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Graceland sale halted by judge in Tennessee after Elvis Presley’s granddaughter alleges fraud
A Tennessee judge on Wednesday blocked the auction of Graceland, the former home of Elvis Presley, by a company that claimed his estate failed to repay a loan that used the property as collateral.
Shelby County Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins issued a temporary injunction against the proposed auction that had been scheduled for Thursday this week.
“The court will enjoin the sale as requested because, one, the real estate is considered unique under Tennessee law. And in being unique, the loss of the real estate would be considered irreparable harm,” Jenkins said, according to CBS affiliate WREG-TV.
Jenkins’ injunction essentially keeps in place a previous ruling that he had issued after Presley’s granddaughter Riley Keough filed a lawsuit to fight off what she said was a fraudulent scheme.
A public notice for a foreclosure sale of the 13-acre estate in Memphis posted earlier in May said Promenade Trust, which controls the Graceland museum, owes $3.8 million after failing to repay a 2018 loan. Keough, an actor, inherited the trust and ownership of the home after the death of her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, last year.
Naussany Investments and Private Lending said Lisa Marie Presley had used Graceland as collateral for the loan, according to the foreclosure sale notice. Keough, on behalf of the Promenade Trust, alleged in her lawsuit that Naussany presented fraudulent documents regarding the loan in September 2023.
Neither Keough nor lawyers for Nassauny Investments were in court Wednesday.
Keough, who starred in last year’s hit show “Daisy Jones and the Six,” is the heir to the estate.
In a lawsuit, Keough claims Naussany Investments “appears to be a false entity created for the purpose” of defrauding her family. The lawsuit also says Keough’s mother “never borrowed money” from the company, or gave them a deed of trust to Graceland, and further alleges that documents claiming otherwise “are forgeries.”
Elvis bought Graceland in 1957, at the age of 22, for $102,500. At the time he purchased it, the mansion was 10,266 square feet, and Elvis also bought 13.8 acres of the farm around the house. The mansion has since been expanded to 17,552 square feet.
Graceland, where Elvis died in 1977, was named to the American National Register of Historic Places in 1991. Over 600,000 people visit Graceland — named after Grace, an aunt of one of the original owners — each year.
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Paris Hilton’s bill to protect minors at residential treatment facilities heads to president’s desk
Heiress, model and actor Paris Hilton is the force behind a bill headed to President Biden’s desk that’s aimed at preventing the abuse of minors at rehab and other residential facilities.
The House passed the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act in a bipartisan 373-33 vote Wednesday, after the Senate passed the bill by unanimous consent earlier in the week. It’s a cause that’s personal to Hilton, who says she was abused at residential treatment facilities as a teen. Hilton lived in a series of residential treatment facilities from the age of 16, testifying before Congress in June that she had been violently restrained, stripped of clothing and tossed into solitary confinement, among other experiences.
“Today is a day I will never forget,” Hilton wrote on Instagram. “After years of sharing my story and advocating on Capitol Hill, the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act has officially passed the U.S Congress. This moment is proof that our voices matter, that speaking out can spark change, and that no child should ever endure the horrors of abuse in silence. I did this for the younger version of myself and the youth who were senselessly taken from us by the Troubled Teen Industry.”
Now 43, Hilton has championed child protection legislation on Capitol Hill for years, encouraging lawmakers to pass regulations to help protect troubled teens from abuse at treatment centers. Hilton met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill this week, urging them to take up the legislation before the 118th Congress ends.
Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna introduced the legislation in the House and Senate, and they were joined by Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Tommy Tuberville and Republican Rep. Buddy Carter.
“Children across the country are at risk of abuse and neglect due to a lack of transparency in institutional youth treatment programs,” Khanna said in a statement. “The industry has gone unchecked for too long. Paris Hilton and other survivors of abuse in this broken system have bravely shared their stories and inspired change. I’m proud to lead this legislation with my colleagues to protect the safety and well-being of kids.”
The legislation creates a federal work group on youth residential programs to oversee the health, safety, care, treatment and placement of minors in rehab and other facilities. It also directs the Department of Health and Human Services to make contact with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to make recommendations about state oversight of such programs.
Hilton is the great-grandaughter of Conrad Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels.
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