NEWSRFK Jr.'s Second Wife Mary Was 'Completely Shattered' When Their Kids Were 'Swept Up by' Cheryl Hines Amid Divorce: 'That Was the Worst Thing'
The Kennedy scion shares four children with his late second wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy.
April 15 2026, Published 4:33 p.m. ET
Mary Richardson Kennedy was heartbroken to watch her kids with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. be "swept up by" his then-girlfriend Cheryl Hines, according to a new book.
In Isabel Vincent's new biography, RFK Jr.: The Fall and Rise, she revealed the estranged couple's four children were quick to bond with the Curb Your Enthusiasm star amid their ugly divorce.
A friend of Mary's told the author that RFK Jr.'s late second wife was left "completely shattered" in 2011 when her only daughter, Kyra, decided to moved across the country at 16 to live with the actress in Los Angeles.
'That Was Her Greatest Fear'
Kyra Kennedy opted to live with Cheryl Hines during high school.
Notably, in Cheryl's 2025 memoir Unscripted, she wrote: "I loved Kyra and was happy to take her in."
Mary, who was married to the Kennedy scion from 1994 until their separation in 2010, tragically committed suicide in 2012.
"The thing that was most troubling to her was losing access to the children, was just being barred from the children,” Isabel told People. "That was the worst thing. That was her greatest fear."
The politician allegedly 'threatened to take the children away' from his second wife.
The author claimed that Mary didn't "deal with it well," especially as Cheryl, who has one daughter of her own, began posting on social media about the kids.
"That really hurt her because she was in a situation where [Bobby] had threatened to take the children away because she had all of these problems with substance abuse and was just going through a very hard time," Isabel explained.
"So that, I was told, was truly devastating," she added.
- 'Greatest Love of His Life': RFK Jr. Compares Wife Cheryl Hines 'Unfavorably' to Late Ex Mary Richardson Kennedy, Explosive New Book Claims
- RFK Jr.'s Second Wife Mary Took His Secret Diaries as 'Leverage' Shortly Before Committing Suicide Amid Ugly Divorce, Book Claims
- RFK Jr. Was 'Cruel' About Late Second Wife Mary's Weight Before Her Tragic Suicide: 'It Was Ugly'
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Mary Richardson Kennedy Hanged Herself
Mary Richardson Kennedy ended her life on Mary 16, 2012.
Mary was reportedly arrested for driving under the influence days after the politician informed her that he would be filing for divorce on Mother's Day in May 2010.
The architect was found hanging in a barn on the couple's Bedford, N.Y. estate before their divorce was finalized two years later. She was just 52.
Robert went on to marry Cheryl in 2014.
RFK Jr. and Cheryl Hines Are Allegedly 'Drifting'
RFK Jr. reportedly compares Cheryl Hines 'unfavorably' to his late ex.
However, Isabel also claimed in her tome, which hits bookshelves on Tuesday, April 14, that a source told her Mary "was the greatest love of his [Robert's] life."
"Kennedy spends a lot of time in private conversations comparing Hines unfavorably to Mary," the investigative reporter wrote, adding that he often reflects on Mary's "beauty, her razor-sharp intellect, her sense of humor, her elegance [and] her grace."
The author further claimed the Health and Human Services secretary, 72, "seems to have drifted away from" Cheryl and "no longer desires to spend much time with her."
