Netflix presents us with Killer Inside, a three-part documentary releasing on January 15. The troubled life of Aaron Hernandez, an NFL star convicted of murder before committing suicide, is examined in this documentary. No one after allegedly murdering two people, has ever played an entire season as a professional athlete, the trailer states. While in prison in 2013, Aaron Hernandez made many phone calls to his mother to fix their relationship, fractured since the death of his father in 2006. There are many things he wished to talk about, so she could understand him as a person, he says in a call recorded by authorities and released as public record. But he never did and she would die without really knowing her son.
A violent young man, he was accused of a double murder. In 2017, he committed suicide and hung himself with a bed sheet in prison when he was 27. The documentary plays recordings of Hernandez confronting his mother for causing his problems. He mentions being the happiest little kid in the world, and then she fouled him up. She denies this but he says that he had nobody to help him be a perfect angel.
In Search of Happiness
Many have reviewed recordings of jailhouse conversations between Hernandez and his mother. In one such call, he said that his wealth didn’t solve his problems and one needs inner peace to stay happy. Nothing you do will make you happy and nothing you get will bring you happiness. Having money did not ensure happiness and he still was miserable. Sometimes, these calls between Aaron and his mom became heated. Once, he blamed her for ignoring and not treating his ADHD. She had ruined him and due to this reason he could not pay attention in school. His Mother was supposed to get his medication and treatment. She knocked him over the head with a hammer and that was his medication.
In a 2019 interview, Hernandez’s older brother confirmed that Aaron suffered physical, and emotional abuse before descending into a violent life. Jonathan Hernandez said a lot of people thought they understood his brother, but they really did not. They knew only what they saw in the news, but knew nothing about his struggles.
Physical and Mental Abuses
As an adult, Aaron disclosed being indecently molested when young. Jonathan alleged that his father, who died in 2006, was physically abusive. His father would wallop his children for anything, from a bad grade to disrespectful behavior and for sheer clumsiness. Aaron’s attorneys revealed that he suffered from severe chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease linked to head trauma diagnosed in many NFL players. In a lawsuit against the NFL, and due to this undiagnosed brain injury, his attorneys said Aaron experienced a chaotic and horrendous existence. Further, his estate said that CTE causes aggression, loss of concentration, depression, explosive behaviour, mood swings, apathy, and cognitive impairment. An NFL spokesman confirmed that they intended to contest the claims vigorously. These issues are addressed in the Netflix documentary, which deals with the fallout from Hernandez’s actions. A commentator in the Netflix trailer says this is not just the Aaron Hernandez story as a lot of connected lives remain affected.