Paula Abdul says she begged “American Idol” producers to keep her away from stalker Paula Goodspeed — who killed herself outside Abdul’s home exactly one month ago — but they let the obsessed fan audition anyway.

“She had been writing disturbing letters for 17 years, almost 18 years,” the “Straight Up” singer explained on Barbara Walters’ radio show. “We had restraining orders at times.” But until that point, Goodspeed had only made contact via her fan club.