Hospital: Gary Coleman Gave Ex-Wife Power To Pull Plug
Posted on Jun 03, 2010 @ 08:46AM - 4 comments
Gary Coleman may have quietly divorced his wife Shannon Price, but the Diff'rent Strokes star still gave her the power to pull the plug on life support in the event of something happening to him, RadarOnline.com has learned.
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In order to prove this, Price gave officials at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center permission Wednesday night to release the following information to RadarOnline.com:
EXCLUSIVE: Not Even The Family Of Gary Coleman’s 'Wife' Knew Of Divorce
Posted on Jun 03, 2010 @ 05:38AM - 3 comments
In another bizarre twist in Gary Coleman’s death, the brother in-law of the Diff’rent Strokes star exclusively tells RadarOnline.com he wasn’t even aware the couple was divorced.
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Shawn Price, the brother of widow Shannon, also confirmed for the first time his sister “pulled the plug” on Coleman’s life support.
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The startling revelation that Price portrayed herself to hospital staff that she was Coleman's wife, despite not being legally married, has called into question who had the authority to make any medical decisions on the actor’s behalf.
Coleman died at a Utah hospital after being taken off life support on Friday. He was 42.
“I don’t think they ever got the divorce,” Shawn told RadarOnline.com, in an exclusive interview.
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But according to documents unearthed on Wednesday, the couple kept the divorce secret.
Documents were sealed using the names 'John Doe' and 'Jane Doe', to prevent it becoming public.
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The papers cited 'irreconcilable differences' as the reason for divorce and stated that no alimony was awarded, with all property going to Coleman.
However, Shawn said at the Coleman’s death, the couple was living together.
It was from Coleman’s Santaquin, Utah, home where Shannon, 24, called 911 after hearing a loud bang while in bed.
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In a tape released Wednesday, it emerged Shannon initially resisted giving Coleman medical aid because she felt squeamish.
“I'm gagging... I've got blood on myself... I can't deal,” Price said in the call, in which she described Coleman as 'bubbling at the mouth'.
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Shawn said his sister was coping “OK” amid the controversy swirling around her ex-husband’s death.
“We’re all sad on the way he passed away,” he said.
EXCLUSIVE: Lawyer: Gary Coleman's Ex-Wife Could Have Had Right To Pull Plug Even If Divorced
Posted on Jun 02, 2010 @ 08:35PM - 13 comments
A marriage law specialist tells RadarOnline.com Gary Coleman’s ex-wife Shannon Price could have had the authority to take him off life support, even though the couple was divorced.
Utah is one of 10 states which has legislated common-law marriage.
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“In the state of Utah, as long as you live together and act like husband and wife and file joint tax returns, have joint accounts, etc., you’re considered husband and wife under the state’s common-law statute,” divorce attorney David Pedrazas, who practices in Salt Lake City, told RadarOnline.com.
What’s unclear is if the Diff'rent Strokes star and Price continued to meet those legal requirements after their 2008 divorce.
Coleman’s attorney, Randy Kester, said on Wednesday he never told him that the two had remarried after splitting because of "irreconcilable differences."
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Coleman died last Friday, at the age of 42, after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
Price reportedly made the decision to pull the plug on life support.
If the couple was not married under common-law, according to Pedrazas, the actor’s estate could argue liability — and blame could be pointed at Price and/or the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, where he died.
