Head to policygenius.com/LAWNERD to get your free life insurance quotes and see how much you could save. Visit thrivecausemetics.com/LAWNERD for 20% off your first order.
I don't consider that FLEXING!!!!! The Tuohy's were MILLIONAIRS and had money before they met Michael. To me it seems like the Tuohy's tried to do everything for Michael at NO benefit for themselves. THEY ALREADY HAD MONEY!!!!!
Uh there’s like a whole issue in Arizona where a stranger/con artist can take control of any senior citizen and steal their home and money and sell all of their possessions without the consent of the person or their family through a very corrupt conservatorship system. Imagine someone literally stealing your parent and you don’t even know where they are and you have no legal rights to help them.
@@LadyGreyAgeingDisGracefully They're not. I'm sure there are many, many cases where parents of disabled youth who need lifelong care get one to remain their guardians for life. The mechanism needs to exist, but it needs much more oversight.
Yep, it is so disgusting that the conservative clause is being abused IMO. If the conservatee is not able to take care of themselves, then they shouldn’t be able to work to make money for the conservators! So upsetting to hear.
He thought he should have made $15 million off his role in the book, but he and the Tuohy's made an equal share that didn't add up to that. He didn't want to be adopted, because he was still attached to his birth mom, who appeared before the court in regards to the conservatorship. He is lying about not knowing it was a conservatorship, his memoirs specifically mention it. Emily was taking everything entirely at the word of his lawyer, and honestly I think people are going to look like absolute fools before this is all over, for taking another person at their word AGAIN who they shouldn't have. It costs nothing hold judgement until you know what is actually going on.
@@KarazolaX Take your own advice. Nothing you wrote shows you’re withholding judgment and being neutral. You’re already on the family’s side without being privy to all of the evidence.
A dozen years or so ago, I was having a conversation with a former attorney who had practiced in TN for decades. I was telling him about "The Blind Side" and how much I enjoyed it, when he responded that a lot of it was made up. I know that the phrase "based on a true story" gives quite a bit of latitude in screenwriting. However, he said he knew the Tuohys, especially the father, and didn't think highly of them. In fact, he said at the time that he didn't believe they did anything for altruistic reasons, and hinted they had other motives than the movie portrayed. I thought at the time my acquaintance was being unnecessarily negative, but now I believe he was speaking the truth.
I don't feel like it was even hidden completely in the movie. I did not enjoy the movie. They were pushing him toward football like it was the only value he would have. It was very clear that they ONLY wanted him to go to Ole Miss. They wanted him in that college. The Kathy Bates character manipulates him with scare tactics to keep him from choosing Tennessee.
I'm surprised that if he knew of a gross miscarriage of justice that he didn't do something about it to protect Michael. The Touhy's must have been protected by the Hierarchy of the legal system or they were on the Touhy's payroll.
Congrats to you two! My father and his siblings couldn't be adopted by my grandfather until they were adults, but he was their real dad the whole time. It sounds like you two have a similar story. Much love to your family.
@@pisces1017Yeah, I looked it up in Tennessee Code Annotated. Adult adoption has been legal since at least 1996. I didn’t even use Westlaw to find that.
The Touheys were keynote speakers at a Prudential Real Estate convention which I attended around 2004 or 2005 in Nashville. They must’ve had other speaking engagements as well. They profited more than off of the movie!
Yes this! Someone else mentioned in a comment they were charging 75k+ to speak, and even the foundation mentions the adoption and her twitter bio mentioned the blindside (movie about MO life as well know). I’m not sure if she still has twitter but when I checked earlier this week she did.
Sean Touhy had his own session at the Tulane Bookfest in March 2023. My mom and I went to see to go to the fest, visit my daughter (Tulane student), and visit family (my aunt was recovering from bone marrow transplant at Oschner). His session was The Blindside and beyond. My mom went to it and bought and read his book. And the weather was perfect in NOLA - best time to go. Don’t think he’ll be back next year.
I think the attorney “Aunt Deb” had a conflict of interest because she was so close to the family. She should have recused herself because she did not advise him well.
We don’t know what was said but in the movie he is portrayed like not very smart, we don’t know what the family said to other people. A very clear case of gaslighting
I live in Memphis, and believe me, many here are not surprised. When this movie came out, those in the know considered it a fictional Hollywood fluff film. Those people have a reputation for being mean. Talk to anyone who has worked in one of their fast food restaurants, or deal with Leann personally - they are not nice or well meaning people.
I have conservatorship for my son. We applied in Nashville and had to prove that my son was not capable of making medical, educational and financial decisions. We had to answer many questions and needed to provide records as proof. We have to file paperwork annually. I filed late one year and was fined and the court also threatened the loss of conservatorship if not paid. That was in Nashville obviously Memphis is not on top of their court orders.
That makes sense... but this doesn't! I have a situation in which I may have to do this but I'm praying I don't! It will be hard feelings if I do. I can empathize with you. I dying now how badly your son needed this but my daughter has straddled the fence. She's a borderline case so I've tried for years to do things differently. This makes me sick!! And moreover, the fact the comments in a lot of other chats, not here, people are making it about race! For me, it's NOT!!! ITS DISGUSTING!!! "Aunt Debbie" has a LOT to answer for, too!! This all smells too nefarious ~ 🤢🤮
@@mlmichael2791I do too! I bout guarantee you they knew the judge, not just obviously the atty - this seems a lot about Good Ole boy network & $$$!!! I'm thoroughly disgusted!! I'm FROM TN so am WELL aware of that system! That the atty felt repped everyone was highly suspect, def conflict of interest if not downright illegal!!!
@@PhoebeMc My son's functioning is basically as a 5 year old so it was pretty clear cut that he couldn't make important decisions. Even so it was emotional to declare him incompetent. I feel for you in making the decision. Cases like this one just make it harder for those who truly are agonizing over very difficult family decisions. I wish you and your family well.
If it was unconditional love, they wouldn’t now be saying they loved him in past tense. They would continue to love him, as that is the literal definition of unconditional.
@@user-wd7ff1yy3pthat makes no sense. He didn't know anything about this until months ago. But you seem to giving the family the benefit of the doubt. Why would he lie? You know he has lawyers to help figure this out right? Of course you do😑
@@shaypatrice8126incorrect. He published a book years ago,2011 where he talked about the conservatorship he has also had lawyers investigate their finances previously.
maybe because they were talking about their relationship at a specific time in the past? because it would make sense to use past tense when we are talking about the past.
@@kerry8880 my point is the conservatory allows michael to tell leeches...my money is tied up bro...cant access it to give you some. my overall point is the family had good intent with oher. to protect him.
I am SHOOK that there were no mechanisms of surveillance insuring the yearly reports were made and that the conservatorship was periodically reevaluated (which starts with having an actual TALK with the person). I can't believe the judge did not talk to Michael in the first place. This is so wild.
Same, but having lived in the south for about a decade, none of this type of stuff surprises me anymore. Not to say there isn’t corruption and abuse of power elsewhere but the way the south does it is a special type of insidious and predatory towards its own people. My stepfather recently passed away and the requirements my mom has to show accounting, which she can and will do but has caused her undue stress when’s she’s already facing a life without him suddenly makes me so mad considering what others don’t have to do.
“It’s hard because you have to defend yourself, but whatever he wants, we’ll do. We’re not in this for anything other than whatever he wants. If he’d have said, ‘I don’t want to be part of the family anymore,’ we’d have been very upset, but we absolutely would have done it," is what Mr Tuohy said. He is still framing the conservatorship as Oher's way of "being part of the family." I wonder if he has a conservatorship over his biological children, too? Do they also have to ask to leave the family to get out of them? Doubtful.
If what Michael said is true then he never would have known to ask. Not only that, but they should have been very transparent with it. He sounds like a very smart man that just wanted to be part of a family
I have legal guardianship of my (adult) grandson, who is autistic and has severe mental disabilities. I did all the legal filing myself without the assistance of a lawyer. When the question of conservatorship came up, I didn't know what it meant. The judge explained that I could be but did not need to be named as conservator due to the fact that I was already the legal representative payee appointed by the Social Security office. I say all of this to say... the only purpose for someone to push a conservatorship on a person with no disabilities, would be to cash in on any monies, etc. from this young man. IMO.
They didn't cash in on his NFL contracts or his book contracts and from what I understand have not been acting as his conservators at all. As far as the movie, they didn't make millions, the negotiated for a small cut and royalties, that's not stealing from him though.
@@Karen_Marie what about the many different public apperances, speaking engagements and national interview tours to boost their brand off of his name, likeness and /image? There would be no Blind Side , National name recognition or publicity without Michael Oher What about the recent statement they made that conservatorship was the only way they could make him apart of their family. They said they could not adopt him because be was 18. That is a lie that came from them. What else are they lying about? I TN you can adopt someone at 18, wbich is where they lived. Look up the law. You will find that to be a direct contradiction, I mean a lie, to TN law. They could have adopted him to make him legally apart of their family but rejected that. Thus, rejecting him. How would you feel if the people who you thought were legally your parents lied to you your entire life? Can you answer that question? I'll wait. With all of these FACTS, they hardly seem like fine, genuine, law abiding Christian folks.
@@Karen_MarieWe don’t know though because of the lack of accounting, and the movie was about him and his life so I don’t know how that’s not stealing. It all should have gone to him.
If the family genuinely believed this made him part of their family, then they shouldn't be fighting him, but suing the people who wrongly advised them.
Emily, thanks so much for reporting on this! Please stay on this story. How these people (the Tuohy's, "Aunt" Debbie, the judge, DHS, Fox, and on and on and on) got away with this is mind blowing. I pray people end up in jail over this. That the Tuohy's went to TMZ to make a statement says volumes about them (TMZ is the opposite of "on the up and up").
I really hope and I will pray, that he gets the justice he deserves and that he's reimbursed and repaid every red cent and digital dollar. He didn't deserve this, and nobody does.
The fact that the conservatorship prohibits him from entering into contracts without the consent of rhe conservators makes the scene in the movie where he almost goes to another school makes so much more sense now. He literally couldnt unless she said it was okay.
Whoa!!! Nothing id read or heard up to now really rang 100% with me in terms of making sense… UNTIL this comment… THAT makes TOTAL sense… that checks every single box for me Personally. And you’re right. That’s PRECISELY what a lawyer would advise. I actually don’t believe that they didn’t or don’t have genuine familial love toward him . I think that they do. I also still believe they had a genuine want to make him part of the family in some memorialized way. But I certainly think a lawyer would practically insist they do things the way that they did and this would surely explain why they’d have not been transparent as to what he was signing
This is silly. It's not a monarchy, there's not like a line of succession lol. People leave their children out of inheritance all the time. There would be no reason to assume he'd inherit anything simply from being adopted. Adopting him wouldn't require them to put him in any wills for inheritance.
