DoctorOz: Vili Fualaau's Life After Mary Kay Letourneau | Dr. Oz Exclusive

Just weeks ago, news broke that Mary-Kay LaTourneau had died after a private battle with colon cancer. It was a shocking end to a life of a woman who first became a household name when she was caught with her 12-year-old student, Billy Pulao, and eventually became pregnant by him. Despite spending years in prison, the two eventually married, and Billy was by Mary's side when she passed away. Today, in our show exclusive, Billy is here breaking his silence about Mary-Kay LaTourneau's final days and the surprising ups and downs in their life together. Mary-Kay LaTourneau's story shocked the nation in the late 90s. A 34-year-old married mother of four, teaching the sixth grade, claiming she had a forbidden love with her 12-year-old student. Authorities caught Mary-Kay and Billy Pulao together in a vehicle in 1996, but it wasn't until police allegedly received a tip from her husband's relative that Mary-Kay was arrested in March of 1997. She gave birth to their first daughter in May, right before pleading guilty to statutory rape for a reduced sentence. Mary-Kay was released from jail after serving just three months on the condition that she have no contact with Billy. But less than a month later, in February of 98, they were discovered together again. Mary-Kay was sent to prison to serve the full seven-year term, giving birth to their second daughter behind bars. In August of 2004, Mary-Kay was released from prison and again was required to have no contact with her former student. But Billy, then 21 years old, fought to have the order removed, and they were married in 2005. The couple stayed together until 2017, when Billy filed for a separation from Mary-Kay. But when he found out she had colon cancer, Billy returned to Seattle to be her caregiver. Mary-Kay LaTourneau died on July 6th, at the age of 58, with Billy and family by her side. Billy Fula'au joins us now. You were living in California when you first learned that Mary had colon cancer, and I'm curious how she broke that news to you, because she must have known it would stun you. I got a phone call, actually it was a text. She texted and told me that she was feeling a bit sick, and that she wasn't sure what it was, and she told me some of her symptoms. And, you know, we made some guesses of what it was, and maybe she should see what a doctor says. And then she finally got a colonoscopy, and they found that she had cancer, and that it had already spread to her liver at the time. How did you respond when you learned that news? What did you tell her? What did she tell you? Well, I was in disbelief a lot, because it's, I just wasn't, you know, didn't want to believe it, and so I got on a plane, you know, right away, and I went out there, and yeah. What's the first thing you said to her when you finally saw her face-to-face and realized she had a really dangerous cancer? Well, when I got back, she still looked pretty normal, you know, her health. She still looked pretty healthy on the outside, but, you know, within the six months, you know, it just, her health declined, you know, rapidly within, you know, in such a short period of time. It was really just unreal to see her that way. Did she realize how big a deal this was when she was diagnosed? She believed that a miracle was going to happen, and that somehow she was going to be healed, and, you know, it was going to go away. Was Mary a difficult patient? In terms of believing a miracle is going to happen without taking any serious aggressive action, that part made it difficult in those terms, but in the terms of it being, you know, my wife and someone who's played a major role in my life, you know, it's, that was the most difficult part because, you know, when I was, when we had first met, you know, I was a lot younger, and she was, you know, she was ripped out of my life at that time, and so, you know, this time it's, you know, there's no, there's not going to be another letter, and there's not going to be a phone call or a text, so I think preparing myself mentally for that was the hardest part, and still to this day, everything feels really unreal right now. Did you talk to her about being without her, being alone? We've talked about her passing, you know, you know, if she was to pass, there's certain things that we need to get in place, but it was a subject she didn't want to talk about, you know, she didn't want to have her, her mind in that, you know, thought of her dying was just unbelievable for her. I know towards the end of any critical illness like this, there are ups and downs. I understand that she was in the ER weeks before she passed away. What had happened? What took her there? She had fallen, and so, and she had broken her arm, and so we had to take her in, and they did a CT scan on her, and they found that the cancer had spread, you know, to her spine and to her brain, and they told us that there wasn't much that they could do at this point, and so the very last weeks of her life, you know, she, you know, she started to realize that she was, you know, was going to go, and it was a difficult thing for, for all of us, you know, her family, my family to accept. Did she give you any