'Keeping Him Locked Away From Reality': Jerry Lee Lewis Caught In Crossfire Of Bitter Family Feud Before Death At 87
Oct. 28 2022, Published 8:00 p.m. ET
Jerry Lee Lewis was caught in the middle of an explosive family feud in the years before his death, RadarOnline.com can confirm, having sued his son-in-law for $1 million for spreading lies that he was suffering from elder abuse at the hands of loved ones.
The Great Balls of Fire singer and his family had filed a lawsuit against his daughter Phoebe's husband, Ezekiel Loftin, over "untrue and outrageous" Facebook posts he shared in regard to Lewis.
RadarOnline.com can confirm that Lewis' wife, Judith, daughter Lori and son Jerry Lee Lewis III were all mentioned in the lawsuit against Loftin.
In one aforementioned post, Loftin claimed they were "feeding Jerry Pills and keeping him locked away from reality" at his home in Nesbit, Mississippi.
"He has completely lost any grasp he had on reality," Loftin also alleged, further claiming that "law enforcement and adult protective services are not doing their job with due diligence."
Loftin also accused Lewis' wife of taking Phoebe's jewelry while making shocking claims that Jerry Lee Lewis III is not the legendary singer's biological son.
Lee's family fired back with a $1 million defamation lawsuit, claiming Loftin was cashing in on the family name and causing emotional distress.
"It's just turned into a really horrible situation and has torn the family apart," a friend of the brood explained in 2016, claiming the tension spiked after Lee married Judith in 2012, "forcing Phoebe, who had been his caretaker, out of the picture."
As we previously reported, Lewis' lawsuit against his son-in-law was later thrown out of court because the judge ruled against him and his legal team, saying it was "insufficient to establish specific jurisdiction" in Tennessee for the suit against Loftin.
On Friday, fans learned of Lewis' death at 87, which was confirmed in a statement shared via his official Facebook page.
The iconic singer and pianist — who was nicknamed "The Killer" — was mourned in a press release.
"He was there at the beginning, with Elvis, Johnny Cash, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Carl Perkins, Fats Domino, Buddy Holly, and the rest, and watched them fade away one by one till it was him alone to bear witness, and sing of the birth of rock 'n' roll," it read.