@@Milan_2301 they sure can… if I was them I wouldn’t have adopted him either… and he could have easily gotten injured in college and never made it to the league… so really in my opinion dude is still letting everyone around him think for him because it’s easier than thinking for yourself. The Tourey family was already rich…. Back then Michael clearly needed them more than they needed him. They took all the risk because they believed in him … sounds like they invested in him it paid off and now Michael and people in his camp are mad they got anything at all…. Because rich people should always let talented future athletes in their home just because they are so kind🤔 Mike is one ungrateful mf if you ask me
also their response tells me so much. it’s possible he “threatened” to expose the truth or whatever they claim now, but that’s exactly what controlling narcs say when you try to finally stand up for yourself
@@ca8944 hopefully, yes! one way or another, there should be full transparency from the tuohys. these are just filings tho, right? not a separate case, nor a trial as i understand it
This sounds like they duped him into giving away his rights because he wouldn’t know the difference as a naive 18 year old and then grifted off him for the next 18 years. And then to present it as an adoption to movie studios. That has to be some kind of criminal activity, right! Like Michael Oher owed them something for all their “kindness” and it turns out they took everything. Smells like Britney Spears situation 2.0. . So much naked greed….
Exactly. They took an advantage of his naïveté. If they cared they could have put his money into a blind trust. They better have a break down of all their financials over the years.
If this happened in Australia I believe the court WOULD be held responsible, perhaps because this situation isn't legal in Australia. Part of the process in Australia is proving that the subject of the order is significantly disabled and thereby unable to make their own decisions.
Ouuuu! That’s a great point! I agree. I was thinking the same thing. It seems like all of these people involved in this were all too close. No red flags because they all knew each other. Dang shame!
Money talks and where football is king, Oher was a pawn to be used and manipulated. I’d wager that the judge could be in on the ruse too if the lawyer was also a family friend.
@@k4871the movie doesn’t show this but they were with their family friend and lawyer called aunt pat who explained to Michael a conservatorship was the adult way to adopt. A lawyer explained to him this!!!!
These wildly successful entrepreneurs, well versed in contracts and law, determined that it would be best to waive the GAL and include the drug addicted mother who probably didn’t even graduate high school instead. I’m very interested in their answer.
I have so many questions too, Emily. What was the dynamic in this family like after Michaels prime "earning years" were over? Was he still welcomed into their home like he once was? Invited to holidays? Treated like one of the kids? This goes so deep, way beyond money. Greed is a horrible thing.
They will be forced to turn over their financials. Money or gifts paid/given to the husband, wife and adult children. They have numerous foundations that will have to be looked into. This is a mess. The concervership should have been ended years ago.
They have done this and it has shown they have paid Oher into the trust account that was established years ago. He has tried this before a multitude of times and every attorney said there is no there, there.
@@user-wd7ff1yy3p Allegedly he wasn’t made aware of the stipulations of the conservatorship, and it seems that the family took measures to ensure he wouldn’t. Allegedly the father told him it would simply function as an legal adoption because he was 18+.
I heard rumblings of this years ago, right after the movie came out. But it was always proven wrong. About the $$. The conservership should have ended years ago though.
We adopted my nephew (now Son) at 18. While I was his legal guardian, my sister would never give me permission to adopt. My son asked us to do it anyway, so we adopted a legal adult.
Doesn’t a conservatorship require proof that the person doesn’t have the ability to make their own decisions? And hasn’t he been making his own medical, financial, and professional decisions? I’m so confused by this.
Where I live (Australia) it absolutely can only occur when the judge is satisfied via medical reports and when possible by seeing the person face to face, that the person does not have capacity to make their own decisions and that this is a permanent impairment. In this American example, not only does the court acknowledge that he has no impairment, the conservatorship seems to have not been used because it seems he did make his own decisions. Perhaps they were in fact wrongly advised that this is how adoption of an adult is done and that this is needed for college entry. 🤷♀️
The Tuoys talk about a 15M shakedown, could it be that Michael Oher asked for his fair share of the movie? They argue it’s normal their kids got royalties for being exposed in the movie. How about Oher?!? The story would be so different if he had got paid fairly
All this bad press, if it comes out that the family did everything right for this kid, it would certainly make the next family think twice before helping.
@@ann316even if so, no one remembers her kids, he was the star of the movie. So her family made like 5 shares and he got one? 😂 that's best case scenario
@ann316 they didn't though because even if nothing else they filed a conservatorship that gave them legal rights to make decisions in his life when it was unnecessary. It's obvious that they used their connections to get it approved . If it was just to make it easier for him to get into Ole Miss , why did they never terminate it ? Why did they allow him to sign a contract that gave exclusive rights to his life story in exchange for seemingly no payment ? What parents with their business experience and access to resources and lawyers would allow that ?
I always thought there was something fishy about this story. When the movie came out, you never heard a word from Oher and not much from the NFL during the promos for the movie which is very strange for Hollywood. I always wondered why he never commented or did any publicity for the movie that I know of and wondered what the real story was.
I live in Maryland & Oher played for the Baltimore Ravens. I never purposely watched but the movie was playing in a Hospital waiting room where I waiting & I felt so uncomfortable, trying to tune it out. 😬
Years ago, not too long after the movie came out, Oher did comment that there were a few things about the movie that he didn’t like, but tried to understand that for the movie, they needed to embellished the truth and put some Hollywood extras in it. For example, he knew a lot about football, but they made it look like he had a low “football IQ” and needed to learn from the Tueys. The scene where Sandra Bullock’s character had to teach him how to block was ridiculously not true. Also, yes, he needed some tutoring and the daughter also helped him as they did homework together, but the movie just about made him look dumb. He didn’t say much more at the time, because he knew it was a movie based on his story and not a true documentary. The saddest part of this story, if true, is that he actually thought he was adopted and now finds out all these years later, that he was lied to! That’s just heartbreaking. Praying for him.
@@kandykaye9981 watch those ppl in interviews and the tv show Below Deck. Sean and Leann seems entitled, self-righteous and money 💰 focus. The above comment rings true.
Kudos Emily! Your insights and explanations are right on. It's unbelievable the the Tuyoys a educated and informed family are playing dumb on getting this young vulnerable man into a conservatorship. They knew exactly what they were doing and used him to make millions in exchange of abusing Michael mentality and emotionally by leaving him without even the rights to his name and story. Their actions speak louder than their words claiming they love Michael. I hope he takes back everything they stole and the world sees how absolutely heartless and greedy these people really are .. The truth always comes out in the end!!!!
Even if he had read it would he understand fully without a lawyer to explain it? We have Emily to explain all the legalese to us and make it simple to understand. It doesn’t sound like he had a good lawyer on his side doing the same.
Michael is a 37 year old man who has written 3 books and signed numerous NFL contracts. He has no known disabilities and his attorneys claim he would have been a superstar without the Tuohys. So I have questions. How did 20 years go by with Michael still knowing nothing.
@@eyesee2339 20 years without him knowing becasue they never actually used the conservatorship to stop him doing anything he wanted even though legally they could have, and Im not so sure that without this family he would have reached the potential that he did , trying to be successful without a stable home is almost impossible
When this headline popped up on Instagram I immediately looked for info on it to explain Wtf is going on and didn’t find much technical info and here you are to save the day! So glad you’re covering this! Big fan of your service to society this way since you guided us through the Johnny depp case!
Has anyone else heard that the attorney that represented Michael was also the Toughy's attorney AND his bio mom's attorney! Talk about major conflict of interest if it's true.
I’m appalled at the emotional cruelty of leading Michael to believe that he was adopted and had a forever family, only to discover a few months ago that he had never been their son. Money aside, that just so heartless. I can’t wrap my head around such a cruel deception. They obviously knew they could have adopted him but chose not to and lie about it.
But I’m confused because in his 2011 book even he explained it was a conservatorship - he specifically called it that. And the movie didn’t portray it as an adoption either - they literally use the words “legal guardians” in the movie. So I think the fox contracts are sketchy and they should absolutely have to show him receipts, but I’m confused about some of the claims on his side as well.
The movie itself had so many iffy scenes in it that made it seem like MANY people involved were shady. -The coach only pushing to have Michael accepted to the private school because he saw how big he was and wanted him on the team. -The family pushing him to play football even though he (in the movie, because according to Michael later, he already was a fan) didn't know anything about the sport and didn't seem to be doing it for any other reason than the coach and his new "family" wanted him to. -Sandra Bullock's infamous scene with the street thugs where she says she has a gun, and will use it, implying that her connections to the DEA will ensure she never gets prosecuted (if it was just about self-defense, then you wouldn't need to brag about being un-prosecutable). -They LITTERALLY HAD A PERSON MANIPULATE MICHAEL INTO GOING TO A SPECIFIC COLLAGE when he showed signs that he might want to go elsewhere. -And the reason that he did give for choosing the Tuohys' alma mater, was to make them proud/happy. Really, even in the version that was made to show the Tuohys and co in the most positive (savior) light possible, so much of it smacked of red flags. I wouldn't be surprised if the real story was so much darker than portrayed.
This story is beyond frustrating! First I was pissed bc ppl were calling to have Sandra’s Oscar removed, which is such misdirected anger. Especially since she just went through 3 years of hell watching the love of her life slowly deteriorating from ALS. BS stories she was breaking up with him & the truth was she was caring for a man with one of the worst diseases in history. Now to hear how much this young man overcame, minimizing his brilliance for a lame plot point. That he didn’t see a penny from this objectively successful film infuriates me. That they took the liberties of making him look ignorant. I understand Hollywood has to create a narrative, but he had an amazing story despite that. I’m buying both books!
I hate that Sandra is being dragged into all this when she’s going through such a difficult time. Asking for her Oscar to be returned or for her to make a statement while she’s grieving her recently deceased partner is ridiculous. That said I am glad that the Touhy’s are being exposed and hope Emily continues to cover it.
I hate to say it but I truly believe that judge is/was a special kind of stupid. S/he should be disbarred (is that a thing with judges?) and compelled to answer questions about this.
Really feel that the claim that the the family received bad legal advice doesn't fly with me...this is a family that probably has had plenty of lawyers in their world due to the family business.
Apparently their lawyer was in on all this. She represented the family, Michael and his mother and continued to represent them to this day. She was also the main contact for the film Production so everything went through her and the father (not father as we know now).
I’m very shocked that they never officially adopted him!! And people can’t deny that this conservatorship is strange…..idk if I took in a kid that I thought of as my own I don’t know if I’d immediately go to conservatorship …
I don't understand the hang-up about the ad lidem. They're optional after 14 years of age. Why would an 18 year old need one, unless he really was mentally unfit to understand what was happening?
