Casey Kasem's family is at war. The legendary radio host, who is currently suffering from advanced Parkinson's disease, has been holed up in his Holmby Hills, Calif.-area home, but his three eldest children haven't been able to get in touch with him for three months, and blame their stepmother.
"My dad is very sick, and we have been completely shut off from him for the last three months," Kerri, 41, told the New York Daily News. "There is no money issue here, we just want to see our dad. We love him, and everyone knows his kids and grandkids are a source of joy for him."
According to Kerri, the three siblings are being blocked from seeing their 81-year-old dad by Kasem's second wife Jean, who has long been a sore spot in their relationship with their father.
"Look, people fight and they don't like each other, and that's fine," she continued. "But it's cruel to keep us from seeing our dad. We don't want any money from Jean. We don't care about that. We were raised well, and we support ourselves."
Kerri, Julie, and Mike (all from Casey's first marriage; Casey and Jean also have a daughter Liberty together) staged a protest outside their father's home on Tuesday, Oct. 1, recruiting the help of several friends, family and former co-workers of the radio DJ. They carried neon signs that addressed Casey directly.
Later in the day, however, Jean presumably called the police, who informed the group that they had to stay away from the mansion's gates.
Casey's brother, Mouner Kasem, told ABC that he was disappointed in Jean's actions, and that he had come out to show his support for his ailing sibling.
"I've got a feeling I might not see him again, and that's why I'm here," he said.
Kasem rose to fame in the 70s and 80s as the host of various radio countdown shows, including American Top 40; the voice actor also voiced the character of Shaggy in the original Saturday morning cartoon Scooby-Doo.
