Veteran Worried He'll Lose House To Church In Trust Battle

LODI (CBS13) — James Brown, 80, doesn't want to leave his home, but after a six-year legal battle with his church, he may have to.

"I'm not even mad at them. They always took me to court. I never fought them. It's just the judge said, it belongs to James Brown because he's the husband. And that's why I'm here," said Brown.

According to his late wife Louise's trust, she left 25% of the house to the American Cancer Society and 75% of their house to the First Baptist Church of Lodi.

"If I had a place to go, I'd leave, but my wife is here, she's still here. She might be gone to other people but to me, she's still here. I loved her," said Brown.

Lead Pastor Glen Barnes says there's a lot more to the story but wouldn't talk specifics of the case.

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"The church is not trying to take the home from an elder veteran, of course not," said Barnes. "Our church has a 100-plus year history of serving the community, caring for vulnerable people, caring for the people of our community."

Louise's trust states that if Brown is still in the house after she dies, he can continue to live there unless he moves or dies. Brown's attorney, Leora Perkowski, says the church is accusing Brown of not taking care of the property, among other things, which could ultimately force him to lose the rights to his life estate.

"I still love her and her dog is still here, we're still here. God hasn't chosen us to go yet... I hope God will forgive them at church for what they're doing to me," said Brown.

Brown had a court hearing this week. Perkowski says they're now set to go to trial in January when a judge will decide if his rights to the house are terminated.