I would like to see the contracts with Fox. This is heartbreaking and even though it hasn't gone to court to end the conservatorship, I'm flabbergasted. Thee only ones compensatedaree the Tuohy's. It just seems fishy and downright shady. I guess the Rooster is coming home to roost for the Tuohy's. My heart is hurting for Michael. It seems like they have taken advantage of Michael for their own greed and advancement.
Seems we the public were "duped" and it pi$$3s me off, I can only imagine how Michael Oher must feel. The way Lee Ann was portrayed was close to "saintly", oh how they built her up while taking advantage of MO's talent. I am so sad he was betrayed so horribly. Prayers for MO, he deserves so much better!
I read that the reason they did a conservatorship and not an adoption is because he would be eligible for inheritance and they have other children they want it to go to.
@@mattier.9095you are absolutely delusional these people gave him money to eat on they made sure he stayed in a good school. Twohey's were so well off before they even met Michael that's how they were able to bless him. They need nothing from him Sean tuohy has made more money than Michael or will ever see in his lifetime.
@@ms.lisaharris307…because they cheat. It looks and is , totally inappropriate. Who does a conservatorship on an able human being just entering young adulthood?! Folks up to no-good. Greed knows no bounds. They def took advantage of him. These folks and all who helped railroad this kid, will be tarred and feathered for what they did and for how Michael is handling it. Watch them twist and hang themselves, by themselves. I hope Aunt Debbie is disbarred.
@@ms.lisaharris307they literally had control of his finances until now. They had money. If they were HONEST they should have put his money in a BLIND TRUST. They should have had AN IMPARTIAL 3rd party present. Not “aunt Deb”. This family DEFINED themselves by Michael’s life.
💯 this applies to all foster & adoptive parents who are given state funds to care for children that could likely stay with their families if the families received that money instead.
Which to me makes so much more insidious. Like, somebody had to float the idea… probably explicitly and out loud… how do you stand yourself, knowing what you are I know plenty of people are on that level. Still shocking tho 😢
@@christinabeck9316 The bio mother was likely dealing with her own bad habits. She wasn't going to obstruct the court. Oher was in foster care because she couldn't care for Oher in the first place.
If the Tuohy’s allegation that Oher tried to “shake them down” before this, and what they are claiming is that the conservatorship was all just to protect Michael and they had no financial gain, why not just terminate the conservatorship then and be done with it the first time he (allegedly) came after them for money? And why does their attorney repeatedly keep referring to this as a lawsuit, when they could simply end the conservatorship?
I think he tried to get money back or he would make the case public. And he did. Of course they were not going to give him any money just because. It’s probably going to have a Civil suit to find money and why they didn’t file in court nothing. One thing the father said they pay taxes and distribute the money, I don’t know how IRS it’s going to take this, because everyone needs to file taxes. Obviously they didn’t
This is devastating and I feel so sorry for him. But what pisses me off is the people saying “he should be grateful for what they did for him” omg 🤦🏼♀️
Yes, & all the antebellum slaves should be sooooo grateful for how those kind, kind plantation owners took such good care of them, whipping them often to make them sure they behaved & also making sure they didn't overeat or oversleep. Sorry, I just can't. This makes me SOOOOOO angry!
Your father’s estate is based on his will. He can give everything to his bio kids and nothing to his adopted child if he choses to. Inheritance is not automatic.
I watched white affluent families do this to black boys who showed some athletic abilities. They would try to get them recruited to a college and if they didn't make it, they were sent packing. This was an investment tactic in the 90s/2000s. I am sure other athletes have had a similar arrangement. It should be explicitly illegal to do this
@@user-wd7ff1yy3p meh, no real reason to have him in a conservativorship. Everything else is irrelevant. He asked for an accounting of his money. That's appropriate if they did nothing wrong. I don't see how him asking for $15 million is wrong if he was, indeed, owed it. You're presuming like we all are
That wouldn't surprise me at all! Many of these southern towns and cities operate like little incestuous fiefdoms. So the attorneys and judges hobnob with each other and it's clear that they often favor their friends when making judicial and administrative and governmental decisions.
@@lexialdman6508I noticed that too. Wondering if the trolls trolling on some of the other comments are paid trolls for the family. I also read today that the Owner of FedEx lived next door to the family and also contributed to the film, earning $$ off of this man as well.
They depicted him as a dumb stereotype in that movie. No way Michael had any say on how that movie told his story. That family knowingly exploited him 😢
@@gracelove4978 citation needed. That is not how movie production works. Everyone just wants to make this family out to be bad people with ulterior motives when all evidence shows they are good kind people who cared about Michael and looked out for his best interests.
This is heartbreaking. I took Guardianship of my oldest son's best friend when they were 16, I know how much trust he had in us, and to know how much hope he had and what that would do to look back over that time and see it for what it is now. My heart breaks for Michael Oher
Thank you for breaking down these documents for us. My speculation was that the conservatorship enabled them extreme power to profit from Michael. By not adopting him they also insulated themselves from any benefits their bio children might enjoy, such as inheritance of their massive wealth.
I was taken away at age 8 and then placed with a gma she wasnt able to care for me permanently and the case worker just simply stopped following up and i was given back to my mother. The system sucks. Starting next month to train to be a GAL. ❤
Michael got married recently. People want to claim he is broke now so this is why he is coming out with all this. Well, as a woman and a wife, maybe SHE started asking questions. Us woman can investigate better than the FBI. 😂😂. I do have a lot of questions for the Tuohy’s and how Michael found all these information. I also would like to know what has been happening for the past 19 years? All of this should be pretty easy to verify once all the accountings come in.
Well said my wife is the same. Asking all the questions. The wife was probably trying to set something up and found out they couldn't because of the conservatorship.
I’ve read that the $$ is in a trust of one of his sons. Read he didn’t cash checks so all $$ in trust. There are lots of articles. You just have to research if you have questions knowing that those statements may be wrong. Also read he said in his book that he knew it was a conservatorship. Don’t have his book so don’t know full context. I just read & wait till end till the truth is known but at this point I’m for the parents. I think he’s ran out of $$. I read and once again c/b a lie he’s threaten b4 and cases never went fwd. also the movie profits were based on NET INCOME. THINK each got $35,000 at some point in beginning. Don’t quote me.
Where did what money go? The author is on record as having received $340,000 for the movie. He testifies that the Touhy's received the same amount, which they divided five ways. Michael got his share. Where in the world does Michael think he is now owed $15 million. Sandra Bullock only made $5 million for her starring role in the movie. The Touhy's didn't take any money from Michael. I imagine he has run through his money and thinks this is a way now to get more. Besides I just read a news story reporting that Michael had told the Touhy's some time ago if they didn't give him the 15 million, he would take a negative story about them to the press.
@@cislynmais7753 🙄no that’s why I said “READ” just like if you READ abt Amber Heard & then saw trial. I also stated they may be wrong! It seems ppl are commenting on what they READ abt Michael & sympathizing which is their right but maybe could read/analyze both sides (IF THEY WANT!)& maybe use critically thinking skills that there are 2 sides or maybe they already have & have come to a different conclusion then me. So I’m for family side bc “I THINK” there was no malicious intent-after all they took him in! He’s 37 & whining now IMO. I did a little research(READ) & realized he just put out a book 8-8-23. Retired football, made millions then tried to blackmail fam 4 $15mil which he’s tried to take to court BEFORE. I could be all wrong just like the others who have opposing views.
Well I didn’t think I could be anymore ticked off about this entire cluster.. unreal!! These people definitely “Blind sided” this poor man and it’s unconscionable for them to cut him out of the proceeds from his own story.. and the fact that they played down his intelligence and athletic talent in the movie is DISGUSTING!!
Ngl, this makes me feel extremely vindicated in my bad vibes about the movie and Michael's situation and my refusal to watch the movie back in the day, despite it being such a cultural phenomenon.
I really disliked the movie. The entire story seemed to be about how nice the family who accepted him was, instead of actually telling his story. He barely speaks in the movie!
Agreed, it looked a lot like praising a white person for helping a person of color. It was not the type of movie I would like to watch. I can't say the savior complex vibes were the only reason I did not see it, but they definitely contributed to my lack of interest.
This is infuriating. But also, the saddest part is that Michael really believed for all these years that he had a real family. I can't even imagine what it would feel like to learn that not only did they take advantage of you for their own selfish needs, but never even adopted you. This breaks my heart 💔😭
I want to adopt so bad and seeing people who can afford to adopt treating a kid who clearly needed a loving family to such a shady situation hurts my heart. I want to be a mom more than anything and seeing people waste that just kills me. I feel terrible for poor micheal.
I think the most damning thing about the whole thing is the _denial_ of Guardian Ad Litem. If it were _actually_ on the up & up, why not have an Ad Litem to guarantee that Oher knew what he was doing, legally speaking? I also wonder what cut his biomom got...
Michael has been with his baby mama for 17 years, I wonder if they married now because his health is declining due to CTE and that’s why she needed power of attorney but discovered his conservators had that.
Leann Tuohy has made money off the fame from the movie and used that to further her public speaking career. We aren’t just talking a few dollars from the movie but the entire course of events thereafter. Speeches, interviews, and tv appearances (see the Below Deck clip) center on the subject of Michael, his childhood, the adoption. If the Tuohy family did put money in a trust account, then fantastic, show us, we will wait. Simple fact of the matter here is the contracts show the Tuohy children were treated differently than Michael was and that is sad and unfair. It was his life story and he was not represented by appropriate representation for any of the contracts they helped him enter into.
*Leigh Anne:* "Sean, who's that enormous homeless kid? Is he a school football star?" *Sean:* "No, he doesn't play any sports. The school won't let him because his grades are horrible." *Leigh Anne:* "We should take him home to live with us. We can feed him, clothe him, buy him a truck. And... *IF* he plays football next year and is great... (he did and he sucked) and *IF* he plays his senior year.... (he did and got better) then *IF* he plays in college and is good enough... (he did and was) then *IF* he gets drafted to an NFL team and makes millions.... then we can grift off of that." *Sean:* "Seriously? Why on earth would we do that when we own 115 Taco Bell and KFC franchises in six states?" The amount of blind *hatred* some people have for rich, white people astounds me.
@@malyroberts4054 When the Tuohys first began taking Michael home to stay with them, he was playing NO SPORTS at Briarcrest Christian School. They had no idea if he had an ounce of athletic ability. They did it because they had compassion. Anyone suggesting that they took him into their home and family because they *magically knew* he would one day be in the NFL is either a complete moron... or just wants to HATE the Tuohys. This isn't rocket science.
