How Did Mary Kay Letourneau Feel About Her Relationship With Vili Fualaau Before Her Death?
Matthew Perez As recently as 2018, Letourneau claimed during an interview on Australia's "Sunday Night" that she didn't know having sex with a 12-year-old student was a crime. Letourneau maintained that she was wrongfully imprisoned, telling "Sunday Night" that "I did the best that I felt at the time the decision that I made, and I tried to take the guilty plea back when I realized I was tricked and coerced into it."
However, a source close to Letourneau told People that by the time she died, the former teacher expressed remorse for sexually abusing Fualaau.
"The bottom line was that she understood on a very deep level that she had really made a mess of her life and the lives of many other people back in 1996," the friend, who received a letter from Letourneau six weeks before her death, told the outlet. "She realized that even though things turned out relatively good, that she was responsible for a wide swath of destruction by her actions. She apologized to a lot of people for a lot of things."
If you, or anyone you know, have been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).