The body of television icon Sherman Hemsley lies in a locked cooler at an East El Paso funeral home more than a month after his death. Does this remind you of James Brown’s family drama…yep!
“It is disgraceful,” Flora Enchinton said. “It is sad. This was a man with dignity.” Enchinton said she has known Hemsley for 20 years and lived with him for more than a decade in El Paso. She said she was Hemsley’s manager as well as his partner and best friend.
A will signed by Hemsley in June 2012 lists Enchinton as the executrix of his estate, as well as the sole heir to all of his holdings. Hemsley also called her his “beloved partner” in the will.
A Philadelphia man who claims to be the brother of Hemsley is contesting the will. Richard Thornton’s contest of Hemsley’s will has halted his burial and memorial services. An El Paso probate court has ordered that Hemsley’s body stay locked in a freezer at the San Jose Funeral Home. Thornton is requesting all of Hemsley’s possessions as well as his frozen body.
