Dolly Parton's sister Frieda Parton has spoken out about the dispute rocking the estate of the late country legend.
In a lawsuit filed in Nashville on Sept. 22, Parton's longtime manager, Danny Nozell
, accused her nephew Bryan Seaver, her former head of security, of intimidation and threats against him and members of the Parton family. Nozell asked for a restraining order against Seaver, which was granted on Sept. 23.Writing on her Instagram account shortly after the ruling, Frieda Parton offered her support for Seaver and said there is no estate battle going on within the Parton family.
"I'll say this and only this: There is no feud within the Parton family," she wrote. "No one among the Parton/Owens family is fighting over Dolly's estate. We
all love Bryan. Just as we all love each other."
Frieda Parton is one of Dolly Parton's younger sisters and wrote a moving tribute to the superstar after her death from cancer on Aug. 25. She called the "9 to 5" hit maker "Dolly Momma" and said "[s]he was the sister who would climb into bed with me when I was little because we were both afraid of the dark. She was the woman who stepped up and became my Momma, raising me from ages 13 to 18."
Seaver was Parton's longtime head of security and was handpicked to share news of the icon's passing with the world.
On Sept. 16, Seaver was reportedly terminated from his position and his company was barred from entering any of Parton's properties.
The lawsuit accused Seaver, who has a background as a "private military contractor," of invoking "that military and mercenary background while threatening" various Parton family members and those running the LLC managing Parton's estate.
She's Alive LLC, operated by Nozell, sued Seaver and his security company Squadron Augmented Protection Services LLC.
"Mr. Seaver has been relentless," the lawsuit states. "He has individually, and through his associates, made repeated, written threats to Ms. Parton's staff, partners, legal and business advisors, and others. These were not ordinary workplace disputes or heated words; they were deliberate threats from a self-proclaimed heavily armed, former security operative with a military-contractor background. Many of these people are now afraid to come to work or have resigned entirely because they do not feel safe."
The restraining order granted on Sept. 23 requires Seaver to keep at least 1,000 feet away from members of She's Alive LLC, as well as its employees, agents, attorneys and business partners.
The Tennessean has been unable to reach Seaver after leaving him a voicemail, sending him texts and emails, and also visiting his home.
Seaver told TMZ "nothing in this lawsuit were threats and most of the comments I stand by" and that the messages were taken out of context to make it look like he was threatening people, the outlet reported. He also told TMZ he was "talking frankly in a private way" with Nozell, "who I thought was my friend and he fancies himself a gangster." Seaver said to TMZ, "A lot of these messages are two guys having rage talk and crying on the phone together while we were grieving."
Chris Parton is a music reporter for The Tennessean. He is not related to Dolly Parton or any member of her immediate family.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Dolly Parton's sister breaks silence on estate dispute: 'There is no feud'