@@aldoabruzzi6417what are you talking about? He was already an All American when they met him. He was already playing basketball, football and track and field. So that means his grades were already good enough to play. He was staying at different homes at the time and they just became one of many. He was 17 when he moved in and stayed with them for one year. He was already getting scholarship offers form all over the country. So sir they already knew full well who he was and that he was going to play D1 ball.
@@Lovelyone1 Don't know where you folks get this stuff from but your timeline is off. He supposedly played some football as a freshman at Westwood public high school in Memphis. He starts his 2002 sophomore year at Briarcrest Christian School, but they wouldn't let him play any sports because his grades were so bad. Sean meets him and funds a school lunch account so the kid can eat. His wife takes him out clothes shopping and he starts spending some nights with the Tuohys that November... when they had no idea if he had an ounce of athletic ability. They let him play football his junior year and he is mediocre at best. He's splitting his nights between them and a few other families. In the fall of 2003 after seeing where he spends many nights (a trailer on a leaky air mattress) she goes out and buys him his own bed and dresser and gives him his own room. So now he's staying at their house almost every night, they have collected his clothes from all the places he had them stashed, and they are washed and in his dresser. By December, he's included in their family Christmas photo. Then in March of 2004 (Spring of his junior year) his raw size, strength and speed are noticed by college scout Tom Lemming. By this time he has been spending nights with them for a year and a half... and then began basically living in their house for past 5 months. As for the other D1 schools looking to give him scholarships... if they didn't hire that 20-hour/week tutor for him and then pay for his extra study courses.... he never would have had the grades to GO to college. None of the other families who let him crash on their couch once in a while would EVER do that for him.
Yeah. So you make a good point. He sells his business for 200MM but is so naive to believe they can’t adopt the young man? But then hires Marty singer. That’s bull….
Marty Singer is one of the most powerful CRIMINAL lawyers in Hollywood. He wheels power in this town and is a master at spinning the narrative “he threatened/blackmailed” no doubt, his influence. It’s not a threat to negotiate what you feel you’re owed when according to SJ in a podcast, Michael has been asking them since 2016 so the family knew he was going file but we didn’t know when. The fact the Tuophys hired a CRIMINAL lawyer to be on their team of lawyers says it all. Michael filed a petition to end conservatorship in probate court and they hire a criminal lawyer?
It seems to me that the Tuohy's knew whoever was presiding over this case and took advantage of the fact that Michael would have been completely ignorant of his legal rights. If this is the case then I hope Michael sues them into the ground.
Sure! They are well connected in the area plus the attorney-their friend-likely knew which judge would sign off. Hell, the Toueys were probably good friends with the judge too!
It really looks like the Tuohys did everything they could to make sure that Michael Oher had no legal connection to them but that they had total legal control over him. I can’t imagine how this messed with his mind discovering it as an adult in his 30s.
How could it be possible that he didn't know? He wouldn't have been able to do anything without them signing the contract with him...... get a credit card, get a bank account, buy a car, buy a house, get married, get any medical treatment, etc. That's the part I'm not buying. It's not possible that he didn't know for 20 years.
@@concernedamerican8 It looks like they only cared in regard to UMiss and the movie. They didn’t bring it up to him, weren’t doing any court filings or estate keeping so who is going to follow up when he’s doing the steps to live his life? The bank or DMV or credit card company aren’t going to say hey where’s your conservator? And they aren’t checking unless they have a reason to. And the Tuohys aren’t saying anything as he lives his life or they would out themselves.
@teehlfx5238 still not buying it. The government knows and he wouldn't be able to sign a marriage license. Also, where did all of his money from UMiss go? If it was all about money why would they just allow him to put all of his money in a bank account that they aren't attached to? So the claim is that they wanted his money but then just let him keep it all anyway? I've only heard that he complained about the money they made from the movie but not that they took all of his money from UMiss. It just doesn't make sense. Seriously just think about it. They should be in charge of every dime he's ever made and that's not what is being claimed unless I'm missing something. I'm not saying the Tuohy's are innocent by any means but I don't think there is any way he didn't know.
13:08 This, this is what had me so baffled by their statement. "We didn't adopt him, because he was 18." Wtf are you talking about?! I have friends who were 20+ when their step-parent adopted them! This whole situation is so freaking suspect, and leaves _such_ a bad taste in my mouth 🤢
If the Tuehy's cared so much about Michael, they certainly had enough money to pay for his college education. Wonder if they would have even been interested in him if he had not been a very talented athlete ?
What's sad is that if the Tuohy's had had their way and the conservatorship had automatically expired when he was 25, Michael wouldn't have known about it.
The dumber part I think is they waited and they could have shut the conservatorship down probably without him knowing as well. I think they wanted to profit off of an nfl star and took advantage of a kid with no parents in his life and no opportunities
@@kaila288 Now Michael wants the conservatorship ended! And the right to know about the finances since the Touhys have neglected to file the annual financial documents as required by the conservatorship.
@@shonastar42 which is more than fine, but I don’t see how it’s necessary to drag anyone’s name in the mud. No matter what that family took him in, considered him their son and brother, adoption or not they all thought each other as family. Also in the movie and the books it is never said he was adopted.
The story isn’t all what Mr Oher would like you to believe. He wrote a memoir of his own. In which he states 3 TIMES he was put into a conservatorship. He KNEW he wasn’t adopted. And if the Tuohy’s were trying to make make $$ off the boy, they wouldn’t have messed with the hundreds of thousands paid by the movie studio, of which they paid Mr Oher’s taxes when he refused his share.(which they probably paid on tuition, tutoring, clothes, etc).They would’ve gone after the TENS OF MILLIONS of his football contracts. But the biggest proof is maybe Collins Tuohy’s wedding, held after Mr Oher’s career had ended by injury. Check the pics out online(no really, it’s UNBELIEVABLE). He’s front & center as a groomsman(not as a trophy, there’s 22 other groomsmen). There’s pics of him & his brother Sean walking their mom Leann down the aisle to her seat. Pics of him with Collins, pics of his son with Collins looking like a ring bearer. You can’t look at these pics & concluded anything other than he’s a much beloved member of the family. Now, Sean Tuohy said Michael started to become distant about a year and a half ago. So what happened then??? He married his longtime girlfriend & baby mama. I’m GUESSING she got a look at the finances & thought he was worth more & asked why he was in a conservatorship. Hence, why Mr Oher tried to extort 15 million from his family. Which is more than any of his NFL contracts EVER paid out.
This is my kind of "I told you so" moment. I remember when this movie came out, I was immediately put off by it and refused to watch it. At first I thought it was a typical white savior complex movie until I realized it was "based on a true story" and my heart broke. You know, when people actually care about a child's well being, they don't sell the rights to their story. The people who actually care aren't doing it for applause or an audience. I've always believed that there is an easy way to tell if someone is not a good person: They insist on telling you about all the good things they've done. People who genuinely care are out there actually doing things, not just telling stories.
@sarah 1862 I get what you’re saying and you make some good points. I admit I may be a bit biased here, because I used to teach at the school where the story was set, but when I saw the movie, much of what impacted me was not about the Tuohys- it was about Michael - his strength, kindness, diligence, resilience, intelligence, and even heroism. He was the one who showed the Tuohys how Thanksgiving dinner should be observed - intentionally and with meaning. He prevented 10 year old SJ from being terribly harmed in a car accident, by stopping the airbags with his right arm, which was then injured. He survived an extremely difficult upbringing, and was excelling in football even before this family came into the picture. He made his way to an academically challenging school, and was able to become successful. So for me, the movie was partially about the Tuohys, but even more about the mental toughness, determination, strength, and amazing success of Michael Oher. I just hope the good things and parts about this story will not be lost because of what is coming out now. And I hope we can get over the white savior complex issue. Does it really matter make what skin color any of them have? All are just human beings, trying to get through life as best they can, doing what they can to help each other, even if some of it may have been done in the wrong way or maybe not even for the right reasons. Time will tell, as more of the story comes out. But in the meantime, can we begin to look past color and see each other as fellow humans? Our world needs this more than ever before.
@@Lindapmay Yes, it does matter what color of skin they have when we depict stories of black being being "rescued" by benevolent white folks who are also given total reign over that individual's life because the system seems to agree that a black person should be grateful such a family even took interest in them. Yes, it does matter when it is used to excuse abuse.
@@sarahb1862 thank you for responding. I do understand what you’re saying, nd maybe this is one of those cases. I’m reserving judgment until all the facts are in. But what I took from the movie is that Michael helped the Tuohy family as much as they helped him, and that they were grateful to have him in their lives. That may not be the true story, I’m just referring to the movie, at the moment. I am very interested to see what the real story is, as the truth unfolds. Being raised in the south, by a young widowed mom who had to work to support us, our relationship with a black family was a perfect picture of this. The wife was my childcare provider and our housekeeper from the time I was a baby until I was grown, and her husband and sons take care of our yard. So the salaries they were paid (including Social Security even before it was the law that it be paid) helped their family, and they were a huge help and blessing to us as well. They were part of our family and vice versa. There was no white savior complex in any sense. It was a beautiful partnership and our skin color did not matter to any of us involved. I just don’t see that as being the primary issue here either. For me, the issue is whether or not Michael was treated fairly or unknowingly being taken advantage of. As the truth comes out, we will all be able to see for ourselves what the real story is. I’m sure you have valid reasons for feeling/thinking the way you do, just as I do. But hopefully, we are able to discuss issues like this as fellow human beings who care about our world and those around us, and who hope to see racial harmony become a reality, as we work together.
IMAGINE calling people mum and dad for 20 years, only to find out everything you thought you knew was a lie. My heart goes out to Michael. Hopefully he can reconcile this betrayal and find some peace.
Imagine opening your home to someone doing everything you can to help them only for them to turn around and see you when their money runs out. he knew he was never getting adopted by them. He knew it was a conservatorship. He admitted that in 2011 when he wrote a book
Limited outlook. If Michael had no parental guidance in his early years, is taken in by a family that love him in a way he hasn't experienced before, it's entirely possible that he would be naive and trusting of their advice. He states that they presented him with documents and said "this makes you part of our family". There is absolutely no fathomable reason an adult without diminished capacity (learning difficulties, addiction, severe mental health needs etc.) would require a conservatorship. It provides him nothing, them everything. The family may have loved and cared for him, gave him a much needed safe space with structure. It's still absolutely possible that there were abuses of trust. They're all only human. If Michael feels he was misled, he deserves a chance to speak on it now he knows more.
I think the answer is obvious. Adoption for a multi-hundred million dollar couple means inheritance. They wanted to help but didn’t want him to be eligible for any of their legacy.
