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Dolly Parton's estate has obtained a temporary restraining order against her nephew Bryan Seaver after accusing him of making threats against employees and attempting to damage the country music star's legacy and business interests.
The order was requested by She's Alive, LLC, the entity established by Parton to manage and protect her professional legacy following her death on Aug. 25. The company is run by her longtime manager, Danny Nozell, who filed the request in Nashville on Sept. 22.
Court documents allege that Seaver's conduct became increasingly threatening in the weeks surrounding Parton's death. Seaver had worked as his aunt's head of security for more than 20 years before receiving a termination notice on Sept. 16. His security company, Squadron Augmented Protection Services, was also terminated.
According to the filings, Seaver allegedly threatened to damage Parton's brand and demanded money from members of the estate. One message included in the documents reportedly stated: "I'm going to set up a podcast dedicated to ruining Dolly's brand partnerships and telling the violations these people have done on us. It's going to be great. Or f——— pay me."
Another alleged message read: "Her money better be bigger than I can make elsewhere or I'm going to f--k everyone. I am about to become the hand of retribution for my entire family."
The estate also cited Seaver's alleged references to his experience working with private military contractors and his access to weapons. In another filing, the estate said he vowed to "destroy the entire brand" and told Parton's entertainment attorney, "I'm not an entertainment person. I'm a killer."
The filings claim the dispute has already affected the estate's operations, with employees resigning, an attorney departing and additional private security being hired for staff members and their homes.
The restraining order prohibits Seaver from contacting or coming within 1,000 feet of She's Alive employees, attorneys and business partners and bars him from interfering with the entity's business relationships.
Seaver has disputed the circumstances surrounding his termination. In a statement to TMZ, he said he and his teams were "dismayed by the unexpected and, so far, unexplained actions" taken by Nozell and Pinnacle Bank.
Seaver, the son of Parton's sister Cassie Parton and Larry Seaver, was also the family member who announced the singer's death publicly. He said Parton had personally asked him to share the news with the public.