advice at the end before she passed? I wouldn't say she was a, played the role of giving me advice. I think it was more of a natural, like a relationship with two people would have, and in an intimate way where, you know, you're, you become best friends, you know, and she was my best friend, you know, and I felt like, you know, she was actually the only person that, that actually cared, you know. Considering, you know, my upbringing, her upbringing, a lot of things, you know, just made sense for the both of us in the way things happened. Next, Billy describes his last moment with Mary-Kay Letourneau. We're back with Billy Fula'au, who was mourning the loss of his wife, Mary-Kay Letourneau. So, what's the last thing she told you? The last thing she told me is that, that I am the most important person to her, and that everything is going to be okay. Is everything going to be okay? I don't know. I don't know. So, Mary-Kay Letourneau passed away on July 6th at the age of 58. What was that last day like? The last day, um, sorry, I'm not trying. It's okay. Yeah, um, the last day, I think the last day was, uh, sort of a sense of, uh, relief that she wasn't in pain anymore, um, but also really devastating, um, because the reality is, you know, you're not gonna, you're not gonna see the person that, you know, has been there for you the most. Um, were you alone with her? I wasn't. Um, I was there, um, I was there with, uh, our youngest daughter and her youngest daughter from her previous marriage, and, um, we were just talking about when they were kids, and we were laughing, and I, I turned over, and, you know, and, and she, well, I didn't see her chest moving, and, and I thought it was maybe it was like one of those pauses she has, and then, you know, she'll come back, you know, she'll take a deep breath, and she's gonna come back, and, you know, I would count in between those pauses, and it was just the longest count that I had, um, and I turned off her breathing machine, um, um, just to hear if she was, like, breathing just really soft, and at that moment, I had to, um, you know, um, tell her, tell the kids that they need to call the rest of the siblings to come and say their goodbyes, that this is, this is it. You miss her? I do. Now, Billy's launched a GoFundMe page to help raise money for, uh, for you, for your daughters as you cope with the aftermath of Mary's death, and we're going to have a link to it at DrRoz.com. Uh, please consider his request. How are your daughters doing with the loss of their mom? You know, I can only tell you from, from what I see, you know, and I see that they are, like, you know, when they, when we talk to each other, they are doing, they're coping pretty well in the way that they are. Um, I couldn't speak for them entirely, um, because they are their own person, but I would say that they are, they're coping pretty well. Um, I would say they're doing a lot better coping with it than I am. Coming up, Billy opens up about his past with Mary Kay Letourneau, like never before, and reveals how he would feel if one of his daughters was targeted at that age. My mother was diagnosed with COVID-19. We're back with Billy Fula'au, who was mourning the loss of his wife, Mary Kay Letourneau. You know, a lot has been said about Mary Letourneau over the years. Some who have argued that she preyed on you. You were still young, 12 years old when you met, sixth grade. How do you respond to people who say that? Well, it's easy for someone, um, to say those things about her, because they don't know who she is, and all they know is, uh, just what the media tells them, or from police reports, that, you know, this was, uh, you know, they're looking at the highlights of it, that she was a, she was an adult, I was a minor, um, and, you know, there was, there's just, like, you know, you watch these, uh, these documentaries on, you know, Netflix or whatever, and, um, they talk about, like, pedophiles, or, uh, you know, people who rape and whatnot, and the entire time that I've ever known her in my entire life is, there were, there was, you know, I used to question it, too, you know, I used to question it myself, is she, there was, there was absolutely no ill, like, there was no perversion, you know, and there was no history of, of her having any odd things with other minors, you know, so, um, yeah, I just felt like, you know, there's nothing I can say to people that don't care to listen, or don't care to learn, but that is, there's my wife, and she is my best friend, and we had our kids together, and we got, and we did get married, um, and we had a whole life together, so. You're a father. Yeah. If someone who was 20 years older than one of your daughters was romantically interested in them, would you say they were too young? Well, from my experience, I wouldn't, I wouldn't look at it, um, the same way everyone else would, but I would react in the same way, like, you know, what is this guy's intentions, you know, um, I would look a little more deeper in how this guy is treating my daughter, um, what is his history, you know, where, you know, who is he? I'd find out a little bit more, um, before actually putting my foot down right away, um, but also, you would have to know your