Aaron Hernandez's fiancée denies gay rumor
Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez, fiancée of the late Aaron Hernandez, used the second day of her two-day appearance on Dr. Phil’s syndicated daytime talk show to criticize rumors that Hernandez was gay.
Hernandez, a former New England Patriots tight end convicted of the 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd, committed suicide in prison in the early hours of April 19. Prison officials indicated that Hernandez had left behind three notes. According to one report, one of the notes was meant for Kyle Kennedy, a fellow inmate at Sousa Baranowski Prison in Shirley, Massachusetts, whom Hernandez allegedly called his “brother.” Hernandez had written to Kennedy’s family and allegedly said that a $50,000 watch Hernandez had bought in Vegas was intended for Kennedy.
Jenkins-Hernandez dismissed much of that information. The three suicide letters, she said, were addressed to her, to their daughter, and to Hernandez’s defense team, not to Kennedy.
“There’s nothing for Kyle Kennedy,” she said. “It’s nonexistent.”
Furthermore, Jenkins-Hernandez said, Kennedy had no place in Hernandez’s life of which she was aware. “I don’t know who this Kyle Kennedy is. I’ve never heard of him, honestly. Aaron has never mentioned him,” she said. “And Aaron liked to be in a single cell, from my knowledge.”
Jenkins-Hernandez also said Kennedy had no claim on the watch, calling his request “a crock of bull.”
Asked if she knew or believed Hernandez was gay, Jenkins-Hernandez was firm in her belief. “I had no indication or any feeling that he was such,” she said. “He was very much a man to me. I don’t know where this came from. It’s embarrassing, in a sense. It’s hurtful, regardless if it’s true or not. It’s just not something that I saw. It’s not something that I believe. It’s just not him.”
There’s also a rift between Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez and the rest of Hernandez’s family. “I don’t talk to them. I think the last time we had an encounter was the funeral,” she said. “We don’t see eye-to-eye.”
Hernandez’s murder conviction was vacated in the wake of his death, but numerous court actions remain to be litigated.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports and the author of EARNHARDT NATION, on sale now at Amazon or wherever books are sold. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.
More Hernandez coverage from Yahoo Sports:
• Dan Wetzel: Aaron Hernandez’s murder conviction vacated
• Aaron Hernandez suicide note to fiancée released
• Dan Wetzel: Odd details emerge about Hernandez’s prison suicide
• Dan Wetzel: Aaron Hernandez’s latest legal drama begins to unfold