Could've just helped without the conservatorship. The conservatorship got the book and movie deal without his input/explicit consent. There are no clear financials filed.
Among the many layers of horrible here the thought that an adult can be under a conservator with no knowledge of the arrangement is terrifying. Upon reaching adulthood there should have been discovery/review. Also, that a person allegedly so vulnerable that they required a conservator was allowed to play professional football - a life threatening sport - is disgusting. The NFL should be held accountable as well.
My son has dyspraxia and is now 20. He struggles with decision making. We assist him and ultimately give him the final decision, it is in his hands. We stand behind him. This is very hard but one day, we will no longer be there so he must be able to answer for himself.
My 18 year old son also has dyspraxia. His is global. He struggles in many areas. After years of speech and occupational therapy he is doing really well. He graduated high school in the spring, and has learned how to drive. I was told that driving wouldn't be possible but he learned.
@@madreep my son also drives. Did not graduate high school in regular program but an adapted one. He has a full time job and gouvernement pays part of his salary. Very proud mom. Still struggles sometimes. 💕
@rondadoliveira1305 that's great to hear! My son hasn't found a job yet but he's looking. There's alot of warehouse jobs near where we live in Phoenix. I'm thinking something like that would be a good fit for him due to the repetition of the work but ultimately it's his choice. I'm hoping that he finds something soon. He tends to just stay in his room if he has nowhere to go
In Michaels first book, I Beat the Odds, from 2011, Michael says he is in a Conservatorship. He also says he chose a different agent then the Tuohys wanted him to choose. That leaves me with questions because he wasn’t completely blindsided (sorry) and it doesn’t sound like he was hamstrung in making decisions. In the JD allegations, folks were quick to jump on the bandwagon and accuse him. A Conservatorship definitely sounds awful! But I want to wait until we have more information before I condemn the Tuohys.
@@breannacarlisle5441 guilty or innocent, I am not at all surprised that both sides have attorneys. The Tuohys owned a restaurant chain that they sold for $200 Million. Michael made $36 Million in his football career. Both sides would want to protect what they have and then hope for reconciliation.
This is the quote from the book where he mentions the conservatorship. Since I was already over the age of eighteen and considered an adult by the state of Tennessee, Sean and Leigh Anne would be named as my ‘legal conservators.’ They explained to me it means pretty much the exact same thing as ‘adoptive parents,’ but that the laws were just written in a way that took my age into account,”
Micheal Ohr knew he was not adopted he states so in a his book. I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness, to The Blind Side, and Beyond that he wrote when he was 25 years old. All these years have gone by and now he brings this up Oh publicity for his new book he just released When Your Back's Against the Wall: Fame, Football, and Lessons Learned Through a Lifetime of Adversity. The Tuohys in my opinion did the conservatorship instead of the adoption because it was quicker. They got him his car, car insurance, medical insurance, put a roof over his head got him a tutor and got him into college all with their own money. They did not enforce any of the provisions in the conservatorship after that time. Michael Ohr entered many contracts after this time with out the Tuohys interference including his NFL contract, Buying, homes, cars etc. They put Micheals money from Blind side into a trust fund. They very wealthy and just recently sold off a lot if not all of there restaurant's for like 200 million dollars. Michael wrote a book and now is drumming up interest in his story and potential sales by doing this NOW!
Head to policygenius.com/LAWNERD to get your free life insurance quotes and see how much you could save.
Visit thrivecausemetics.com/LAWNERD for 20% off your first order.
P
I don't consider that FLEXING!!!!! The Tuohy's were MILLIONAIRS and had money before they met Michael. To me it seems like the Tuohy's tried to do everything for Michael at NO benefit for themselves. THEY ALREADY HAD MONEY!!!!!
Lol. I'm too old. Already protected. But the younger viewers will benefit from this life insurance.
Better investigate deeper! May not be as is being presented!!
Disappointed that so many have already passed judgement.
I know we really only hear about conservatorships when they go wrong, but I'm starting to feel like they are way too easy to abuse.
Uh there’s like a whole issue in Arizona where a stranger/con artist can take control of any senior citizen and steal their home and money and sell all of their possessions without the consent of the person or their family through a very corrupt conservatorship system. Imagine someone literally stealing your parent and you don’t even know where they are and you have no legal rights to help them.
I’m starting to think they are only used to abuse people.
@@LadyGreyAgeingDisGracefullyI believe you are correct
@@strngenchantedgirlThat's so sad and scary for those people.
@@LadyGreyAgeingDisGracefully They're not. I'm sure there are many, many cases where parents of disabled youth who need lifelong care get one to remain their guardians for life. The mechanism needs to exist, but it needs much more oversight.
Yep, it is so disgusting that the conservative clause is being abused IMO. If the conservatee is not able to take care of themselves, then they shouldn’t be able to work to make money for the conservators! So upsetting to hear.
Britney gate.
He thought he should have made $15 million off his role in the book, but he and the Tuohy's made an equal share that didn't add up to that. He didn't want to be adopted, because he was still attached to his birth mom, who appeared before the court in regards to the conservatorship. He is lying about not knowing it was a conservatorship, his memoirs specifically mention it. Emily was taking everything entirely at the word of his lawyer, and honestly I think people are going to look like absolute fools before this is all over, for taking another person at their word AGAIN who they shouldn't have. It costs nothing hold judgement until you know what is actually going on.
@@KarazolaX Take your own advice. Nothing you wrote shows you’re withholding judgment and being neutral. You’re already on the family’s side without being privy to all of the evidence.
A dozen years or so ago, I was having a conversation with a former attorney who had practiced in TN for decades. I was telling him about "The Blind Side" and how much I enjoyed it, when he responded that a lot of it was made up. I know that the phrase "based on a true story" gives quite a bit of latitude in screenwriting. However, he said he knew the Tuohys, especially the father, and didn't think highly of them. In fact, he said at the time that he didn't believe they did anything for altruistic reasons, and hinted they had other motives than the movie portrayed. I thought at the time my acquaintance was being unnecessarily negative, but now I believe he was speaking the truth.
Could have been! We will see I guess
I don't feel like it was even hidden completely in the movie. I did not enjoy the movie. They were pushing him toward football like it was the only value he would have. It was very clear that they ONLY wanted him to go to Ole Miss. They wanted him in that college. The Kathy Bates character manipulates him with scare tactics to keep him from choosing Tennessee.
He was trying to tell you the truth you refuse to believe it!
I'm surprised that if he knew of a gross miscarriage of justice that he didn't do something about it to protect Michael. The Touhy's must have been protected by the Hierarchy of the legal system or they were on the Touhy's payroll.
Most lawyers will lie for a dime.
Also, if Micheal had tried a 'shakedown' many times, why didn't they end the conservatorship on many of those alleged occasions??
The son explains why
@@ca8944what son? source pls so we can all fairly access - is it in this filing? or elsewhere thx
What was the explanation? @@ca8944
What is a shakedown?
@@ca8944the son only knows what his parents tell him. There was no need for a conservatorship PERIOD!!!!
I met my daughter when she was 4. Due to circumstances we were unable to adopt her. We finally got to last year. She was 35.
💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
Congrats to you two! My father and his siblings couldn't be adopted by my grandfather until they were adults, but he was their real dad the whole time. It sounds like you two have a similar story. Much love to your family.
Yay! My cousin was in her late 30's when her stepdad was finally able to adopt her. You're NEVER too old.
I saw their lawyer interview on court tv. I got the ick when he suggested they couldn't adopt bc he was over 18. We all know that's not true.
@@pisces1017Yeah, I looked it up in Tennessee Code Annotated. Adult adoption has been legal since at least 1996. I didn’t even use Westlaw to find that.
The Touheys were keynote speakers at a Prudential Real Estate convention which I attended around 2004 or 2005 in Nashville. They must’ve had other speaking engagements as well. They profited more than off of the movie!
Yes this! Someone else mentioned in a comment they were charging 75k+ to speak, and even the foundation mentions the adoption and her twitter bio mentioned the blindside (movie about MO life as well know). I’m not sure if she still has twitter but when I checked earlier this week she did.
The daughter also does speaking engagements and uses his story as well.
She has built a platform advocating for adoption and claiming him to be their adopted son…LIES
They were also the Keynote at a Kiwanis convention in NOLA when I was on staff. I saw them speak. I know they were not cheap.
Sean Touhy had his own session at the Tulane Bookfest in March 2023. My mom and I went to see to go to the fest, visit my daughter (Tulane student), and visit family (my aunt was recovering from bone marrow transplant at Oschner). His session was The Blindside and beyond. My mom went to it and bought and read his book. And the weather was perfect in NOLA - best time to go. Don’t think he’ll be back next year.
I think the attorney “Aunt Deb” had a conflict of interest because she was so close to the family. She should have recused herself because she did not advise him well.
The word is recuse
@@ObiAmajoyiSrMD you are correct, recuse. Fixed it. Thanks
The Tuohys, Debbie and the judge was in it together. They all duped him.
We don’t know what was said but in the movie he is portrayed like not very smart, we don’t know what the family said to other people. A very clear case of gaslighting
I live in Memphis, and believe me, many here are not surprised. When this movie came out, those in the know considered it a fictional Hollywood fluff film. Those people have a reputation for being mean. Talk to anyone who has worked in one of their fast food restaurants, or deal with Leann personally - they are not nice or well meaning people.
I have conservatorship for my son. We applied in Nashville and had to prove that my son was not capable of making medical, educational and financial decisions. We had to answer many questions and needed to provide records as proof. We have to file paperwork annually. I filed late one year and was fined and the court also threatened the loss of conservatorship if not paid. That was in Nashville obviously Memphis is not on top of their court orders.
I think the Tuohy used their clout and money to get around the rules.
That makes sense... but this doesn't! I have a situation in which I may have to do this but I'm praying I don't! It will be hard feelings if I do. I can empathize with you. I dying now how badly your son needed this but my daughter has straddled the fence. She's a borderline case so I've tried for years to do things differently. This makes me sick!! And moreover, the fact the comments in a lot of other chats, not here, people are making it about race! For me, it's NOT!!! ITS DISGUSTING!!!
"Aunt Debbie" has a LOT to answer for, too!! This all smells too nefarious ~ 🤢🤮
@@mlmichael2791I do too! I bout guarantee you they knew the judge, not just obviously the atty - this seems a lot about Good Ole boy network & $$$!!! I'm thoroughly disgusted!! I'm FROM TN so am WELL aware of that system! That the atty felt repped everyone was highly suspect, def conflict of interest if not downright illegal!!!