kid as well, and I would say if my kid came home with a, someone older, I would, I would be upset, I would, I wouldn't agree with it. Let me flip it around. You're in your 30s now, uh, Mary was in her 30s when she met you. If you were attracted to a minor, what would you do? Oh, well, I'd probably go and seek some help. You know, I couldn't look at a 13-year-old and, you know, you know, be attracted to that because it's just not, you know, it's not in my, my brain, it's nothing that I'm attracted to. I mean, we all have our preferences and that's just not something that, that I would go towards, you know, that is, uh, that is something I would, well, I've been journaling a lot, and so a lot of it, um, I go more into depth into it because I want to, in my journals, um, because I'm planning on writing a book. So in terms of, like, how could that happen, you know, I explain it more in depth, in detail, um, you know, in my journals, um, it's, it's, you can't, you can't really legislate morality, you know, it's some, some of the things, you know, we fall in love unexpectedly with people that we never expected to fall in love with in a million years. I mean, I, I don't think, um, she, like, said to herself when she was younger that, you know, she was going to fall in love with someone that was 20 years younger than her, um, and I never thought I was going to fall in love with somebody that was 20 years older than I was. All right, coming up, Billy became a father at 13 years old. How he explained what happened to his daughters. We're back with Billy Fula'au, who was mourning the loss of his wife, Mary Kay Letourneau. You know, a lot has been said about Mary Letourneau over the years. Some who have argued that she preyed on you. You were still young, 12 years old when you met, sixth grade. How do you respond to people who say that? Well, it's easy for someone, um, to say those things about her because they don't know who she is and all they know is, uh, just what the media tells them or from police reports that, you know, this was, uh, you know, they're looking at the highlights of it, that she was a, she was an adult, I was a minor, um, and, you know, there was, there's just like, you know, you would watch these, uh, these documentaries on, you know, Netflix or whatever, and, um, they talk about, like, pedophiles or, uh, you know, people who rape and whatnot. And the entire time that I've ever known her in my entire life is, there were, there was, you know, I used to question it too. You know, I used to question it myself. Is she? There was, there was absolutely no ill, like, there was no perversion, you know, and there was no history of, of her having any odd things with other minors, you know. So, um, yeah, I just felt like, um, you know, there's nothing I can say to people that don't care to listen or don't care to learn. Um, but that is, that is my wife, and she is my best friend, and we had our kids together, and we got, and we did get married, um, and we had a whole life together. You're a father. Yeah. If someone who was 20 years older than one of your daughters was romantically interested in them, would you say they were too young? Well, from my experience, I wouldn't, I wouldn't look at it, um, the same way everyone else would, but I would react in the same way. Like, you know, what is this guy's intentions? You know, um, I would look a little more deeper in how this guy is treating my daughter. Um, what is his history? You know, we're, you know, who is he? I'd find out a little bit more, um, before actually putting my foot down right away. Um, but also, you would have to know your kid as well. And I would say if my kid came home with a, someone older, I would, I would be upset. I wouldn't, I wouldn't agree with it. Let me flip it around. You're in your thirties now. Uh, Mary was in her thirties when she met you. If you were attracted to a minor, what would you do? Uh, well, I'd probably go and seek some help. You know, I couldn't look at a 13 year old and, you know, you know, be attracted to that because it's just not, you know, it's not in my brain. It's nothing that I'm attracted to. I mean, we all have our preferences and that's just not something that, that I would go towards, you know, that is, uh, that is something I would, well, I've been journaling a lot. And so a lot of it, um, I go more into depth into it because I want to, in my journals, um, because I'm planning on writing a book. So in terms of like, how could that happen? You know, I explain it more in depth, in detail, um, you know, in my journals, um, it's basically, you can't, can't really legislate morality. You know, we fall in love unexpectedly with people that we never expected to fall in love with in a million years. I mean, I, I don't think, um, she like said to herself when she was younger that, you know, she was gonna fall in love with someone that was 20 years younger than her. Um, and I never thought I was going to fall in love with somebody that was 20 years older than I was. All right. Coming up, Billy became a father at 13 years old. How he explained what happened to his daughters. Be sure to subscribe to my channel so you don't miss anything. And remember to check back often to see what's new.