A Suffolk County Superior Court judge has denied a request by prosecutors seeking to have Aaron Hernandez turn over his cellphone in connection with his upcoming double murder trial.

Judge Jeffrey Locke ruled that the former NFL star can legally hold on to the device at least until his new attorneys have had a chance to review its contents. Hernandez owned the phone prior to being charged with the murder of Odin Lloyd and the 2012 drive-by killings of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado, for which he is set to go on trial for later this year.

It's presumed that prosecutors are desperate to get their hands on the device in hopes of discovering if Hernandez may have communicated with anyone about either of the crimes while using the phone.

Hernandez Already Convicted in Lloyd Killing

The 26-year-old former New England Patriots tight end has already been convicted as the trigger-man in the 2013 killing of Lloyd and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

He also recently settled a lawsuit with former pal Alexander Bradley, who had charged Hernandez shot him in the face in February of 2013 after two quarreled at a Florida nightclub.

In the double-murder case, prosecutors argued that the cellphone should be attainable by search warrant or subpoena.

Jury Selection Recently Opened in Trial of Accomplice Earnest Wallace

Meanwhile, juror selection recently began in the trial of Earnest Wallace, one of two men charged along with Hernandez in the killing of Lloyd.

Lloyd's bullet-riddled body was discovered in an industrial park not far from Hernandez's North Attleborough mansion in June of 2013. During Hernandez's trial, prosecutors theorized that he shot Lloyd because of his knowledge about other violent crimes the former New England Patriots star tight end is suspected of having been involved in.

Hernandez is now being held at the Souza-Baranowski maximum security prison. He is also charged as the trigger-man in the Furtado and de Abreu slayings, which prosecutors have indicated were sparked after one of the men accidentally spilled a drink on Hernandez earlier in the evening and failed to apologize.

Related