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The three children and brother of deceased radio DJ Casey Kasem filed on Wednesday a wrongful death lawsuit against his widow, Jean Kasem.
The accused her of elder abuse and inflicting emotional distress on them in the case filed at the Los Angeles Superior Court, reports Associated Press. The three, who are his children from a previous marriage, claim that Jean prevented them from going near their father before he died in 2014.
Kerri, Julie and Michael Kasem, and Casey's brother, Mouner, sought over $250,000 damages which a jury decides. Casey, known for hosting "American Top 40," died at 82. He suffered from a form of dementia and severe bedsore before he died.
Jean was Casey's wife for more than 30 years, according to Fox. Casey started "American Top 40" in 1970. He was the voice behind the character Shabby in "Scooby-Doo" TV cartoons. He also voiced over a lot of commercials.
Kerri said they decided to file a civil case against the widow of their father because prosecutors did not file elder abuse charges against Jean due to their failure to prove her actions caused his death since he has "longstanding profound health issues." She insists they are not after money but justice, saying, "We would rather see her in jail than receive one dime."
Before Casey died in June 2014, an LA judge removed the decision-making authority from Jean after she moved Casey from a Santa Monica medical facility to a friend's house in Washington. She insisted the move was to protect Casey's privacy.
Kerri got control over her father's medical care. The lawsuit accuses Jean of leaving Casey in several hospitals even if he was ready for discharge. It also cited Jean's decision to bring Casey's corpse to Norway where it was buried in an unmarked grave even if Casey wanted to be interred in LA.
