In this week’s Elon Law Now faculty commentary series, Professor Margaret Kantlehner describes the legal battle over the remains of Olympian Jim Thorpe, illustrating the value of wills.
Kantlehner’s commentary follows:
“Because he died without a will, multi-sport Olympic gold medalist Jim Thorpe, a native of Oklahoma, and member of the Sac and Fox Nation, is buried in Jim Thorpe, PA, a borough where he never resided during his life. His heirs have petitioned the Supreme Court of the United States for permission to rebury Thorpe’s remains in his native Oklahoma, on Indian lands, pursuant to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. Thorpe’s remains were buried in Pennsylvania after his estranged third wife seized his remains in Oklahoma, interrupting his ritual burial ceremony in Shawnee, OK, to do so. She had him buried in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, a town named after Thorpe, in an effort to boost the local economy. Because Thorpe did not leave written burial instructions or a will, his estranged third wife controlled his estate and disposition of his remains.”
A Washington Post article about the Thorpe case is available here.
More information about Elon Law Professor Margaret Kantlehner is available here.
More information about the Wills Drafting Clinic at Elon Law is available here.
This Elon Law Now commentary was edited on Sept. 8, 2015 to provide more specific information about the locality within Pennsylvania where Thorpe is buried, but never resided.