Martin Luther King Jr.'s three surviving children will be appearing in court on Tuesday morning, Jan. 13, as they wrangle over their father's famously tattered Bible and his Nobel Peace Prize, two possessions that are said to be worth millions of dollars.
Brothers Martin Luther King III and Dexter Scott King, who are in control of their father's estate, have filed a lawsuit last year against their sister, Bernice King, who was ordered by Judge Robert McBurney of the Fulton County Superior Court to turn over the two items to the court as requested by her brothers.
On Tuesday, McBurney could decide whether the annotated Bible and the Nobel Prize medal belongs to the brothers, who want to sell the items to a private buyer. The judge could also order to send the case to trial, which would be set to begin on Feb. 16.
The last public appearance made by Martin Luther King Jr.'s Bible was in 2013, when U.S. President Barack Obama used it for his inauguration. Following the court order to take away the items from Bernice, she released a statement saying she was "troubled by her brothers' actions."
"There is no justification for selling either of these sacred items," Bernice said at the time. "They are priceless and should never be exchanged for money in the marketplace. While I love my brothers dearly, this latest decision by them... reveals a desperation beyond comprehension."
Attorneys for Bernice have also argued that the Nobel medal was given to their father's wife, Coretta Scott King, as a gift. Thus, the medal belongs to Coretta's estate, of which Bernice is the sole administrator.
Her brothers, however, argue that their father's estate needs money. Appraisers Leila Dunbar and Clive Howe say they expect the medal to fetch $5 million to $10 million, based on how much other Nobel Prize medals were sold in the past.
Dunbar believes the Bible could sell for at least $200,000 and possibly more than $400,000, but Howe pegs it at $1 million. Howe also says both items could sell as much as $15 million to $20 million if sold to a private buyer.
"It is hard to fathom how the important legacy that the competing parties claim to be seeking to protect will be well served by yet another very public airing of the disputes and squabbles that have sadly divided the King family in recent years," wrote the judge in an order.
This is not the first time the King siblings have taken their rivalry to court. Last year, the estate filed another lawsuit against the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, of which Bernice is the CEO.
In their complaint, the brothers said the Dr. King estate was the single biggest financial contributor to the King Center, but the two entities had seen "a total breakdown in communication and transparency."
The estate is demanding that the King Center stop using their father's image, likeness and memorabilia, unless Bernice is placed on an administrative leave and if former United Nations ambassador Andrew Young, a friend of their father, leaves the King Center's board of directors. The case is still awaiting a decision.
Since their mother died in 2006, the King siblings have filed lawsuits against one another over the possessions of their parents. Another case was filed by Martin Luther and Bernice against their brother Dexter Scott, who allegedly took money from their mother's estate for a private business venture.
However, in 2010, the siblings seemed to have settled their differences, and Bernice issued a statement about how she is "proud that my brothers and I are speaking with one voice to communicate our parents." Their father might have felt the same way too, had the three been able to maintain the peace and unity their parents fought for.