@@PhoebeMc My son's functioning is basically as a 5 year old so it was pretty clear cut that he couldn't make important decisions. Even so it was emotional to declare him incompetent. I feel for you in making the decision. Cases like this one just make it harder for those who truly are agonizing over very difficult family decisions. I wish you and your family well.
Real simple, the Tuohys might know an attorney who then has connection with the judges.
If it was unconditional love, they wouldn’t now be saying they loved him in past tense. They would continue to love him, as that is the literal definition of unconditional.
@@user-wd7ff1yy3pthat makes no sense. He didn't know anything about this until months ago. But you seem to giving the family the benefit of the doubt. Why would he lie? You know he has lawyers to help figure this out right? Of course you do😑
@@shaypatrice8126incorrect. He published a book years ago,2011 where he talked about the conservatorship he has also had lawyers investigate their finances previously.
There’s no such thing. All love is conditional. Relationships go two ways.
maybe because they were talking about their relationship at a specific time in the past?
because it would make sense to use past tense when we are talking about the past.
Touché❣️
I want those who abuse conservatorships to be punished under the law and judges who hand them out without it being fair to be punished as well
and the lawyer
they set it up to help the kid. cause of what shaq said...he had cousins he didnt know he had. all the lowlifes come out.
@@paulthomas9911 wha? Please explain. How does one have to do with the other?
@@kerry8880 my point is the conservatory allows michael to tell leeches...my money is tied up bro...cant access it to give you some. my overall point is the family had good intent with oher. to protect him.
@@kerry8880 but i hear you. i know the family could have done michael wrong. i dont know any of them personally.
I am SHOOK that there were no mechanisms of surveillance insuring the yearly reports were made and that the conservatorship was periodically reevaluated (which starts with having an actual TALK with the person). I can't believe the judge did not talk to Michael in the first place. This is so wild.
Reeks of bribery tbh
Same, but having lived in the south for about a decade, none of this type of stuff surprises me anymore. Not to say there isn’t corruption and abuse of power elsewhere but the way the south does it is a special type of insidious and predatory towards its own people. My stepfather recently passed away and the requirements my mom has to show accounting, which she can and will do but has caused her undue stress when’s she’s already facing a life without him suddenly makes me so mad considering what others don’t have to do.
Did the judge in Britney Spears case talk to her at all? I don't think so. This conservatorship court in California was corrupt, why not in Tennessee?
@@TinasArtPage now you're just making shit up
“It’s hard because you have to defend yourself, but whatever he wants, we’ll do. We’re not in this for anything other than whatever he wants. If he’d have said, ‘I don’t want to be part of the family anymore,’ we’d have been very upset, but we absolutely would have done it," is what Mr Tuohy said. He is still framing the conservatorship as Oher's way of "being part of the family." I wonder if he has a conservatorship over his biological children, too? Do they also have to ask to leave the family to get out of them? Doubtful.
If what Michael said is true then he never would have known to ask. Not only that, but they should have been very transparent with it. He sounds like a very smart man that just wanted to be part of a family
I have legal guardianship of my (adult) grandson, who is autistic and has severe mental disabilities. I did all the legal filing myself without the assistance of a lawyer. When the question of conservatorship came up, I didn't know what it meant. The judge explained that I could be but did not need to be named as conservator due to the fact that I was already the legal representative payee appointed by the Social Security office. I say all of this to say... the only purpose for someone to push a conservatorship on a person with no disabilities, would be to cash in on any monies, etc. from this young man. IMO.
Yes, a guardianship of a minor is not abnormal.
@@Sleuth_Squad Apologies. I did not make it clear. My grandson is an adult.
They didn't cash in on his NFL contracts or his book contracts and from what I understand have not been acting as his conservators at all. As far as the movie, they didn't make millions, the negotiated for a small cut and royalties, that's not stealing from him though.
@@Karen_Marie what about the many different public apperances, speaking engagements and national interview tours to boost their brand off of his name, likeness and /image? There would be no Blind Side , National name recognition or publicity without Michael Oher
What about the recent statement they made that conservatorship was the only way they could make him apart of their family.
They said they could not adopt him because be was 18. That is a lie that came from them. What else are they lying about?
I TN you can adopt someone at 18, wbich is where they lived. Look up the law. You will find that to be a direct contradiction, I mean a lie, to TN law.
They could have adopted him to make him legally apart of their family but rejected that. Thus, rejecting him.
How would you feel if the people who you thought were legally your parents lied to you your entire life? Can you answer that question? I'll wait.
With all of these FACTS, they hardly seem like fine, genuine, law abiding Christian folks.
@@Karen_MarieWe don’t know though because of the lack of accounting, and the movie was about him and his life so I don’t know how that’s not stealing. It all should have gone to him.
If the family genuinely believed this made him part of their family, then they shouldn't be fighting him, but suing the people who wrongly advised them.
They’re not fighting him. They’ve said publicly they will do whatever he wants in regards to terminating the conservatorship.
@@rondadamsnow that it's public and they look bad
I agree.
I think they knew exactly what it was
@@rondadamsThen why haven't they done it until now?
Emily, thanks so much for reporting on this! Please stay on this story. How these people (the Tuohy's, "Aunt" Debbie, the judge, DHS, Fox, and on and on and on) got away with this is mind blowing. I pray people end up in jail over this. That the Tuohy's went to TMZ to make a statement says volumes about them (TMZ is the opposite of "on the up and up").
I have been avoiding this one. It hurts my heart to think he was taken advantage of. But I think if Emily tells me about it, I can handle it
Me too!
I'm 15 minutes in and am already upset! Because I love how EDB covers cases, I'm going to try to get through this very upsetting case.💜
I’m disgusted and I haven’t heard all of it yet! How?!?
Why get hurt?
I really hope and I will pray, that he gets the justice he deserves and that he's reimbursed and repaid every red cent and digital dollar. He didn't deserve this, and nobody does.
The fact that the conservatorship prohibits him from entering into contracts without the consent of rhe conservators makes the scene in the movie where he almost goes to another school makes so much more sense now. He literally couldnt unless she said it was okay.
It is like Indentured Servitude to lock him into playing for old Miss until they were done with him. Slavery wasn’t available as an option.
I haven't seen the film or read any of the books. What was the advantage of him going to that college and was there a benefit to the family?
@@lucyturnill450 they were boosters. That was their alma mater.
They did not want him to inherit anything, so no adoption. Sounds like what a lawyer would advice.
This makes perfect sense!!
So it's only considered help if they provide for him through their death. Ctfo.
Whoa!!! Nothing id read or heard up to now really rang 100% with me in terms of making sense… UNTIL this comment… THAT makes TOTAL sense… that checks every single box for me Personally. And you’re right. That’s PRECISELY what a lawyer would advise.
I actually don’t believe that they didn’t or don’t have genuine familial love toward him . I think that they do. I also still believe they had a genuine want to make him part of the family in some memorialized way. But I certainly think a lawyer would practically insist they do things the way that they did and this would surely explain why they’d have not been transparent as to what he was signing
According to his first memoir he was 18 and knew it was not an adoption.
@@rose-rs5ul those are both true statements
That judge needs to be investigated
Probably was a family friend.😮
Exactly! And Debbie
They didn’t want to adopt him because hen he would become a legal heir to the estate. They didn’t want him to take money away from their two kids.
This is silly. It's not a monarchy, there's not like a line of succession lol. People leave their children out of inheritance all the time. There would be no reason to assume he'd inherit anything simply from being adopted. Adopting him wouldn't require them to put him in any wills for inheritance.
They have no intention of adopting him. They whole point is to exploit Michael. Plain and simple.
What is a fact is that adoptive parents leave their adopted children out of their wills all the time while leaving their biological children in.
Any child can contest the will. That's why.
@@Milan_2301 they sure can… if I was them I wouldn’t have adopted him either… and he could have easily gotten injured in college and never made it to the league… so really in my opinion dude is still letting everyone around him think for him because it’s easier than thinking for yourself. The Tourey family was already rich…. Back then Michael clearly needed them more than they needed him. They took all the risk because they believed in him … sounds like they invested in him it paid off and now Michael and people in his camp are mad they got anything at all…. Because rich people should always let talented future athletes in their home just because they are so kind🤔 Mike is one ungrateful mf if you ask me
also their response tells me so much. it’s possible he “threatened” to expose the truth or whatever they claim now, but that’s exactly what controlling narcs say when you try to finally stand up for yourself
Their son has the texts
It will all come out in court
@@ca8944 hopefully, yes! one way or another, there should be full transparency from the tuohys. these are just filings tho, right? not a separate case, nor a trial as i understand it
This sounds like they duped him into giving away his rights because he wouldn’t know the difference as a naive 18 year old and then grifted off him for the next 18 years. And then to present it as an adoption to movie studios. That has to be some kind of criminal activity, right! Like Michael Oher owed them something for all their “kindness” and it turns out they took everything. Smells like Britney Spears situation 2.0. . So much naked greed….
Exactly. They took an advantage of his naïveté. If they cared they could have put his money into a blind trust. They better have a break down of all their financials over the years.
There was nothing in the movie stating they adopted him. I have the movie and watched it multiple times.
It's extremely disturbing that the court systems can not be held liable for being complicit in conservatorship abuse
If this happened in Australia I believe the court WOULD be held responsible, perhaps because this situation isn't legal in Australia. Part of the process in Australia is proving that the subject of the order is significantly disabled and thereby unable to make their own decisions.
Absolutely, when the system can't be hold accountable it opens that door to illegal things to happen
Someone needs to explore the relationship between the Tuohy's and the Judge.
Ouuuu! That’s a great point! I agree. I was thinking the same thing. It seems like all of these people involved in this were all too close. No red flags because they all knew each other. Dang shame!
Sounds like the judge conveniently overlooked his due diligence. Is that correct, Emily?
Sounds more like corruption at this point. Similar to the Britney case
Was probably paid off/family friend. If you have a “contact” they will make it happen.
Money talks and where football is king, Oher was a pawn to be used and manipulated. I’d wager that the judge could be in on the ruse too if the lawyer was also a family friend.
Or new the family
@@k4871the movie doesn’t show this but they were with their family friend and lawyer called aunt pat who explained to Michael a conservatorship was the adult way to adopt.
A lawyer explained to him this!!!!
As an attorney, I’m having difficulty figuring out why the GAL was waived, especially in this particular, untraditional situation.
These wildly successful entrepreneurs, well versed in contracts and law, determined that it would be best to waive the GAL and include the drug addicted mother who probably didn’t even graduate high school instead.
I’m very interested in their answer.
I have so many questions too, Emily. What was the dynamic in this family like after Michaels prime "earning years" were over? Was he still welcomed into their home like he once was? Invited to holidays? Treated like one of the kids? This goes so deep, way beyond money. Greed is a horrible thing.
