James Brown's Widow Says She's Locked Out of Home

[LiberalHeart]

BEECH ISLAND, SOUT CAROLINA (AP) -- James Brown's widow says she can't go home. Tomi Rae Brown tells the Augusta Chronicle she was at a retreat when her husband died in an Atlanta hospital Christmas morning.

She says she tried to return to their South Carolina home hours later, but the gate was padlocked. Mrs. Brown says security guards told her they're under orders from her late husband's lawyer and accountant not to let her in.

More:
http://wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=5857439

[keopeli]

1. That's called mutiny on a small scale. They are her security guards, but they obey the lawyers. n/t

[SoCalDem]

2. Here's why..

if there is even a suspicion that they were "estranged" and if he had financial problems, they are trying to make sure there's an inventory of everything before anything "leaves" the house.

he probably has grown kids who are eager to see that they get their fair share, and not just an explanation of how something they were supposed to get, has been "lost".

The time immediately after a sudden death is the time for inventorying, appraising, and lawyers.. It's sad, but that's the only way for everyone to be sure of what he had and where it is.

I doubt that she's indigent. She'll just have to find a place to stay for a few days until she gets her own lawyer,

on edit:

He apparently has 5 grown children and a 5 yr old. The lock-out is to protect their rights.

[LiberalHeart]

3. I wonder if anyone is locking them out -- to protect her rights.

[Gman]

4. The man was in his 70's. They were married less than 5 years

I don't think she has a whole helluva lot of rights.

[FlaGranny]

5. Makes no difference how long at all.

As far as survivor rights, unless there is a will stating otherwise, everything always goes to the wife, and nothing to adult children. Tell me about it - my husband's father died. Everything went to his wife (my husband's stepmother). Then she died and everything my father-in-law worked for his entire life went to - his wife's sister (her next of kin)!!!! The natural children of my husband's father got ZERO. The estate wasn't huge, of course, like Brown's, but it was a "nifty" amount. It has always pissed me off.

[William769]

8. Just a point of order here.

They were not married.

[goclark]

9. Thank you very much, they were once married but NOT

married.

This has happened so many times.

She may get something but IMO she will not get the same amount that a wife would get, nor should she.

[flordehinojos]

37. there usedto be in florida, years ago, something called, "common-law-wife"

meaning when a couple was not married, but lived together as husband and wife and people knew or thought of them as husband and wife, the so called, "wife" was protected by that rule/law. i think it went out the window years ago too.

[goclark]

54. It is an interesting concept

and cause for much debate.

[LiberalFighter]

43. It appears that they are married

They were married when she was married to someone else and had not divorced.
James Brown had the marriage annulled and she got divorced from first husband.
Then they had an official marriage.

Couldn't find anything about them being divorced at his death.

[LiberalFighter]

45. If they were divorced at time of his death then she would not be entitled

to anything unless specified in the will. If they got divorced whatever the settlement is all she would be entitled and nothing else just because he died.

[Gman]

20. Then that was a really smart move

by his lawyers and accountants.

[greccogirl]

13. Why didn't the natural children sue? They deserved

part of that estate. I would have gotten a lawyer.

[FlaGranny]

22. The 2 children

were not even informed of the stepmother's death. It was found out much later. The death was in NJ and I'm under the impression (but could be wrong) that the estate goes to the surviving spouse when there are no minor children and the surviving spouse can leave the estate to whoever he or she pleases. It wasn't a large estate, a small home, and unknown amount of cash (but probably not a large amount). I doubt the entire estate was worth more than a hundred thousand or so at the time. It was before the real estate boom. Knowing my hubby, if he had been in charge he would probably have insisted that her family get a third of the estate. Ah well, that is life.

[greccogirl]

39. But there were surviving children so it sounds like something

went on that was illegal. Lawyer time.

[1monster]

17. Inheritance laws vary from state to state.

In Florida, a spouse whose name is not on the deed of a homesteaded property will not inherit the property. However, s/he has the right to remain in the home for the rest of her/his life. Then the estate goes to the children of the deceased deed holder.

That means that the surviving spouse cannot sell the homesteaded property without the legal agreement of the ultimate inheritors.

In any case, unless James Brown left instructions to his lawyers that Mrs. Brown was not to be allowed in the house, I believe that she may have the rights of residency.

I find it strange, however, that she would not have been at the hospital with her husband so ill. Perhaps they were separated?

And where is their child?

on edit: clarified gender on spouse

[Geoff R. Casavant]

29. It varies from state to state.

Some states allow for shared inheritance between spouses and children.

[Ilsa]

35. How stuff gets divided up also depends on in what state they reside. nt

[harpboy_ak]

53. This is why EVERYONE should have a will!

If I didn't have one, my siblings would split my estate equally, or their heirs, since neither of my parents are alive and I don't have children or a spouse.

Some folks, like yours, won't make wills because they (erroneously) believe that doing so will make them dead sooner, or that the family will divide stuff (as if states didn't have laws very strictly controlling even very small estates), or because they can't deal with the idea of their own death.

If you want to control who inherits from you, MAKE A WILL.

