Judge weighs dispute over Martin Luther King Jr.'s Bible, Nobel medal

By David Beasley ATLANTA (Reuters) - An Atlanta judge on Tuesday began weighing a dispute among the children of the late Martin Luther King Jr. over ownership of his 1964 Nobel Peace Prize medal and the Bible he carried during the civil rights movement. The feud pits King's sons, Dexter King and Martin Luther King III, who wish to sell the items, against his surviving daughter, Bernice King, who is intent on keeping them in the family. The medal and Bible, which was used by President Barack Obama to take the oath of office during his second inaugural ceremony, were the subject of a hearing on Tuesday. This marks the latest flashpoint in years of legal fights among King's children. King had no will when he was assassinated in 1968. His estate is now controlled by his three living children. Bernice King was the only of the three to oppose the sale of the medal and Bible, which she described as "sacred" to the family. Bernice King's attorneys argued on Tuesday before Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney that her father's estate forfeited its claim to the items during a previous round of litigation in 2008 when it failed to comply with a judge's order to give her a list of items belonging to the estate. The estate's attorney said the estate had delivered the list to Bernice King, but could not find a receipt to prove it. Dexter King, the only sibling at the court hearing, called the disagreement business and not personal. "I'm not angry," he said after the proceedings. "She's my sister and I love her." The judge said he would rule on motions seeking to resolve the matter before a trial that is scheduled to begin in mid-February. King's estate sued Bernice King last year, seeking an emergency court order for her to turn over the medal and Bible. The judge then ordered her to turn over the medal and Bible so they could be placed in a safe deposit box controlled by the court until the lawsuit was resolved. She complied with the order. The family's legal battles began after King's estate was inherited by his widow, Coretta Scott King, who died in 2006, and his four children, one of whom also has since died, according to court documents. In 1995, the siblings assigned their rights to King's possessions to the estate. Bernice and Martin several years later sued Dexter challenging the compact, which was upheld. (Editing by Letitia Stein and Will Dunham)