Yes I want to know also.
Interesting that the Tuohy's asked for a time limit for the conservatorship. The judge came back and said 'no it lasts until I say otherwise"
Yep reeks of bribery…
They will be forced to turn over their financials. Money or gifts paid/given to the husband, wife and adult children. They have numerous foundations that will have to be looked into. This is a mess. The concervership should have been ended years ago.
They have done this and it has shown they have paid Oher into the trust account that was established years ago. He has tried this before a multitude of times and every attorney said there is no there, there.
@@user-wd7ff1yy3p Allegedly he wasn’t made aware of the stipulations of the conservatorship, and it seems that the family took measures to ensure he wouldn’t. Allegedly the father told him it would simply function as an legal adoption because he was 18+.
@@rmoeller3102Why isn’t this captured in the filings? There would be record of that.
I heard rumblings of this years ago, right after the movie came out. But it was always proven wrong. About the $$. The conservership should have ended years ago though.
The conservatorship should have never been established in first place.
We adopted my nephew (now Son) at 18. While I was his legal guardian, my sister would never give me permission to adopt. My son asked us to do it anyway, so we adopted a legal adult.
Doesn’t a conservatorship require proof that the person doesn’t have the ability to make their own decisions? And hasn’t he been making his own medical, financial, and professional decisions? I’m so confused by this.
Where I live (Australia) it absolutely can only occur when the judge is satisfied via medical reports and when possible by seeing the person face to face, that the person does not have capacity to make their own decisions and that this is a permanent impairment.
In this American example, not only does the court acknowledge that he has no impairment, the conservatorship seems to have not been used because it seems he did make his own decisions. Perhaps they were in fact wrongly advised that this is how adoption of an adult is done and that this is needed for college entry. 🤷♀️
A favor was done by the court. There were many who benefitted for bending rules.
Yes somehow it was missing. Michael said a document he did not sign. It’s obvious corruption and abuse of power.
The Tuoys talk about a 15M shakedown, could it be that Michael Oher asked for his fair share of the movie? They argue it’s normal their kids got royalties for being exposed in the movie. How about Oher?!? The story would be so different if he had got paid fairly
States they received equal shares.
All this bad press, if it comes out that the family did everything right for this kid, it would certainly make the next family think twice before helping.
Finally someone with some sense. I mean just because they said everyone was paid equally doesn’t make it true 🙄.
@@ann316even if so, no one remembers her kids, he was the star of the movie. So her family made like 5 shares and he got one? 😂 that's best case scenario
@ann316 they didn't though because even if nothing else they filed a conservatorship that gave them legal rights to make decisions in his life when it was unnecessary. It's obvious that they used their connections to get it approved . If it was just to make it easier for him to get into Ole Miss , why did they never terminate it ? Why did they allow him to sign a contract that gave exclusive rights to his life story in exchange for seemingly no payment ? What parents with their business experience and access to resources and lawyers would allow that ?
I always thought there was something fishy about this story. When the movie came out, you never heard a word from Oher and not much from the NFL during the promos for the movie which is very strange for Hollywood. I always wondered why he never commented or did any publicity for the movie that I know of and wondered what the real story was.
I live in Maryland & Oher played for the Baltimore Ravens. I never purposely watched but the movie was playing in a Hospital waiting room where I waiting & I felt so uncomfortable, trying to tune it out. 😬
Years ago, not too long after the movie came out, Oher did comment that there were a few things about the movie that he didn’t like, but tried to understand that for the movie, they needed to embellished the truth and put some Hollywood extras in it. For example, he knew a lot about football, but they made it look like he had a low “football IQ” and needed to learn from the Tueys. The scene where Sandra Bullock’s character had to teach him how to block was ridiculously not true. Also, yes, he needed some tutoring and the daughter also helped him as they did homework together, but the movie just about made him look dumb. He didn’t say much more at the time, because he knew it was a movie based on his story and not a true documentary. The saddest part of this story, if true, is that he actually thought he was adopted and now finds out all these years later, that he was lied to! That’s just heartbreaking. Praying for him.
This is deeper than I thought… it’s giving ‘we own you’ vibes. This is sick!
That’s extreme and inflammatory. We know nothing about this case or this family other than what other people are telling us. Reserving opinion.
@@kandykaye9981 watch those ppl in interviews and the tv show Below Deck. Sean and Leann seems entitled, self-righteous and money 💰 focus. The above comment rings true.
Your comment rings true. 💯👍🏽
I saw an old interview with LeighAnn where the caption read “adoption advocate.” What a freaking joke! Her fraudulent actions are grossly disgusting!
@@kandykaye9981You’re not “reserving” your opinion. You just stated it lol
Kudos Emily! Your insights and explanations are right on. It's unbelievable the the Tuyoys a educated and informed family are playing dumb on getting this young vulnerable man into a conservatorship. They knew exactly what they were doing and used him to make millions in exchange of abusing Michael mentality and emotionally by leaving him without even the rights to his name and story. Their actions speak louder than their words claiming they love Michael. I hope he takes back everything they stole and the world sees how absolutely heartless and greedy these people really are .. The truth always comes out in the end!!!!
This is why you read before you sign, but at 18 I don't blame him for not knowing especially if you trusted them to have your best interest at heart.
They started working on him at the age of 16, not 18
Even if he had read it would he understand fully without a lawyer to explain it?
We have Emily to explain all the legalese to us and make it simple to understand. It doesn’t sound like he had a good lawyer on his side doing the same.
That's rasier said than done when you don't have a legal comprehension at the very least.
Michael is a 37 year old man who has written 3 books and signed numerous NFL contracts. He has no known disabilities and his attorneys claim he would have been a superstar without the Tuohys. So I have questions. How did 20 years go by with Michael still knowing nothing.
@@eyesee2339 20 years without him knowing becasue they never actually used the conservatorship to stop him doing anything he wanted even though legally they could have, and Im not so sure that without this family he would have reached the potential that he did , trying to be successful without a stable home is almost impossible
After this has all been settled, there should be a movie made and it should be called “ The Real Blindside”
Blindsided
I’m not even half way through this video and I’m sick, mad and disgusted. Great job Attn Baker
When this headline popped up on Instagram I immediately looked for info on it to explain Wtf is going on and didn’t find much technical info and here you are to save the day! So glad you’re covering this! Big fan of your service to society this way since you guided us through the Johnny depp case!
Has anyone else heard that the attorney that represented Michael was also the Toughy's attorney AND his bio mom's attorney! Talk about major conflict of interest if it's true.
Yep…Aunt Deb represented them all
It’s true. Major conflict of interest and huge conflict having her represent him on the film. That’s like having a foot surgeon perform brain surgery.
I’m appalled at the emotional cruelty of leading Michael to believe that he was adopted and had a forever family, only to discover a few months ago that he had never been their son. Money aside, that just so heartless. I can’t wrap my head around such a cruel deception. They obviously knew they could have adopted him but chose not to and lie about it.
i believe this is the impetus for his lawsuit. it's not about the money. it is absolutely about the betrayal.
Not a few months, he found out THIS YEAR!
@@Sleuth_Squad. How is “a few months ago” functionally different from “this year”? Genuine question
But I’m confused because in his 2011 book even he explained it was a conservatorship - he specifically called it that. And the movie didn’t portray it as an adoption either - they literally use the words “legal guardians” in the movie. So I think the fox contracts are sketchy and they should absolutely have to show him receipts, but I’m confused about some of the claims on his side as well.
@@herroyalhighness5634 34:50 addresses that
The movie itself had so many iffy scenes in it that made it seem like MANY people involved were shady.
-The coach only pushing to have Michael accepted to the private school because he saw how big he was and wanted him on the team.
-The family pushing him to play football even though he (in the movie, because according to Michael later, he already was a fan) didn't know anything about the sport and didn't seem to be doing it for any other reason than the coach and his new "family" wanted him to.
-Sandra Bullock's infamous scene with the street thugs where she says she has a gun, and will use it, implying that her connections to the DEA will ensure she never gets prosecuted (if it was just about self-defense, then you wouldn't need to brag about being un-prosecutable).
-They LITTERALLY HAD A PERSON MANIPULATE MICHAEL INTO GOING TO A SPECIFIC COLLAGE when he showed signs that he might want to go elsewhere.
-And the reason that he did give for choosing the Tuohys' alma mater, was to make them proud/happy.
Really, even in the version that was made to show the Tuohys and co in the most positive (savior) light possible, so much of it smacked of red flags. I wouldn't be surprised if the real story was so much darker than portrayed.
This story is beyond frustrating! First I was pissed bc ppl were calling to have Sandra’s Oscar removed, which is such misdirected anger. Especially since she just went through 3 years of hell watching the love of her life slowly deteriorating from ALS. BS stories she was breaking up with him & the truth was she was caring for a man with one of the worst diseases in history.
Now to hear how much this young man overcame, minimizing his brilliance for a lame plot point. That he didn’t see a penny from this objectively successful film infuriates me. That they took the liberties of making him look ignorant. I understand Hollywood has to create a narrative, but he had an amazing story despite that. I’m buying both books!
Exactly!!!
I hate that Sandra is being dragged into all this when she’s going through such a difficult time. Asking for her Oscar to be returned or for her to make a statement while she’s grieving her recently deceased partner is ridiculous. That said I am glad that the Touhy’s are being exposed and hope Emily continues to cover it.
No questions about the judge’s due diligence? Let’s go back to when all of this was cooked up.
I hate to say it but I truly believe that judge is/was a special kind of stupid. S/he should be disbarred (is that a thing with judges?) and compelled to answer questions about this.
Word
The judge was probably a rich friend of the Tuohoys.
@@elysiumsnakefarm1185 O agree that's more likely
There’s a lot of “good ole boys” looking out for each other in Memphis.
Really feel that the claim that the the family received bad legal advice doesn't fly with me...this is a family that probably has had plenty of lawyers in their world due to the family business.
Apparently their lawyer was in on all this. She represented the family, Michael and his mother and continued to represent them to this day. She was also the main contact for the film Production so everything went through her and the father (not father as we know now).
They are worth 50 million..... that's sketch
Running a business is different that adoption, do you really believe buisness people are experts on adoption?
@@monicahepler4314 The lawyer"s should have some knowledge.
@@Thismamabear Now I just want to see their tax returns. I bet there's some "based on a true events" story telling going on there, as well.
I’m very shocked that they never officially adopted him!! And people can’t deny that this conservatorship is strange…..idk if I took in a kid that I thought of as my own I don’t know if I’d immediately go to conservatorship …
They should have put the money in the blind trust.
