After bickering for more than a year in Atlanta courtrooms over their father's estate, the surviving children of the civil rights icon have agreed to the division of King's property, including the sale of King's archives and the ownership of romance letters King penned to his wife, Coretta Scott King, who died in 2006.
The ugly wrangling among Martin Luther King III, sister Bernice and brother Dexter had threatened to air personal and financial details of King Inc., the family trust that oversees the civil rights leader's holdings.
Martin and Bernice had sued Dexter in 2008, accusing him of improperly running King Inc., which all three control.
The agreement signed before Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural D. Glanville declared the siblings as legally "deadlocked," meaning a temporary custodian will operate King Inc., while the siblings work on their personal relationships with one another.
They seem to have a lot of work to do.
Dexter has signed a $1.4 million book contract for an autobiography of Coretta Scott King, but Bernice, who is administrator of her estate, refused to supply photos, papers and letters between the King parents for the project. Dexter then sued his sister for the release of the material.
It's sad that a man who lived his life in the name of peace would have his children fight in such a public way.
With the peace accord among the three King children, though, perhaps Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta will finally be able to rest in peace.
Comments: (21)
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By: ADMR on 10/13/2009 3:31PM
KING...posted at 1:51 - wink!
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By: elizabeth on 10/13/2009 4:19PM
This kind of ruccus makes people wonder if dad had so much time for peace in the world where was he for his own children? I think I can single out quite a few Ministers with this same dilema arising after their deaths especially in black families. Even speaking personally out of 12 my own dad had only 2 of us to follow him in the ministry, one deceased in 1975 and I'm the only living sibling carrying on his work, established in 1937. When I began looking into the estate I had no help whatsoever from any but I still used 10,000 of my own dollars to get the property into our names yet all will benefit. It makes one wonder, doesn't it? I am asking eve now that my only child a daughter continue my legacy by honoring my dad as founder of my church which I am building with our money, mine and her deceased dad which had my dad's first name. we can preserethe legacy.
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By: trina on 10/13/2009 9:25PM
that is very sad those 3 need to think of there mom and dad . everyone wants the money that money will never take the place of people we love . sometime people just don't understand the true meaning of family love and life . until it is just to late . people will kill for money and the is sick . those 3 need to get it together black need to stop all this fighting a hate at one another . may god help them love each other and know the love and family as their mother and father show them . amen
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By: Billy Springer on 10/14/2009 4:15AM
I lived in Atlanta 1979-1985 and I observed the King family and use to just shake my head at the way that family was used by the system. For example: whenever the system needed the support of blacks in Atlanta, they did not go to the black community and seek their support. They would go to Mrs. King and take her to Dr. King's grave and with the camera rolling Mrs. King would stand there fighting back tears and they would put that on television as if to say; ok now will have the support of the back community. Say what? Every politician that came to Atlanta would do the same drill of picking up Mrs. King and taking her to Dr. King's grave and photograph Mrs. King again fighting back tears and take her home and that was that. I got so damn fed-up seeing that same drill over and over again. Martin Luther King lll worked at churches chicken believe it or not. None of the other children even had a job or attended college. One of his daughter's had a baby OOW. The King family was the most dysfunctional family in Atlanta.
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By: Billy Springer on 10/14/2009 12:31AM
I find it rather ironic that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. his father and grandfather were all graduates of Morehouse Collge in Atlanta and none of the King children ever attended college. When Dr. King was murdered Harry Bellafonte paid for his children's education out of his own pocket. My question is what; happened to that money? Was that family dysfunctional or what?
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By: Sheryl on 10/19/2009 2:05AM
Billster....Check your facts sweetie, Bernice graduated from Spelman and Yolanda from Smith college. Although, Dexter and Martin III attended Morehouse, I don't believe either of them graduated.
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By: Leroy Gass on 10/14/2009 12:49PM
How does one become a lawyer without attending college? Also, I think that Bernice was not the only one of the King children to go either. Why would one make a bad situation worse by writing untruths?
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By: ron on 10/15/2009 9:26AM
money has a way of changing even the best of us.
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By: tallpaul on 10/15/2009 11:09AM
"King family comes to it's senses"?
Because they agree on how to spend the money?
Their father's message was "you don't buy a life, you live a life"!
Their greed and selfishness is a shame and a disgrace to the struggle of the oppressed, freedom and humanity!
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By: SLC on 10/15/2009 11:26AM
The King children learn their behavior from their mother. She also tried to pimp the system. The children are lazy and want the nation to support them, in the name of their father.
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