Earlier this year, Temptations fans mourned the tragic death of the group’s former lead singer, Dennis Edwards. At the time of Edwards’ death, his wife, Brenda, announced his death was due to complications of Meningitis.
Shortly after the reports about Dennis’ death, a few speculative reports were released and Brenda Edwards found herself at the center of an investigation into her late husband’s death. Although Dennis was in his mid-70s with a serious health condition, apparently his death still appeared to be a bit questionable.
Rumors suggested Brenda had been abusing Dennis prior to his death. Now, for the first time since Edwards’ death, his wife is speaking out and she wants to make one thing clear.
Questionable Allegations:
For those who missed all the scathing reports, Brenda was accused of bein’ a low down and dirty wife, who abused her quadriplegic husband. From reports of abuse to accusations about her allegedly suffocating her husband. Brenda has been portrayed as a callous wife. Now, she’s speaking out to clear her name.
During an interview with CBS News, Brenda discussed her marriage and the allegations. She actually flipped the script and blamed the state of Illinois for her husband’s death.
“Everybody knows I loved my husband,” said Brenda. “It didn’t just happen, it was orchestrated,” she said of claims that she tried to suffocate her husband by holding his head face down in a pillow.
After Dennis’ death, Brenda was ultimately cleared of any wrongdoing. The Cook County Medical Examiner confirmed there were no signs of abuse and Dennis’ death was directly related to complications of Meningitis. But, unfortunately for Brenda, the results of that report weren’t released before the singer’s death on Feb. 1. Brenda went on to explain why her husband’s death was so disheartening. Not only did she lose him, she never got any closure either. “I never had a chance to say goodbye,” she said.
Elderly Abuse?:
The latest response from Brenda Edwards follows a string of reports about the allegations. Back in December, an anonymous tip was reportedly called in by a caseworker after Dennis suffered a fall. He was initially transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, but shortly after the abuse allegations were reported, the caseworker filed for a protection order in Cook County Circuit Court on Jan. 12.
Dennis was discharged from Northwestern and moved to Mercy Hospital & Medical Center after “doctors noted he had odd paranoid thoughts, saying his wife or the primary medical team was trying to kill him.” Brenda found these claims to be a bit questionable because her husband was not in her care at the time, as he was hospitalized.
To challenge the protective order, Brenda hired Chicago attorney MacKenzie Hyde. but time was not on her side, because Dennis died less than a month later. Even now, Brenda doesn’t have a clear understanding of the reason for the protective order. “I still don’t have answers,” Brenda said.
The caseworker assigned to Dennis’ case was employed by Dolton-based Healthcare Consortium of Illinois and had been part of 464 elder abuse investigations since 2015. However, the Department on Aging could not confirm how many of those cases resulted in formal charges or protection orders.
Now, St. Louis-based attorney Julia Gray has been hired to seek answers for Brenda. “She doesn’t need to know who called [in the tip},” said Gray. “But she has a right to know what’s in that file.”
