Aaron Hernandez Murder Conviction: Bristol DA Files Motion to Block Vacancy

The Bristol District Attorney's Office believes that Aaron Hernandez should remain responsible for the death of Odin Lloyd.

State prosecutors Monday launched their effort to block a motion by Hernandez's attorneys to vacate the murder charge. Under Massachusetts law, convictions that remain in the appeals process are vacated if the convicted person dies before the process is over.

"The defendant was serving his punishment at the time he took his own life. He has now served the entirety of his sentences," the defense argued in court documents posted on NBCBoston.com. "The sentences for his ammunition and firearm convictions were concluded some time prior to his suicide. By his death, he has completed his lawful sentence for his murder conviction, just as death completes the sentence of every murderer in the Commonwealth."

In 2015, Hernandez was convicted of the 2013 murder of Lloyd and sentenced to life in prison. He hanged himself on April 19, five days after being found not guilty of a 2012 double murder.

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Image Credit: Nancy Lane/Boston Herald via AP Pool