Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez Wanted Nothing to Do With the Aaron Hernandez Docuseries

On Wednesday, Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez appeared on Good Morning America to discuss Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez, a Netflix docuseries about her former fiancé Aaron Hernandez, the New England Patriot tight end who was convicted of murdering Odin Lloyd in 2015. The docuseries tells Hernandez’s story from his teen years to his death by suicide in prison and includes stories from people who knew him and former teammates. One of the more surprising revelations was the claim by people who knew Aaron prior to signing with the Patriots that Hernandez, who had a child with Shayanna, may have been gay or bisexual.

In the interview with Amy Robach, Jenkins says she still doesn’t know if Hernandez had these feelings or not but wishes that he would have told her. “You can’t describe someone’s sexuality without them being here,” she said. “Although I’ve had a child with Aaron, I still can’t tell you what he was feeling inside.” Jenkins also addressed her absence in the five-part series claiming that Netflix did approach her about participating and even offered her compensation, which she refused in favor of not having to re-traumatize her now eight-year-old daughter.

Since its release, Killer Inside has revived the conversation around Hernandez, CTE, and the current state of safety in football. While the documentary attempted to support an argument that Hernandez murdered Lloyd (and possibly two others though he was not convicted) because of undiagnosed, advanced CTE, which was discovered after his death. The film glossed over the science behind the disease, offering little more than some graphics and a scan of Hernandez’s brain. The documentary also failed to include DJ Hernandez, Aaron’s brother, who wrote a tell-all book about their lives after Aaron died by suicide in prison. The filmmakers supplemented the series with old interviews and recordings of phone calls between the two while Aaron was in prison.

Jenkins, who famously defended her fiancé in court as he was accused of killing her sister’s boyfriend, still believes that Aaron was innocent of the murder of Odin Lloyd. Of the mystery surrounding her former fiancé’s sexuality, Jenkins said, “I would not have loved him any differently. I would have understood. It’s not shameful, and I don’t think anybody should be ashamed of who they are inside, regardless of who they love. I think it’s a beautiful thing. I just wish I was able to tell him that.”