A judge has denied a media group's request to unseal documents relating to a juror in former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez's recent murder trial in Massachusetts.
GateHouse Media argued last week before Superior Court Judge Susan Garsh that information about the unidentified juror must be made public, citing the FIrst Amendment. But Garsh issued a ruling Monday saying that the juror's identity should be protected.
Hernandez lawyer James Sultan had filed papers under seal requesting an inquiry into a juror's "exposure to significant extraneous matter." Sultan hasn't disclosed details about the issue, and prosecutors have said they don't know, either.
GateHouse Media attorney Zack Kleinsasser argued that Hernandez's attorneys didn't show why the documents need to be sealed and haven't provided alternatives, such as redaction.
Garsh said in her ruling that she will release redacted versions of the documents.
"After balancing the competing rights of the parties and the public, on the particular facts of the case, the court finds an overriding interest, and therefore, good cause for impounding the papers at issue in the form in which they were filed," the judge wrote. "The court will release redacted versions in order to protect the identity of the juror and to keep out of the public domain at this stage the specific details as to where, when and how the juror allegedly was exposed to extraneous information as well as the source of the anonymous information."
Hernandez was convicted of killing Odin Lloyd in 2013. He was sentenced to life in prison.
