James Brown's New Bag of Estate Troubles

The men originally named as trustees of James Brown's estate haven't exactly lived up to the nature of their job titles yet.

A South Carolina judge ordered ex-trustee David Cannon to return $370,000 to the Godfather of Soul's estate after special administrators appointed to monitor Brown's assets determined that he may have misappropriated up to $7 million.

Cannon resigned from his position as coexecutor of Brown's will last month after he was ordered to cut a check back to the estate for $350,000. He now has 10 days to fork over the additional sum and 20 days to pay $30,000 in attorney fees to the court and present deeds from properties that he and his wife currently own or are selling.

Aiken County Judge Jack Early also informed Cannon that he will have to testify on November 15 about the allegedly lost $7 million. In the meantime, his assets have been frozen unless he needs to sell real estate holdings to come up with the $370,000.

The special administrators were appointed in March after Brown's six adult children petitioned to have the presiding trustees removed from their post. Cannon, Alford Bradley and the singer's longtime attorney, Buddy Dallas, have all been asked to turn over any documents pertaining to the estate's financial dealings and various trusts, including one that contains Brown's major assets, such as his song catalogue.

Tomi Rae Hynie, Brown's companion at the time of his death who claims to have been legally married to him, hasn’t seen eye to eye with Brown's heirs on much, but she agreed that his estate needed to be in more prudent hands.

"This thing has gone exactly the way we predicted it would," Hynie's attorney, Robert Rosen, told Augusta, Georgia's WRDW-TV.

"That's what happens when you tell the truth," Hynie added. "You don't have anything to worry about.

The former backup singer, who is also the mother of six-year-old James Brown Jr., sued his estate in February, demanding 50 percent of the R&B legend's assets for her and her son, whom she claims is Brown's child. The singer's will was written and signed before little James' birth.

No rulings have been made yet on either James Jr.'s paternity or the legality of Hynie's marriage to Brown.

Rosen and attorney Louis Levenson, who represents some of Brown's grown children, told reporters Monday that information received from Bradley and Dallas contributed to the new allegations against Cannon.

Cannon and his attorneys declined to comment on the matter.

Additionally, Rev. Larry Fryer appeared on behalf of the "I Feel Good" trust set up by Brown to benefit needy children in Georgia and South Carolina.

If it turns out that Cannon fiddled with funds that were earmarked for the charity, state prosecutors from both states could end up taking action against him, according to South Carolina's attorney general's office.

Levenson, however, said that it wasn't fair to just point the finger solely at Cannon.

"It isn't correct to say that Mr. Cannon is the only one that I, or the estate, or the court is looking at to compensate Mr. Brown, Mr. Brown's estate, Mr. Brown's family and the trust," he said.

Also in court was Brown's daughter LaRhonda Pettit, who says that she found out through a DNA test in April that the iconic singer was her biological dad.

"My plea is for whatever rights for me as far as my back support he should have done for me and my kids," Pettit, a retired flight attendant, told WRDW regarding her wishes to get in on her half-siblings' inheritance. She is also requesting that all of Brown's adult children be required to undergo paternity tests.

Early did not have the opportunity Monday to hear Pettit's motion to legally establish herself as one of Brown's kids. She has also filed a claim to share in his estate as a natural child who was not provided for in his will and another claim asking for back child support.