[Solo_in_MD]

10. I have also heard that they were not legally married

which could add to this

[kestrel91316]

55. If they were legally married at his death, she can and should have

substantial rights.

[all.of.me]

6. that is standard procedure, i think

when my mom died, my dad had already passed away. her few belongings went into storage where family was not allowed to touch it. her estate was left to lawyers, accountants, stock brokers, and a cpa to inventory everything and disutribute it. it has taken almost a year to do the bulk of it, and it was not even a complicated estate.

[greccogirl]

12. Oh it is very protective to lock out the mother

of the five year old, and let's not forget that Brown physically abused her in 2004 which he paid a fine for. A great man.

[SoCalDem]

21. I'm not saying he was a great man.. just that when someone dies

there are laws of inheritance that kick in.

Like I said..she's not indigent, and will not be sleeping at a shelter.
All she needs is a lawyer of her own..

[greccogirl]

38. Most definitely. One thing you can say about James Brown -

he wasn't the greatest guy when it came to women.

[Miss Chybil]

33. In Arizona the spouse has all the "rights." Community-property state.

If there is a living spouse, that spouse is entitled to everything over the children - even children of a previous marriage. Children do not have rights above a spouse.

[SoCalDem]

34. UNLESS there's a will that specifies what he wanted his other kids to have

For instance..

Let's say he wanted a gold bracelet to go to his eldest son, but somehow it "disappears" before the will is read/probated..

That's why, in a "sudden" death, measures are taken to secure the home to prepare an accurate inventory FIRST..while everything is still presumed to be there..

I had to do it when I was executor of my father's estate (small potatoes) with 4 grown heirs, it was the only way top assure that everything was in order.. EVEN doing that, my one brother has not spoken to me since (noy MY loss) because he wanted to just "hook up a U-haul" to my Dad's car and take it all away with him..

I insisted on a lawyer and we did it all legally.

[Miss Chybil]

47. But, you are not a spouse.

I understand what you are saying about a will, but, (and I don't know all the details in the James Brown case, so I'm speaking generally), were my husband to die tomorrow, (God forbid), nobody could lock me out of our home to inventory it. That's ludicrous. If his grown kids thought they were going to pop up and lock me out of my house... Let me just say it would NEVER happen. Of course, this was my house. I bought it and I added my husband to the deed after we were married. Now it's our house. So, let's just flip the situation around... If I died tomorrow and my kids thought they were going to lock my husband out so they could go through all of our things... NOT. It would NEVER happen.

It sounds like in your situation your father was not married when he passed. Am I right?

[SoCalDem]

50. My parents were divorced.and there was a very detailed will

Florida was a probate state, and all of the four children were grown and each lived in a different state, so there was no way i was going to rush things through and have long distance legal battles .

[davhill]

51. But a marriage licence is just a piece of paper

it doesn't matter if two people really love each other, or does it?

[LiberalFighter]

44. Maybe the will specifies others besides the current wife

And the order is to protect the inheritance to those listed in the will.

[wakeme2008]

7. Brown's Partner Denied Access to Home (not married...

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-James-Brown-Widow.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

December 26, 2006
Brown's Partner Denied Access to Home
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 10:24 a.m. ET

ATLANTA (AP) -- James Brown's lawyer said Tuesday that the late singer and his partner were not legally married and that she was locked out of his South Carolina home for estate legal reasons.

''It's not a reflection on her as an individual,'' lawyer Buddy Dallas told The Associated Press. ''I have not even been in the house, nor will I until appropriate protocol is followed.''

Brown's partner, backup dancer Tomi Rae Hynie, was already married to a Texas man in 2001 when she married Brown, thus making her marriage to Brown null, Dallas said. He said Hynie later annulled the previous marriage, but she and Brown never remarried.

..little more at link....

[maxsolomon]

16. lawyer BUDDY DALLAS?

that's the kind of name that inspires confidence in a lawyer.

also, her name is TOMI, and Elizabeth Berkeley's character in showgirls, a backup dancer, was NOMI.

classy!

[AngryAmish]

11. This already seems to be a dignified process

a la Anna Nicole...

[mirandapriestly]

14. Pic

He was accused of violence against her

[femrap]

15. And how many others?

He liked to beat up women...I think it made him 'feel good.'

[greccogirl]

40. Actually he pleaded guilty.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/jbrownass1.html

/14 UPDATE--James Brown has pleaded no contest to a domestic violence charge, but will serve no jail time. Instead, the 71-year-old singer will forfeit a $1087 bond as punishment for the January incident at the South Carolina home he shared with wife Tomi Rea Brown (Brown was charged with pushing her to the ground during an argument). According to cops, Brown's wife suffered "scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip" during the bedroom beef. While Brown's plea wipes the case from the Aiken County court docket, his classic bathrobe mug shot is, thankfully, going nowhere.

