DALLAS (CN) - The body of legendary auto designer Carroll Shelby remains in the Dallas County morgue more than a month after his death due to a legal dispute between his children and his wife.
Michael, Patrick and Sharon Shelby, all of Dallas, sued Dallas County Medical Examiner Jeffrey Barnard in Dallas County Court on May 16 - six days after Shelby died.
The children claim their father signed a document directing his cremation and other arrangements after his death, but Barnard will not give them the body.
"Plaintiffs have requested the Dallas County Medical Examiner to hand over the remains of the decedent," the complaint states. "However, Cleo Shelby, the surviving spouse of Carroll Hall Shelby, has also requested the Dallas County Medical Examiner to hand over the remains of the decedent to her, contrary to and in violation of the directive executed by the decedent and the decedent's wishes."
Barnard last week filed an answer and a motion to dismiss, asking the judge to throw out the complaint because he has official and sovereign immunity.
The plaintiffs seek an injunction ordering the body to be turned over to them, as their father wanted, and as required by the Texas Health and Safety Code.
They are represented by John Freeman with Key Harrington Barnes in Dallas.
Carroll Shelby, born in Leesburg, Texas, 1923, Shelby is best known for designing and building high-performance sports cars for Ford since the 1960s.
In 2003, he formed custom performance vehicle maker Carroll Shelby International. He was a member of the winning team at the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race and competed in the Formula One World Championship in 1958 and 1959.
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