James Brown’s Fourth Wife Wants Half of His Estate

By: Rizoh

      Tomi Rae Hynie, James Brown’s alleged fourth wife, has filed a petition seeking access to part of his estate. According to court papers discovered by the AP, Hynie wants the court to allow her to return to Brown’s Beech Island home to retrieve "personal possessions" that belong to her and their 5-year-old son, James Joseph Brown II, including furniture she picked out for the home.

      Her lawyer Robert Rosen maintains that she’s not asking to live there, adding, “ They locked her out and wouldn’t let her in but she has a right to go in and get her stuff – furniture, her clothing, her son’s toys. They keep saying that they’re going to do it but they never do it so we’re going to ask a judge to order them to do it."

James Brown’s attorneys dispute Hynie’s status as Brown’s widow because, according to claims, she was still married to another man when she and Brown said their vows in 2001. They have said Hynie later annulled her previous marriage, but she and Brown never remarried.

      In 2006, Hynie and Brown worked on a documentary film, Life on the Road with Mr. & Mrs. Brown, set for release later this year.

Meanwhile, James Brown’s body remains in a sealed, gold casket in an undisclosed location awaiting a decision on where to bury it.