TodayThe aunt who sued her nephew for $127,000 for accidentally breaking her wrist as a result of an over-eager hug has decided to explain herself to the Today show.
In an on-air interview with NBC's Savannah Guthrie Thursday, Jennifer Connell and her nephew, Sean Tarala, appeared to say that the lawsuit was simply an insurance "formality" to help cover her medical costs and wasn't meant to be blown out of proportion. Despite headlines slamming Connell for her decision, dubbing her the "worst aunt ever," she explained that she and her nephew are completely fine.
"We love each other very much," she told Guthrie. "This was simply a formality with an insurance claim."
Tarala also stood up for his aunt, hoping his words would quell the criticism. "She would never do anything to hurt the family or myself," the 12-year-old boy explained. "She loves us."
Connell also addressed what it was like to walk out of the courtroom to all of the negative press, saying it was totally unexpected given the nature of her suit.
"It was a complete shock to me...it was sort of heartbreaking and really painful but also like walking into a film of someone else's life and I hadn't been briefed," she said. "So, I've sort of just been in shock since that happened."
The world asked how Connell thought suing her young nephew could be a good idea, so Guthrie wondered the same. According to Connell, she wasn't comfortable with it at first.
"It sounded terrible to me from the very beginning," she confessed. "This was simply a case of formality with an insurance claim. I said at the start of this, 'I don't understand why. I don't want to sue Sean.'"
It took the jury only 25 minutes to rule against Connell in her lawsuit, leaving her lost and "confused" about what to do with her medical costs. Thankfully there is no bad blood in her family.
"I love her," Tarala said, "and she loves me."
(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)
Watch the video above to hear about another troubling lawsuit.