Kerri Kasem, who acknowledges that the trip feels more bitter than sweet, will take a plane to Norway in a few days to view her father’s final resting place.
Initially, “it was an unmarked grave,” Kerri reveals to people, providing insight into the location of the cherished radio DJ and television personality’s funeral, which his wife Jean attended on June 15, 2014. After years of declining due to advanced Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia, the 82-year-old reportedly spent his final days being transported suddenly between states, leaving him immobile and suffering from ulcerated bedsores.
His burial site is far away. “Someone put a tiny little plaque there, this woman who lives in Oslo, who’d heard my dad’s story and was so sad about what had happened,” Kerri relates.
Kerri claims she didn’t even know where her father’s remains were until a kind stranger discovered that burial and went looking for her on social media.
She claims she’s traveling to pay her final respects this week, and the woman who became her friend will be her host. “When my father died, I said to my brother and sister, 10 years are going to go by like that, and it’s literally here,” Kerri recounts.
For a number of reasons, Kerri had mixed emotions on the day of her father’s passing. She says, “He passed away on World Elder Abuse Day and on Father’s Day.”
She adds, “I had chills in my body; I couldn’t believe it,” upon realizing the truth. ” My dad couldn’t have sent me a more obvious indication. That’s my belief, anyway.
Casey’s first wife, Linda Myers, left him with two siblings, Mike and Julie, who, along with Kerri, have long suspected that his wife Jean mistreated and neglected him as an elderly man. Kerri has been vocal about it for the past ten years, especially on her Audible podcast Bitter Blood, which delves deeply into her dad’s narrative.
Kerri, whose stepmother was responsible for Casey’s care as his health declined, tells her, “She would move him to keep him from us.”” To avoid having to deal with him, she would check him into a hospital and leave him there for weeks. It was terrifying.
Kerri also claims that Jean buried Casey in Norway, despite his preference for the renowned Forest Lawn cemetery in Los Angeles, dealing a final blow to her and her siblings. Jean vehemently disputes all of these allegations.
“After the illness and passing of my beloved husband of almost 38 years, I have faced numerous unfounded attacks from those seeking financial gain from his estate,” she says in a statement her attorney, George Braunstein, provided to the public.
“I dedicated my life to Casey’s care during his illness, making an effort to respect his desires and give him the finest assistance available. After numerous court cases, I believed we had resolved these issues. But Kerri is still attacking and demeaning me because she only wants money and attention,” the statement reads.
“My love for Casey and my commitment to his well-being have always guided my actions,” Jean continues, choosing not to escalate the situation. I ensured he received the best care and had the burial he desired. My prayer is to help Kerri find peace and move on.
The split family, which also includes Liberty, Casey, and Jean’s daughter, made headlines in 2014 when they argued about where the celebrity had been in the days before he passed away.
In May of that year, Casey’s wife, defying the advice of medical professionals, checked him out of his Santa Monica medical facility. After their flight to Washington, an ambulance picked them up and transported them to a private apartment. At the time, people took care of everything.
“If the ambulance driver suspects elder abuse, they must notify adult protective services.” That’s how we located Jean and Casey in Washington,” Kerri’s then-attorney, Scott Winship, said to people. “He hadn’t had appropriate medical care for about a week and had a stage 3 to stage 4 compression ulcer.”
Even though Kerri was there with Casey when he passed away in Washington and was successful in getting a conservatorship, Jean finally took ownership of his remains and shipped them to Norway. Kerri claims that her dad endured years of abuse prior to the entire scandal.
Following their divorce from Linda in 1979, Casey—who was 48 years old at the time and at the pinnacle of his career—married 26-year-old Jean, who was pursuing her acting career, in 1980. They welcomed their daughter, Liberty, in 1990.
Regarding Jean’s sentiments toward Kerri and her siblings, “She pretended to like us until she got married, and then she called us ‘the other family.’ “She took us to the beach and toy stores one year ago, and we had a wonderful time. After they married, she often said it was obvious we weren’t her family.”
Kerri claims that Jean had been abusing their father even before his illness. She says, “It was just her yelling at him all the time.” “We could hear her screaming at him when we were over there,” she said. We also subpoenaed some of the housekeepers and caregivers, who informed us that they screamed at him every day. He received appalling treatment.”
He loved her very much, even though she claims that she and her siblings requested that her father leave Jean. ‘Just leave, stay with us, and give her the money,’ we would urge, but he would not comply. “It’ll get better,” he would always assure me. However, he admitted that he had made a mistake towards the end.
“He never forgot who we were,” Kerri remarks at the end of her father’s struggle with dementia. “I could see how terrible that was for the man, who had made his life using his voice, and it was really difficult for him to no longer be able to communicate or express his thoughts. And the fact that I knew he wasn’t receiving proper care is what ultimately killed me.”
Despite filing a wrongful death lawsuit against Jean, the district attorney at the time deemed the evidence insufficient. After Jean filed a countersuit, the family reached a confidential settlement. Kerri explains that she tried her best to keep her father safe. “It’s really sad, and that’s why I’ve kind of dedicated the last 10 years of my life to this cause.”
Kerri is currently collaborating with Senator Susan Rubio of California to draft a measure that will enhance regulations pertaining to conservatorship and elder care. “Changes must be made,” she declares.
Kerri believes that her shared spiritual views with her father provide her comfort as she gets ready to travel to Norway. “My dad, like me, believed in reincarnation,” she continues. He says, “I’m not with my body,” despite the fact that he is in Norway. I’m not like that. I agree with you.