Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez has been charged with murder . While his lawyer Michael Fee puts his spin that "it is a circumstantial evidence case;it is not a strong case." I disagree with Mr.Fee based upon what is reported in the news.
Mr.Hernandez was caught in large part based on the newest weapon in a police murder investigation arsenal. Tracking a cell phone tower is the latest way to investigate murder cases in today’s world. Your cell phone calls leave a digital footprint where your phone as been used. Most times the phone is with you. Police pieced together cellphone tower tracking records to find out the location of Hernandez. Then, it appears they captured text messages from those involved. One text could be considered a declaration of the deceased that he was with Hernandez.
Video cameras may have captured some of the goings on before and after the murder. The Boston Marathon bombing showed how police used these video tapes to capture the bombers. Here, there were video cameras inside and outside the Hernandez home.
Mr.Fee may think it is circumstantial evidence, but the proper use of cell phone technology can plot a time line of Mr.Hernandez movements before and after the shooting based upon his use of his cell phone . My experience is that this type of evidence is powerful if done properly.
Old school ballistic evidence matched the bullets found at the scene of the murder to shell casings found in the rental car. The killer must have used a semi-automatic that ejected the shells rather than a old school revolver . The snitches will be the last piece of evidence. One police theory is that others are involved. Police will not confirm or identify the other two men who were with Hernandez. A person facing a murder rap may just talk about what Mr.Hernandez did that night.
The Hernandez case is one example of the use of technology being used to solve crimes. Most folks don’t realize they leave a trail of their whereabouts when they use their cellphone . Expect to see more investigations utilize cell phone tower tracking. One more key point is that under Tennessee criminal law circumstantial evidence is enough to convict one of first degree murder.Mr.fee has his work cut out for him.