The Probate Lawyer Blog

The late Riley B. King — better known as blues legend B.B. King — often said that the only woman in his life was his guitar, Lucille.  But that wasn’t exactly true.  King estimated that he had 15 children by 15 different women.  No wonder one of his biggest hits was called, When Love Comes To Town.  

B.B. King took responsibility for his children.  According to CNN, he set up a multimillion dollar education fund for his descendants.  King wrote in his memoir that he assumed responsibility every time a woman came to him and said a child was his, without arguing about whether that was true or not.  One of his daughters, Patty King, said in a previous interview with Rolling Stone that B.B. King was a great dad who had “done well” by his children.

That same daughter is now leading the charge against B.B. King’s business manager of 39 years, LaVerne Toney.  Patty King and half-sister Karen Williams lead a panel of five King children, out of the eleven surviving children, who have made serious accusations of wrongdoing against Toney.  These range from not letting the children see their father before he died, to providing improper medical care, and even poisoning B.B. King.

Blues great B.B. King passed away at age 89 years old Thursday, after suffering from diabetes and other health problems.  He leaves behind an unmatched musical legacy in the Blues genre, along with 11 surviving children and reportedly more than 50 grandchildren.

Sadly, a dark cloud hung over the King family throughout his final days, due to a bitter dispute over the management of his care and money, involving what some claimed to be elder abuse.  The battle pitted his longtime business manager, Laverne Toney, against a handful of his children.

King fathered and adopted a total of 15 children, from several different marriages, but four had previously died.  Three filed a court action in Las Vegas alleging that their famous father was a victim of elder abuse at the hands of Toney. 

Karen Williams, Rita Washington, and Patty King said that Toney was not providing proper medical care to their father, restricted his children and friends from visiting, and that there were large amounts of money missing from King’s bank account.  In fact, the family said it could not account for more than one million dollars.  The three children asked the court to appoint an independent guardian for their father to protect him and his assets.