered over the practice facility as Hernandez was immediately sent home.
Not a surprising reaction. I never imagined the people who brought us Spygate would really want a police helicopter floating over their heads all day.
The coverage has been so constant and negative that talk about Tim Tebow’s first few days at the Patriots’ camp has been limited. I honestly didn’t think that was possible.
The Patriots are a proud organization, and they simply got tired of seeing their brand attached to this story. If you’re Kraft, seeing your team’s logo on the side of the screen next to Hernandez’s face on every ESPN update must get old fast.
Kraft’s irritation may explain why Hernandez was handed his walking papers before he had his day, or even a day in court.
I do believe the Patriots should be applauded for not going easy on Hernandez simply because he is a great player.
A lot of organizations will overlook a star player’s legal troubles in order to keep them on the field. Michael Vick, Adam “Pacman” Jones and Dez Bryant all had legal troubles and kept their jobs longer than Hernandez.
The natural response to this argument is that Hernandez is being charged with murder, which is far more serious than dog or bar fighting. But former Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis was charged with murder in 2000, and his team stuck with him all the way through his second Super Bowl victory this past February.
The Patriots’s decision is understandable, but they could have waited to see how this plays out, or at least to find out what Hernandez is accused of doing before releasing him for doing it.
I’m not saying that he doesn’t deserve to be released if these serious allegations turn out to be true. It’s just that in this country, you are presumed innocent until you are found guilty, right?
James Moran is a 20-year-old mass communication senior from Beacon, N.Y.