Brown estate battle heats up

The woman who claims to be James Brown’s fourth wife wants half of the singer’s estate and to be allowed back into the South Carolina home she was locked out of soon after his death.

Tomi Rae Hynie’s lawyer said she filed a petition in Aiken County probate court Thursday, claiming that she is the surviving spouse of the singer and entitled to part of his estate.

She wants the court to allow her to return to Brown’s Beech Island home to retrieve “personal possessions” that belong to her and their 5-year-old son, including furniture she picked out for the home, according to the court papers.

Hynie, who was a backup singer for Brown, and the young son were not included in the singer’s will, filed Jan. 18 in Aiken County. Brown died Dec. 25 in an Atlanta hospital. The will names Brown’s six adult children and calls for many of the soul legend’s personal possessions, such as clothes, jewelry, boats and automobiles, to be divided among them.

Brown’s attorneys contend that Hynie is not Brown’s widow because she was still married to another man when she and Brown said their vows in 2001. They have said Hynie later annulled her previous marriage, but she and Brown never remarried. Hynie says she was legally married to Brown.