Judge cites handwritten will and awards real estate to Aretha Franklin’s sons

By ED WHITE
Associated Press

DETROIT (AP) — A judge overseeing the estate of Aretha Franklin has assigned real estate to the late star’s sons. The judge says she’s following the wishes of a handwritten will from 2014 that was found between couch cushions. The decision comes months after a Detroit-area jury said the document was a valid will under Michigan law, despite scribbles and many hard-to-read passages. The papers will override an older will that was found around the same time in 2019. Franklin died of pancreatic cancer in 2018. She was 76.