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King Siblings In Court

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The Associated Press

Published: October 15, 2008

ATLANTA - The children of Coretta Scott King and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. faced off in an Atlanta courtroom Tuesday in a dispute over their mother's personal papers that could derail a lucrative book deal.

The Rev. Bernice King, Martin Luther King III and Dexter King have looked more like adversaries than siblings in recent months. The surviving three King children are involved in three lawsuits.

Dexter King, as the head of his father's estate, is seeking his mother's papers, which are in his sister's possession. Bernice King is refusing to turn them over, claiming her mother did not want to participate in the $1.4 million book deal.

New York-based Penguin Group is threatening to pull the deal Friday without the documents.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville delayed making a decision Tuesday, instead appointing a special master to determine what documents were at issue. He said it would be impossible for him to weigh in without an accurate inventory.

"Am I putting this thing off? No," Glanville said. "I have to find out what is in contention to begin with."

He said he is aware of Penguin Group's deadline and will resolve the issue as soon as possible.

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