2 of singer Glen Campbell’s children fighting wife’s control of medical, financial decisions

By Travis Loller, The Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Singer Glen Campbell’s two oldest children are attempting to wrest control of his medical and financial decisions away from his wife of 32 years, Kim Campbell.

Debby Campbell-Cloyd and Travis Campbell claim that Kim Campbell is keeping their father “secluded from the rest of the family” which has been “prohibited from participating in his care and/or treatment,” according to a petition filed in a Nashville court in January.

The petition asks a judge to appoint conservators and a guardian to protect Glen Campbell’s interest. The 78-year-old Country Music Hall of Fame member is in the late stages of Alzheimer’s disease and living at a Nashville long-term care facility.

In a response to an earlier criticism from Campbell-Cloyd over her decision to move her husband to the facility, Kim Campbell told the AP, “It is crushingly sad to see him afflicted with Alzheimer’s but indulging those feelings does not help him. I am his wife and no one wants him home more than me but I must do what is in his best interest.”

Reached by phone on Wednesday, Kim Campbell referred questions about the petition to her attorney, Bill Harbison, who said he could not comment because the judge has placed the petition under seal.

A copy of the petition was sent to The Associated Press. It claims that Kim Campbell is not providing her husband with needed toiletries and clothing, not visiting him regularly and possibly mishandling his finances. It claims several of his children are not on his list of allowed visitors. Glen Campbell has eight children, the three youngest with Kim Campbell.

The petition also claims that Kim Campbell has allowed her husband to be interviewed and filmed at the facility, even though his disease has progressed to the point where that is inappropriate.

Glen Campbell revealed he had Alzheimer’s disease in 2011, but he went on to record two albums and play more than 150 concerts. At the time, Kim Campbell said the tour was a way to help her husband combat the brain-ravaging disease and spend time with family members who made up his band and travelled with him. They included Campbell-Cloyd, who sang harmony.

He also starred in a documentary about life with Alzheimer’s, “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me.” Last month, he won a Grammy for his song “I’m Not Gonna Miss You,” which plays at the conclusion of the documentary. The song also was nominated for an Oscar.

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