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Serena Williams’ ailing dad Richard, 82, caught speeding in new truck after doctor warned him not to drive
Richard Williams was pulled over by Peach Beach police in early July
SERENA Williams' elderly father - who had been warned by a doctor not to get behind the wheel - has been caught speeding and slapped with a fine.
Richard Williams, known as "King Richard", was pulled over in a new silver Volkswagen truck by police in Palm Beach, Florida on July 12.
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According to new court documents, he was doing 44mph in a 35mph zone which was clocked by a police laser gun.
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Richard's family for comment.
The traffic infraction is costing him $131, but he will not have to appear in court, the filing states.
It comes after his recent trouble preparing for proceedings before he called off his divorce.
Richard Willaims
Serena and Venus's 82-year-old dad has reunited with his estranged wife Lakeisha, 45, and they have saved their Florida home, as she managed to pay off $436,000 in debt.
It is not known who fronted the bill, but Richard's son Chavoita LeSane insists it wasn't his father.
The property is where Serena and Venus grew up and trained with their dad before coming international sporting stars.
Richard filed for divorce from Lakeisha back in 2017 , seven years after tying the knot the former stripper.
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Remarkably, the couple has come back together despite years of battling it out in court, and Lakeisha's lawyer claimed they are back in a "romantic and sexual relationship" after calling off the divorce.
It was thought that this would be the end of the drama between the couple - but now Richard's fallen foul of the police.
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His primary care physician, Dr. Monica Walker, previously wrote a letter to the courts some years ago explaining her assessment of his mental capacity - and specifically stated his issues with driving a car.
She wrote, "You have had problems with driving and directions. We discussed this and you stated you now have a driver.
MARRIAGE REUNION
"Time, place, and person comprehension have not been part of your memory difficulty. However, driving demands quick decisions in situations of uncertainty.
"You are advised not to drive because you do not have the ability to do this."
Despite Dr. Walker's plea, Richard has been seen on Lakeisha’s Instagram driving her and their son Dylan, 12, in the past few years.
His family also told The U.S. Sun he often drives his son to and from school each day.
Chavoita insists his dad is in good health, despite the court filings, and is well enough to drive.
In October 2019, a deposition by Richard was canceled after the court was given 168 pages of medical records relating to a July 2016 hospitalization for two strokes.
Previously, another deposition had been abandoned halfway through as Richard's answers were so incoherent even his own lawyer said, "I’m not sure how we're going to proceed, I think we’re going to cut the deposition short."
Dr. Walker's letter not only discussed his driving but also how his strokes had affected his "brain function," which his son insists has improved in recent years.
Walker wrote at the time, "As you are well aware, you suffered damage to your brain tissue during a stroke. The complications after the stroke included inability to remember things which happened recently and incidents that happened years ago.
"You will remember, immediately after the stroke, your muscles weakened and slowly you were able to regain strength. You also have problems speaking and finding the right word to use.
"You have recovered from problems forming your words. However, you have not recovered from what is called dementia.
"Your ability to do household business transactions such as writing checks, paying bills, and maintaining records is lost.
"You still at times find it difficult to use the right words. This is all part of cerebral vascular disease and stroke.
Richard and Lakeisha's Divorce Timeline
Photo credit: Getty
Richard Williams has been keen to finalize his divorce from Lakeisha Graham for years but their case has dragged out amid a fight over their marital home.
The couple married in 2010 when Lakeisha was 32 and Richard was 69.
Williams is a hands-on father to their young son, Dylan, known as Junior, and has tried to maintain a good relationship with his ex despite the court case.
May 2017
- Richard filed for divorce from Lakeisha after seven years of marriage. He claimed in his initial petition that she had forged his name on a deed transfer for their home and stole his Social Security checks.
March 2020
- Court documents revealed excerpts from Lakeisha's testimony, in which she admits to forging her ex's signature and also selling his 1999 Bluebird Wanderlodge Motor Coach, worth $45,000. But she claimed she did so as he had left her and their son to starve, which his legal team denied.
February 2022
- Lakeisha told a judge that her stepdaughter Serena wanted to lock her out of the family home. She claimed a letter from the tennis star's lawyers "threatened to change the locks" if she did not vacate the property. Her legal team at the time did not respond to requests for comment.
June 2022
- Richard filed a $1 million lawsuit against Lakeisha, despite her claiming in court documents they had reconciled and had been sleeping together again, which he later denied.
July 2022
- Their home was valued at $1.45 million and was due to be auctioned off, but Lakeisha filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy and stalled the sale. The bankruptcy case was dismissed on July 5 but she filed to have it reinstated claiming she had found money for a repayment plan. She was in hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt after taking out a huge loan from a hard lender and not paying it back.
January 2023
- The U.S. Sun sat down with Richard for a world-exclusive interview in which he accused ex-stripper Lakeisha of "taking everything" and blowing his cash. Asked how he feels about the split, he said, "I just want a divorce. It's been six years, man. Just a bunch of junk, junk, junk. [I'm] so tired of that junk now." But he didn't seem to be getting any closer to finalizing it and his lawsuit was tossed out by a judge.
August 2023
- It was revealed Lakeisha was struggling to keep up with her repayment plan as she battled to keep the house, where she was said to be living despite it needing extensive repair work.
April 2024
- Richard missed a court date and deposition as he suffers from speech problems due to strokes, and didn't want to be misunderstood. As a result, he had the case dismissed but planned to refile. Lakeisha tried for months to stave off the house being sold at auction by filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy three times, but each attempt failed.
July 2024
- Richard's son Chavoita confirms he is no longer pursuing a divorce and the pair are "happy" after reconciling. It comes days after she managed to somehow settle her $436,000 debt to save their former marital home from auction.
"When I spoke with you concerning legal matters and your level of judgment during any household or business transactions, you stated you were unable to do any tasks relating to business.
"You stated your wife handled all the household business because you get confused easily.
"Your mental state since the first stroke includes loss of recent and remote memory and increased confusion during times of increased demands for concentration."
Richard's frail state has contributed to the issues that he's suffered over the last few years when it comes to his home.
Lakeisha admitted to faking his signature on the deed of their four-bed mansion to take out a $279,000 loan with hard lender David Simon.
Richard's grave health issues first came to light during Lakeisha's lawsuit with Simon, who was demanding his huge loan back.
At one point, her debt reached $600,000 with attorney fees and interests.
It looked like the house would have to be sold at auction two weeks ago, but at the last minute, the debt was repaid in full to Simon - and now the case has been closed.
Chavoita has for years expressed fears that Lakeisha has been taking advantage of his father - selling his cars behind his back and allegedly cashing social security checks.
He revealed he is now building bridges with Lakeisha for the sake of the family, but she will not be able to make the same mistake again.
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Richard has signed a nine-page power of attorney document which gives Chavoita full control of his assets - including property and bank accounts.
Lakeisha is living with her husband in a four-bed home which is in Serena's name - but there’s no way Lakeisha can gain control of it as she would have to get past Serena and Chavoita.
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