BOSTON >> Aaron Hernandez’s lawyers want a judge to transfer the former New England Patriots star to a jail closer to Boston, citing safety and other concerns.

In a request filed Friday, Hernandez’s Boston-based attorneys say they have to travel too far to meet him at the Bristol County jail.

And the lawyers say they can’t always talk privately with Hernandez, who has pleaded not guilty to three murder charges in separate cases in Boston and Bristol County.

The lawyers also say allegations Hernandez was involved in a jailhouse altercation are another reason to transfer him.

Hernandez was in court this week as his lawyers sought to limit evidence against him in the 2013 slaying of former semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd. Hernandez is due in court next week in connection with the 2012 slayings of two men in Boston.