Jennifer Hudson has forgiven her brother-in-law for murdering her mother, brother and nephew in 2008, saying it is “not his fault” that he shot them to death.
Jennifer Hudson, Photo Ros O'Gorman
The 30-year-old singer-and-actress has spoken out for the first time since William Balfour received three life sentences for killing her mother Darnell Donerson, 57, her brother Jason Hudson, 29, and her seven-year-old nephew Julian King on October 24, 2008, but she says it’s “not his fault” that he shot them.
When asked if she forgives him on last night’s (10.09.12) episode of Oprah Winfrey’s chat show ‘Oprah’s Next Chapter’, she said: “Yes, because I feel like for the most part it’s not his fault.
“It’s how he was brought up. We tried to offer love, but you were so far gone, that you couldn’t even see that.
“A lot of things came out, that we didn’t even know about, from his upbringing, which is like he never had a chance.
“Had you had the love my mother gave us, or the background that some have, then you would’ve stood a chance.”
Jennifer is yet to visit the graves of her three murdered relatives, but she is now ready to see their resting place after “justice” was done when 31-year-old Balfour – the estranged husband of Jennifer’s sister Julia – received three life sentences without the possibility of parole and 120 years for other crimes, including aggravated kidnapping, in July.
She added: “I haven’t been to the grave site since we buried them but now I want to go because I feel like okay, we’ve accomplished things.
“We’ve done this. We got justice for you. I can’t come here empty-handed. I came back with justice being served so now I feel like I deserve to be able to see them.”
Jennifer admits she was shocked and “confused” when she heard Darnell and Jason had been gunned down in Chicago and she didn’t know who to “grieve for first” when she found out Julian was reported missing from home and then discovered dead in an abandoned SUV days later.
She explained: “There were so many shocks involved in it. Like, who do I grieve for first? Or, who do I start with?
“It’s bits and pieces. It’s too much. You’re confused. Your emotions are confused.”
