RETIRED tennis coach “King” Richard Williams had his divorce dismissed as he was terrified of being misunderstood in court following a series of strokes, according to his son.
Serena and Venus’s father, who trained them from a young age, survived three strokes and was in a coma before undergoing life-saving brain surgery.
Retired tennis coach ‘King Richard’ Williams, pictured with his estranged wife Lakeisha, did not want to attend his court deposition as he’s suffered three strokes and struggles with his speech, according to his son Chavoita LeSaneCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Chavoita worked with his dad’s attorney to get the case dismissed but said he plans to refileCredit: Instagram/chavoitalesane
Although he is now doing well in his health battle and is still mobile, his son, Chavoita LeSane, revealed he had to convince a judge to dismiss his father’s case after he was a no-show at court.
The 81-year-old filed for divorce from his estranged wife Lakeisha, 45, in May 2017 after seven years of marriage.
He has been desperate to make the split official but the couple has been locked in a dispute after she admitted to forging his signature and transferring their Palm Beach, Florida, home into her name.
In a dramatic twist to proceedings, the case was dismissed by Judge James Martz this month and is now officially closed.
Explaining the situation, his son Chavoita told The U.S. Sun, “With the strokes and stuff, he’s just terrified of the court procedures.
“He was supposed to show up in court but he did not make it. I’m not sure of the exact date but we had to get it dismissed.
“It wasn’t just court, he was supposed to show up for his deposition.
“I had to talk to the attorney and say, ‘He’s not gonna make it.’ It was terrible.
“He didn’t realize he had to go to court. He was like, ‘Just give me a week to get myself ready for it.’ But the lawyer couldn’t get a week. And he hates being pressured.
“The last attorney had it set where he was unfit to stand trial, and that was seven years ago.”
It was previously revealed that doctors in Miami operated on him more than six years ago as he was suffering from neuralgia – pain caused by damaged or irritated nerves.
Microvascular decompression (MVD) relieves “abnormal compression of a cranial nerve causing trigeminal neuralgia, glossopharyngeal neuralgia, or hemifacial spasm,” according to online research.
The brain itself is untouched as doctors access the membrane covering it by opening the skull and inserting a sponge between the nerve and artery triggering the pain signals.
He has been doing well since his surgery and now cares for his young son, Dylan, who was born in 2012, with Lakeisha.
Chavoita went on, “The judge had ordered all this stuff [recently], and to make sure he wasn’t in contempt of court, the lawyer and I decided to just dismiss it and then resume the divorce. That’s what happened. He gets paranoid.”
Chavoita, who has previously been his dad’s caretaker, said he’s not allowed to be at his dad’s deposition and he’d wanted his son’s support due to his speech troubles.
“He’s been wanting me to coach him because when he says ‘yes’ sometimes he means ‘no,’ and when he says ‘no’ he means ‘yes,'” his son said.
“He would never want his words to be misconstrued. That’s what the issue was.
“The divorce will resume, but we’ve got to sort it out.
“Lakeisha is trying to talk him out of the divorce, it’s his choice, and to just draft up paperwork saying she gets nothing from him if anything happens.
“I got the attorney drafting up paperwork if that’s what he wants to do. But when I recently spoke to him he just said, ‘No, I just want to be divorced from Lakeisha.'”
MOUNTING DEBT
Meanwhile, ex-stripper Lakeisha is having serious financial issues after taking out a $279,000 loan from “hard money lender” David Simon.
She was accused in court documents of blowing the cash on a failed trucking business, “fast food, and frivolities” – with Simon chasing her through the courts for his money back.
Her debt at one point had grown to a massive $620,000 including legal fees and interest.
This month, she had her third bid for Chapter 13 bankruptcy thrown out after failing to keep up with a $10k-a-week repayment plan for the money she owes.
He didn’t realize he had to go to court. He was like, ‘Just give me a week to get myself ready for it.’ But the lawyer couldn’t get a week. And he hates being pressured.”
Richard’s Son, Chavoita LeSane
Judge Mindy Mora granted the bankruptcy trustee’s motion for the case to be dismissed without prejudice.
Lakeisha will lose court protection – which stopped the Palm Beach home from being foreclosed – with Simon gaining most of the cash from the sale.
The rest will be split by over 20 other creditors.
However, she could immediately file for Chapter 13 again, although this would add to her legal fees and mounting debt.
The house the pair have been fighting over is where Serena and Venus spent a lot of their childhood.
It sits on a 10.36 acre lot with four bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms and Lakeisha is still believed to be living in the property, despite it needing huge renovation work.
Serena Williams has never commented publicly on her dad’s long divorce battleCredit: AFP or licensors
Chavoita sees his father regularly and lives close to him in Palm Beach, FloridaCredit: Instagram/chavoitalesane
Richard has still been seen on Lakeisha’s Instagram in recent years despite their splitCredit: Instagram