In Part 2 of an interview with “Dr. Phil” set to air Tuesday afternoon, Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez described the strained relationship she has with the family of her deceased fiancée, former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez.
“I don’t talk to them. I think the last time we had an encounter was the funeral,” Jenkins-Hernandez told Dr. Phil McGraw in a clip released Tuesday morning. “We don’t see eye to eye. … No one stood by his side but me. That’s where my frustration lies.”
Jenkins-Hernandez said Hernandez’s family rarely attended the ex-NFL star’s second trial, which resulted in him being found not guilty for the murders of Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado.
Just days after that trial concluded, Hernandez, who already was serving a life sentence for the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd, was found dead in his cell at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. His death was ruled a suicide.
“I believe I was the only supporter,” Jenkins-Hernandez said. “I believe the family members were there here and there. And I get everyone has their life. I made it my life. Granted, I’m not asking everyone to do that. But I didn’t feel the support and the love that he should have gotten that he gave back.”
Because Hernandez died before his appeal could be heard, his conviction for the Lloyd murder was vacated earlier this month. It remains to be seen whether the Patriots will be forced to pay out the $5.91 million in guaranteed money they withheld from Hernandez after his arrest in 2013. It’s also unclear exactly who would receive that money.
Thumbnail screenshot via CBS
