Casey Kasem had quite a remarkable and fascinating life. Not only was he the voice of America’s Top 40 throughout much of his career, but he also made frequent guest appearances on shows like Saved by the Bell and provided the voice of one of animation’s most beloved characters, Shaggy from the original Scooby-Doo .
But as much as he was known for contributing to kids’ programming and sharing heartfelt dedications on the radio airwaves in life, his death has played out more like a horror movie.
That’s because his wife Jean Kasem, a former actress, and his children have been at odds over his end-of-life care and possession of his remains.
In a bizarre and macabre twist shared by TMZ , it now appears that Casey Kasem is not at rest even though he died in June. What’s worse, court documents claim his body hasn’t even been embalmed since Jean had the corpse transported to Norway.
The court docs also claim that he is literally “rotting,” and that Jean could be wanting it to happen to conceal signs of elder abuse.
In other words… if time goes on and the body remains in Norway… Jean could dodge a bullet.”
Kerri Kasem, Casey’s daughter, is leading the fight to regain control of her father’s remains and have him brought back to the states.
Jean, Kerri, and the rest of the Casey Kasem family have been at odds since Kasem’s will was changed prior to his death. Kerri and her siblings contend that Jean was pulling the strings and keeping the kids from seeing their father in his final days.
The family drama escalated in April of this year when Jean Kasem moved her husband from southern California to Washington state without notifying the rest of the family. This led to his daughters filing a missing persons report and petitioning the courts to allow them to see their father.
A judge’s ruling reinstated an end-of-life health directive that Casey Kasem signed in 2007, when he was told he had Parkinson’s disease. After the ruling, his daughter Kerri released a statement declaring her dissatisfaction of the court’s findings.
The court’s decision today upheld our father’s explicit wishes as expressed by him in his health directive.”
Legal documents at that time claimed that Casey Kasem was suffering from dementia and bedsores, and that his body was shutting down.
Jean Kasem’s attorney, Steven Haney, said Jean was “broken-hearted” over the ruling, and most now believe this is what triggered the move of his body to Norway.
Do you believe Casey Kasem was abused in his final days? And what do you think should be next for this bitter family dispute? Sound off in our comments section.
[Image via Featureflash / Shutterstock.com ]