opelmanta1900 wrote:His status as "innocent" or "guilty" shouldn't matter when it comes to a civil suit... the threshold for proof is lower and the fact that he was convicted might be allowed in to evidence.... not sure on that last part... I'm not a lawyer but I used to watch a lot of Matlock reruns when i spent the summers with my grandparents, so I'm close...
OJ was "innocent"...
Yes but OJ did not die during an appeal process. Maybe I was wrong when I said "innocent", looks like the charges are void.
I am no lawyer either (and never watched Matlock...LOL) but here is what the experts say
According to Sports Illustrated's Michael McCann, the path to winning a civil suit against Hernandez is now more difficult for Ward because Massachusetts recognizes "abatement ab initio."
That means "Hernandez's convictions for murder and three other charges are technically void" because he "died before he exhausted his appeals."
McCann added the following regarding the civil proceedings moving forward: "Normally those lawsuits continue, with Hernandez's estate replacing him as the defendant. Although the legal burden for proving civil liability is only preponderance of evidence (more probable than not), the nullifying of Hernandez's convictions through 'abatement ab initio' presents an unexpected challenge for attorneys representing the families."