"I just want to protect and guide her through it," Val told People backstage on Monday. "But I’m not going to shelter her from a situation that is hers... It’s hers to face and hers to grow from and hers to understand as well." Exactly. It was her situation, and she had a right to face it and grow from it from the moment it happened.

Could DWTS showrunners have been concerned with keeping Hernandez in rehearsals for Monday night's show? Were producers worried the news would affect her performance? If they indeed hid this huge piece of family news from a 16-year-old girl — in turn affecting her grieving process — then that's just wrong. And the fact that Hernandez and her partner nabbed a perfect score Monday night doesn't make the blow any softer.