A deceased movie theater owner was manipulated into changing his estate plans.
At least, that's what Gary Dunnam has been trying to prove in court.
Dunnam has sued Brad Richards, who was Rubin Frels' partner of 15 years.
Frels, who owned several movie theaters throughout the Crossroads, died June 19, 2014. He was 85.
The legal challenges to his will have spelled uncertainty for the future use of several downtown Victoria properties, such as the former federal building and Theatre Victoria on Constitution Street.
Both were built in the early 1900s and have remained vacant for years.
In the latest lawsuits, filed in August and September, Dunnam claims Richards not only berated Frels cruelly in public but also cut off his contact with old friends, including Dunnam's wife, Sharon Steen, by making false statements about them.
Dunnam claims he had a father-son relationship with Frels and that he had been involved in Frels' estate planning as early as 1978.
All that changed when Frels and Richards met in 1999. Frels was 71; Richards was 24.
"Mr. Frels trusted and confided in him and came to believe and consider that his happiness and well-being were entirely dependent upon his relationship with Richards. ... He became so afraid to disappoint or disagree with Richards," Dunnam wrote in court documents.
Dunnam claims Frels only became more dependent on Richards in the 2000s when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
Dunnam has also asked the court to order Richards to let him view the records of Frels' Real Estate Corporation and Frels Theatres Inc.
Dunnam is a shareholder in both of those companies, and according to a 1981 agreement, he's set to collect proceeds from Frels' life insurance policy as well as buy Frels' stock in both companies. The proceeds of Frels' life insurance policy are $276,914.50, according to court records.
Frels owned 379 shares of Frels Real Estate Corporation and 573 shares of Frels Theatres Inc., while Dunnam and another man named Teddy William Sides each owned one.
The Frels Real Estate Corporation's shares cost $935.08, and Frels' Theatres Inc. cost $343.59.
Richards' attorney, Bernard Klimist, of Victoria, has not responded to the latest claims in court.
Klimist appeared confident in an earlier interview with the Victoria Advocate that no one would believe Frels could be so easily swayed by Richards.
"Rubin Frels is an institution here. The whole town knows Rubin. To say that Rubin Frels was under influence or not in his capacity 15 years ago defies everything that anyone in this town knows. He was an incredible man," Klimist said.
After Frels died, Richards eulogized him in a Victoria Advocate article, vowing to keep a promise to reopen Theatre Victoria.
"You've never met a person like him before," Richards said then.
Thursday, Klimist said the parties have "reached a resolution on all issues, and we are working out the details to see if we can effectuate it."
Dunnam's attorney, James L. Drought, of San Antonio, confirmed that, but neither attorney would say what the resolution was or when it would be finalized.
Dunnam was named as the administrator and beneficiary of Frels' estate in his 2001 will.
But in a will made one year later, the beneficiary of Frels' estate became a trust.
And Richards is the beneficiary of that trust.
Commented