Slugger's medical records sought in feud over note

Bobby-Jo Williams Ferrell's lawyers subpoena documents that might reveal Ted Williams' mental and physical state.

By CARRIE JOHNSON, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published July 30, 2002

INVERNESS -- Ted Williams' youngest children say their father was coherent and lively the day he signed a note stating his desire to be frozen after death. Now, lawyers for his oldest daughter want to know if that claim is supported by medical records.

Attorneys for Bobby-Jo Williams Ferrell subpoenaed Williams' records Monday from a central Florida hospital for the years 2000 and 2001. Shands at the University of Florida at Gainesville must turn over on Sept. 10 any documents relating to Williams' health, including notes written by doctors and nurses.

John Heer, Ferrell's attorney, said one of their goals is to learn more about Williams' physical and mental fitness on the day he allegedly signed the note, Nov. 2, 2000, four days before a pacemaker was inserted into his chest.

Heer has questioned whether Williams, who was suffering from congestive heart failure at the time, was capable of moving the pen to sign his name.

They also hope the records will help them determine whether the signature on the note is authentic.

"We're going to be looking for any documents he signed in that same time frame to compare with the signature (on the note)," Heer said.

Ferrell, 54, maintains that her father wanted to be cremated after death, as dictated in his will of December 1996. Her half-siblings, John-Henry and Claudia Williams, say that he embraced the idea of cryonic suspension after the will was drafted and that the three formed a pact to be preserved after death.

Williams' body was sent to Alcor Life Extension Foundation, an Arizona cryonics lab, hours after his death on July 5.

The grease-stained note in question, which John-Henry Williams says was stored in the trunk of his car, was produced last week as part of a court filing.

In a motion for partial summary judgment, the two youngest siblings argue that the note proves that their father changed his mind about cremation. They are asking a judge to rule that the ink-splattered document supersedes the will, which would make them solely responsible for their father's body -- not the executor of the estate, Al Cassidy.

A hearing on the motion is scheduled for Oct. 3.

Lawyers for the feuding siblings will meet today in a Citrus County courtroom, where Circuit Judge Patricia Thomas is scheduled to rule on a restraining order filed against Ferrell.

Ferrell is accused of leaving a message on the answering machine of Eric Abel, her father's former attorney and a family friend, the night of July 6, warning him to "prepare thyself, sir!"

Abel said the message made him and his family fearful that Ferrell would do something to harm them. A lawyer for John-Henry and Claudia Williams suggested that she was harassing and intimidating potential witnesses.

Heer called Abel's statements inflammatory and exaggerated. He said his client was upset because Abel would not relay information about her father's body and had made disparaging remarks about her to the media.

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