Aaron Hernandez Net Worth 2017: Daughter Avielle Could Inherit His Money

Aaron Hernandez’s daughter could reportedly inherit a hefty portion of the late athlete’s estimated $8 million estate.

Following Hernandez’s suicide on Wednesday, an expert is speaking out about his net worth, revealing that because of a technicality, he was an “innocent man” and his estate could be eligible for a payout of the balance of his contract with the New England Patriots. As fans may recall, Hernandez’s contract was terminated in 2013 due to a morals clause after he was arrested and charged for the murder of Odin Lloyd.

Aaron Hernandez was later charged for a double homicide in 2012 after he allegedly shot two men following a night club tiff. However, just days before his death, he was acquitted.

On April 21, a Hollywood Life report shared comments from estate attorney Damian Boz, who noted that Aaron Hernandez’s daughter, 4-year-old Avielle Janelle Jenkins-Hernandez, could inherit a portion of his net worth once his estate goes through probate and his creditors are paid.

Because Aaron Hernandez wasn’t married and does have a daughter, “the court will recognize her [Avielle] as the rightful heir to his estate,” Boz explained. “The question is going to be who has priority to the assets left over. The immediate right to his estate is to his daughter and to legal heirs.”

Aaron Hernandez and his fiancee, Shayanna Jenkins, welcomed their daughter in 2012 and became engaged that same month. While the couple, who first met one another during their time in elementary school, never actually tied the knot, Jenkins took Hernandez’s last name after he was dealt a life sentence.

At the time of Aaron Hernandez’s death, the late athlete was in the process of appealing his life sentence and because of this, he was considered “innocent.” As Hollywood Life explained to readers, the state defines the circumstances as a legal abatement.

“That will be a battle that will be fought out in the probate courts, the Superior Courts for any wrongful deaths actions. The daughter will get his estimated $8.2 million dollar estate,” Damian continued. “Because he is dead, an estate will be opened up and once that probate estate is open any creditors of his estate would then file notice, anyone that has a claim, such as a family of the deceased, they are going to look to have an injunction, a stay placed on the distribution of any assets and it will most likely be frozen until the matters of the wrongful death have been sorted.”

Although Aaron Hernandez’s daughter may see her late father’s wealth at some point, Boz suspected the process of settling the estate could take a substantial amount of time.

“In all likelihood the daughter won’t see any money for quite some time unless there are other assets like life insurance that would possibly evade the probate process,” he added.

In addition, Boz added, Avielle’s age will require a trustee to manage her account.

“Because Aaron’s daughter is a minor, if she does get the money, the state would probably require that a trust be imposed and the estate be administered by a trustee, the mother would request that she be appointed the trustee of the estate of the daughter.” Damian says this could likely happen.

Aaron Hernandez has died an innocent man due to a technicality and because of that, he is no longer in violation of his contract with the New England Patriots, which is quite meaningful for his daughter. While she may not have gotten much from his estate prior to last week’s acquittal and Wednesday’s suicide, she could potential see millions in the future.

[Featured Image by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images]