JANUARY 28--James Brown was arrested today on a domestic violence charge after allegedly pushing his wife to the floor during an argument at the couple's South Carolina home. The 70-year-old singer was nabbed by deputies with the Aiken County Sheriff's Office who responded to a 911 call apparently placed by 33-year-old Tomi Rea Brown. The woman suffered "scratches and bruises to her right arm and hip" during the bedroom dispute, according to investigators. Brown, who has a well-known history of arrests and bizarre behavior, was booked into the local lockup, where the below mug shots were taken. Last July, Brown took out an ad in "Variety" to announce that he and his wife had made a "mutual show business decision" to "go their separate ways." It is unclear whether that anticipated separation and/or divorce has occurred. (1 page)


He also attempted to run over an earlier wife with his car.

[IdaBriggs]

18. If they weren't married, then she isn't the widow, and has no legal rights.

She may be the mother of a minor child, but it sounds like someone with common sense stepped in to the protect the family of the deceased. If she's listed in the will, then its a whole new ball game, but in the meantime, she isn't getting a lot of sympathy from me. Did she actually expect to be treated any differently when he died?

:shrug:

[AngryAmish]

19. Not quite the same but think about gay couples

In most states they are not legally married. But wouldn't it be cruel to lock out a life partner from a home for the lack of a piece of paper?

[IdaBriggs]

26. It happens *ALL* the time to gay couples right now.

I am aware of one particular instance where two gay men who had been living together for forty years had everything in the "main breadwinner's" name, with a legally binding will stating that everything went to the "surviving" partner in the event of death. Upon the death of the main breadwinner, distant cousins of the man swooped in with a lawyer, got the will broken, took possession of the home (and everything in it), and then sued for BACK RENT!!!

The last I heard about the situation, the "distant cousins" were winning the lawsuit war; the property was worth quite a bit of money, but they had managed to freeze all of the MUTUAL assets (checking accounts, etc.) by claiming they were part of the dead man's estate.

There should be a special place in hell for people like that.

My point, unsympathetic or not, however, is that for straight people to find themselves in this type of situation when there is a remedy available -- marriage -- is ridiculous, and completely expected. His heirs should be protected; she isn't legally one of them (unless he put her in his will that way).

[Critters2]

27. I know of a gay couple, both adults, 4 or 5 years' difference in age,

where the older one legally adopted the younger, to ensure inheritance rights. Bizarre though it seemed, it worked. The property went to his partner with no questions asked. Sad it has to come to that kind of thing.

[LiberalFighter]

46. I think that is what the Ancient Romans did

[LiberalHeart]

23. Aren't people who live together as married "common law" spouses?

[IdaBriggs]

25. In Canada, yes, and it comes with certain legal rights.

In most states here in the United States, NO. Michigan, for example, does not recognize common law marriages, nor does California (as far as I am aware).

So, for example, you can "live together" with someone for twenty years, and then end up homeless if your "boyfriend" (or girlfriend) dies and his name is on the deed, with all of "your" possessions going to his children, or his extended family, or whatever. They can also prevent you from attending or participating in funeral arrangements, or visiting at a hospital. I have also heard of cases where legal airtight wills were broken; it all depends on who has the "best" lawyers.

Marriage is a LEGAL relationship; "shacking up" is basically roommates (which is one of the reasons the gay community wants the LEGAL rights of marriage, even if they don't give a crap about the name).

:shrug:

[Critters2]

28. Depends on the state, and on the lenght of time they were together

Some states have common law marriage after 7 or 10 years. Others have no such provision.

[Ilsa]

36. Common law can be tricky. Besides cohabitation, a couple has to present

themselves as married, and there needs to be intent, which may be hard to find since they didn't bother "remarrying" after her annulment. There are probably slight differences from state to state in what constitutes a common law marriage.

[greccogirl]

41. If I were the mother of the five year old and living there

you bet I'd expect to be treated differently. But this is what women let themselves in for when they play house, unfortunatley.

[truthisfreedom]

24. Moderators, is it possible for this thread to be moved elsewhere?

Please?

[JanusAscending]

42. WHY ???

pray tell!!

[goclark]

30. Link to States that Recognize CLM

Fact Sheet On Common Law MarriageIF YOU LIVE IN A STATE THAT DOES RECOGNIZE COMMON LAW MARRIAGE: If you live in one of the above states and you "hold yourself out to be married" (by telling ...
www.unmarried.org/common.html - 14k - Cached - Similar pages

Seems like in Georgia, they would have to be living together since 1967 ~right?

[LiberalHeart]

31. 1997 in Georgia ... but their house is in North Carolina & CLM applies

[Lance_Boyle]

48. South Carolina.

We have no common law marriage provisions in NC.

[LiberalHeart]

52. I have a mental block on "south" when it comes to this story --

I knew it was south when I typed north -- and when I posted the original story, I didn't spell south right in the dateline. It's a jinx.

[Megahurtz]

32. What the Hell?

:wtf:

[Catherine Vincent]

49. It never fails.

The man isn't in the ground yet and they are fighting over what is due to them.

[barb162]

56. I have heard variously that she was the wife and not the wife.

If she isn't the wife, I have no problem with the lock out.

[laureloak]

57. She lives in her own home just a block or so away AND

she was still married to someone else when she married JB so that marriage (to JB) was nulled. They never remarried. No wonder she was padlocked out.

[Trillo]

58. Curioius that one can be locked out of one's home so easily.

Wouldn't many landlords love to be able to lock out non-paying tenants on a moments notice?