Tuesday, May 26, 2015

No Charges for Casey Kasem's Widow

I've been following the really bizarre story of Casey Kasem's death and burial. The twists and turns were enough to give me whiplash, and ended with the truly strange decision to bury him in Norway (almost six months after his death). Kasem's daughter was very vocal about accusing her father's widow of elder abuse, and I must say, that didn't sound like an outrageous claim after the weird way she handled things after Casey died.

Well, the Los Angeles D.A. apparently disagreed. From this morning's RADIO INK...

Elder abuse charges will not be filed against Jean Kasem, famed DJ Casey Kasem's widow. Casey Kasem's three children from his previous marriage were urging Los Angeles officials to have their stepmother prosecuted. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office found there was not enough evidence against Jean Kasem and that "this case cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury."

Casey Kasem's daughter and syndicated radio host Kerri Kasem issued a statement which read: "My family is very sad to learn the Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey has decided not to file charges against Jean Kasem. We did everything we could to save my Dad at the end of his life, including getting an emergency court order for conservatorship. But we were too late. My father's second wife Jean had done everything she could to keep our father from us while not providing the quality care that he -- and every other senior in our society -- deserves."

This story isn't over. The kids are now pushing for the D.A. in Washington (state) to file charges against Casey's widow. Washington was one of the places she took the ailing Kasem to keep him away from his kids.