The dispute over the late comedic actor Sherman Hemsley’s estate has been dragging on for months now, and fortunately there has finally been a breakthrough.
You may recall that the actor passed away back in July in El Paso, which is the city that he called home though he was originally from Philadelphia.
His last will left everything to his longtime close friend Flora Enchinton. In addition to being named as sole heir in the document, she was also named as the executor of the Hemsley estate.
The last will was contested by Richard Thornton, who contended that he should be the heir to the estate because he was Sherman Hemsley’s brother.
A DNA test was ordered by the probate court judge in El Paso. The test confirmed that Thornton was the half-brother of Hemsley.
However, this relationship does not by any stretch of the imagination make a legally binding last will invalid. This would seem to be self-evident, and ultimately the court did find that the last will was indeed valid.
The final result is that Sherman Hemsley was buried on November 21 in Fort Bliss National Cemetery in El Paso, and by all accounts the service was an inspiring one.
Sometimes we think of celebrities as being individuals who have lived charmed lives that are out of touch with our own. In fact, Sherman Hemsley worked for eight years as a postal clerk, and he spent four years in the United States Air Force which is why he was entitled to burial in the National Cemetery.
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