On May 30, 2014 I posted a blog on the sad case of Casey Kasem. In that blog I outlined the dispute between Casey’s children from his first marriage and his second spouse over personal care decisions.
Unfortunately since posting that blog Casey Kasem passed away on June 15. For over a month, his body remained at a funeral home in Tacoma, Washington. Casey’s daughter Kerry from his first marriage has filed an application in the Washington State Superior Court seeking an autopsy on her father’s remains. She indicated that she sought an order that his remains be preserved pending the hearing of her application as she is concerned that her stepmother Jean may prevent the autopsy by having the remains moved to Canada or cremated.
A judge ordered on July 16 that Jean Kasem ensure that the remains be preserved and that the body remains at the funeral home until the court rules on the autopsy petition.
According to published reports, Jean withdrew Casey from his rest home in May and took him on a trip around the US at which time he contracted a bed sore which apparently contributed to his death. He died on June 15 from Parkinson’s, dementia and sepsis.
While Kerry Kasem is the petitioner in court, the dispute involves all 3 children from his first marriage. The children are taking the position that their father wanted to be buried in Glendale California. On the other hand, Casey’s widow Jean has accused the children of making a desperate grab for his life insurance. Interesting, Kerry Kasem who appeared on the television show “The View” stated that she could not remember how or why the feud between her and her siblings and their stepmother had started. She said “if I knew I would tell you, I would try and make amends. I would say, “I am sorry Jean. What happened? Why do you hate us so much?”
In many of the estate litigation files that I handle, there is a similar scenario in that the parties can’t remember why or how the feud started but I must say they are not always willing to make amends.
The children recently held a memorial service for their late father which was attended by 200 people including his brother. Jean and her daughter Liberty whom she had with Casey were excluded from this service.
Casey left a sizeable estate including a Beverly Hills mansion complete with 8 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms, tennis courts and a piece of the Brooklyn Bridge. It is presently on the market for $42 million.
It was reported by the Canadian Press on July 20, 2014 that Casey’s remains were sent from the funeral home in Tacoma to a funeral home in Montreal. As at the time of this writing, there is no further information as to whether or not that information is correct but it appears that Kasem’s remains have been moved from Washington State.
I have previously blogged about other funeral disputes involving famous people (Mary Kennedy, Sherman Hemsley [“Mr. Jefferson”] and Carroll Shelby).
The sad case of Casey Kasem is yet another example.
Stay tuned for further updates on this sad tale.
Sad when families have to resort to public feuding.