As far as I know, conservatorships are for those who cannot take care of themselves!
Slavery disguised as conservatorship. The saddest part is the emotional hurt😪
Judge waiving conservator ad lidem and allowing this conservatorship is giving me Murdaugh having police lights on his private vehicle vibes.
There ALOT of corruption going on in society, and unethical, illicit behavior.
Yes! Absolutely some shady dealings between the law and the Touhy family.
If he's an elected judge, you wonder if the Touhy's donated to his election campaign.
Yes!! Exactly!!
I don't understand the hang-up about the ad lidem. They're optional after 14 years of age. Why would an 18 year old need one, unless he really was mentally unfit to understand what was happening?
I would like to see the contracts with Fox. This is heartbreaking and even though it hasn't gone to court to end the conservatorship, I'm flabbergasted. Thee only ones compensatedaree the Tuohy's. It just seems fishy and downright shady. I guess the Rooster is coming home to roost for the Tuohy's. My heart is hurting for Michael. It seems like they have taken advantage of Michael for their own greed and advancement.
Exactly! KARMA
I'd like to hear why the NCAA didn't consider a conservatorship undue influence??? That's 1000x worse than just sponsoring a kid!
The purpose of the C-ship was to comply with NCAA regulations.
I hope he gets his order approved and that they have pay him back and all of those who wronged him held accountable.
I was so sad when I saw this headline yesterday. It’s one of my favorite movies! Looking forward to getting into it today. 😁
Seems we the public were "duped" and it pi$$3s me off, I can only imagine how Michael Oher must feel. The way Lee Ann was portrayed was close to "saintly", oh how they built her up while taking advantage of MO's talent. I am so sad he was betrayed so horribly. Prayers for MO, he deserves so much better!
This makes me so sad for him. He worked hard to be successful, he deserves to make his own decisions!
I read that the reason they did a conservatorship and not an adoption is because he would be eligible for inheritance and they have other children they want it to go to.
Yep because they are selfish and entitled. They want all the glory of being “adopted” parents but none of the responsibilities.
@@mattier.9095you are absolutely delusional these people gave him money to eat on they made sure he stayed in a good school. Twohey's were so well off before they even met Michael that's how they were able to bless him. They need nothing from him Sean tuohy has made more money than Michael or will ever see in his lifetime.
@@ms.lisaharris307…because they cheat. It looks and is , totally inappropriate. Who does a conservatorship on an able human being just entering young adulthood?! Folks up to no-good. Greed knows no bounds. They def took advantage of him. These folks and all who helped railroad this kid, will be tarred and feathered for what they did and for how Michael is handling it. Watch them twist and hang themselves, by themselves. I hope Aunt Debbie is disbarred.
@@ms.lisaharris307they literally had control of his finances until now. They had money. If they were HONEST they should have put his money in a BLIND TRUST. They should have had AN IMPARTIAL 3rd party present. Not “aunt Deb”. This family DEFINED themselves by Michael’s life.
@@karinaz8756 Put what money in a blind trust? You're assuming there's a multi million dollar payout somewhere that they capitalized on.
to be fair,anybody that makes money from merchandising kids is just plain wrong!
Yeah, I would say so!
To be faiiiiiir!
I have much the same sentiments. See also: 19 Kids and Counting. UGH.
Like all the horror Jeanette McCurdy went through
💯 this applies to all foster & adoptive parents who are given state funds to care for children that could likely stay with their families if the families received that money instead.
inviting the biological mother, actually makes it look more like an adoption proceeding, then a conservatorship imo
Bingo
Which to me makes so much more insidious. Like, somebody had to float the idea… probably explicitly and out loud… how do you stand yourself, knowing what you are
I know plenty of people are on that level. Still shocking tho 😢
I always wondered how the mother signed away her rights……I guess she didn’t!
Right!
@@christinabeck9316 The bio mother was likely dealing with her own bad habits. She wasn't going to obstruct the court. Oher was in foster care because she couldn't care for Oher in the first place.
“He started to drift away over the last year and a half”
Gee, I wonder why lol
If the Tuohy’s allegation that Oher tried to “shake them down” before this, and what they are claiming is that the conservatorship was all just to protect Michael and they had no financial gain, why not just terminate the conservatorship then and be done with it the first time he (allegedly) came after them for money? And why does their attorney repeatedly keep referring to this as a lawsuit, when they could simply end the conservatorship?
I think he tried to get money back or he would make the case public. And he did. Of course they were not going to give him any money just because. It’s probably going to have a Civil suit to find money and why they didn’t file in court nothing. One thing the father said they pay taxes and distribute the money, I don’t know how IRS it’s going to take this, because everyone needs to file taxes. Obviously they didn’t
This is devastating and I feel so sorry for him. But what pisses me off is the people saying “he should be grateful for what they did for him” omg 🤦🏼♀️
Agreed. The movie makes out they cared about him and this is using him.
Agreed!!!
I know right? Like helping you makes it okay to abuse you.
This most of all!
Yes, & all the antebellum slaves should be sooooo grateful for how those kind, kind plantation owners took such good care of them, whipping them often to make them sure they behaved & also making sure they didn't overeat or oversleep. Sorry, I just can't. This makes me SOOOOOO angry!
Thank you for getting right on this, EDB! As soon as I saw the headline, I was like “Oh man, I need Emily to unpack this.” ❤
I can easily see why Micheal Ohre feels betrayed!
Every time I think of The Blindsided the only quote that comes to me is "I'm in a prayer group with the DA and I'm always packing" 😂😂😂
Yeah, that scene always seemed kinda villainous to me...
My dad adopted his 20 year old step son. Now he’s equal to all the bio kids in the estate.
Your father’s estate is based on his will. He can give everything to his bio kids and nothing to his adopted child if he choses to. Inheritance is not automatic.
@@annan.3283I'm assuming they mean if he dies intestate...
maybe his will says “split equally among all my kids” and now he’s one of them. it’s lovely 🥰
This story always made me uncomfortable but I could never put into words why. This just proved my feelings.
Same for me, it was too good to be true. Exactly that. 😢
I watched white affluent families do this to black boys who showed some athletic abilities. They would try to get them recruited to a college and if they didn't make it, they were sent packing. This was an investment tactic in the 90s/2000s. I am sure other athletes have had a similar arrangement. It should be explicitly illegal to do this
@@user-wd7ff1yy3p meh, no real reason to have him in a conservativorship. Everything else is irrelevant. He asked for an accounting of his money. That's appropriate if they did nothing wrong. I don't see how him asking for $15 million is wrong if he was, indeed, owed it. You're presuming like we all are
Is it blackmail if it's HIS money?
@@sovereignbrehon
It is if his threatening them.
None of this passes the sniff test….I’m betting the original judge had a history with the Tuohys
interesting there are no replies on this one, no one denying this like there are on most comments here… interesting
That wouldn't surprise me at all! Many of these southern towns and cities operate like little incestuous fiefdoms. So the attorneys and judges hobnob with each other and it's clear that they often favor their friends when making judicial and administrative and governmental decisions.
💯👍🏽💰yep
@@lexialdman6508I noticed that too. Wondering if the trolls trolling on some of the other comments are paid trolls for the family. I also read today that the Owner of FedEx lived next door to the family and also contributed to the film, earning $$ off of this man as well.
They were a rich , prominent family in the South. Bet you’re right.
This story blows my mind, I am shocked!!! They should make a Movie about this when all said and done !!!❤🎉😂❤
And give all of the proceeds to Michael
Definitely
They depicted him as a dumb stereotype in that movie. No way Michael had any say on how that movie told his story. That family knowingly exploited him 😢
The family did not portray him as anything in the movie. The producers did.
@@Karen_Marie and they approved it
@@gracelove4978 citation needed.
That is not how movie production works.
Everyone just wants to make this family out to be bad people with ulterior motives when all evidence shows they are good kind people who cared about Michael and looked out for his best interests.
@@Karen_Marie all evidence does not prove that, that's just your opinion Karen...
Decent and kind people don't manipulate others, and definitely not for their own personal gain.
This is heartbreaking. I took Guardianship of my oldest son's best friend when they were 16, I know how much trust he had in us, and to know how much hope he had and what that would do to look back over that time and see it for what it is now. My heart breaks for Michael Oher
I hope he isn’t ungrateful and doesn’t try to sue you like Michael
Thank you for breaking down these documents for us. My speculation was that the conservatorship enabled them extreme power to profit from Michael. By not adopting him they also insulated themselves from any benefits their bio children might enjoy, such as inheritance of their massive wealth.
I don't think it was about money for Tuohys but about fame. They got fame through Michael and that is what I think they wanted. So sad.
I was taken away at age 8 and then placed with a gma she wasnt able to care for me permanently and the case worker just simply stopped following up and i was given back to my mother. The system sucks. Starting next month to train to be a GAL. ❤
💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
Michael got married recently. People want to claim he is broke now so this is why he is coming out with all this. Well, as a woman and a wife, maybe SHE started asking questions. Us woman can investigate better than the FBI. 😂😂. I do have a lot of questions for the Tuohy’s and how Michael found all these information. I also would like to know what has been happening for the past 19 years? All of this should be pretty easy to verify once all the accountings come in.
Well said my wife is the same. Asking all the questions. The wife was probably trying to set something up and found out they couldn't because of the conservatorship.
Thank you for covering this. I am interested in any updates.
I’m with you Emily! Where did the money go??? Financials pls! It’s 2023 we don’t get to use people as tax shelters and steal their rights.
I’ve read that the $$ is in a trust of one of his sons. Read he didn’t cash checks so all $$ in trust.
There are lots of articles. You just have to research if you have questions knowing that those statements may be wrong. Also read he said in his book that he knew it was a conservatorship. Don’t have his book so don’t know full context.
I just read & wait till end till the truth is known but at this point I’m for the parents. I think he’s ran out of $$. I read and once again c/b a lie he’s threaten b4 and cases never went
fwd.
also the movie profits were based on NET INCOME. THINK each got $35,000 at some point in beginning. Don’t quote me.
Where did what money go?
The author is on record as having received $340,000 for the movie. He testifies that the Touhy's received the same amount, which they divided five ways. Michael got his share. Where in the world does Michael think he is now owed $15 million. Sandra Bullock only made $5 million for her starring role in the movie.
The Touhy's didn't take any money from Michael. I imagine he has run through his money and thinks this is a way now to get more. Besides I just read a news story reporting that Michael had told the Touhy's some time ago if they didn't give him the 15 million, he would take a negative story about them to the press.
Yeah...you read a STORY???.... or you heard a RUMOR????...
So you believe everything you hear...or see....😎
@@cislynmais7753 🙄no that’s why I said “READ” just like if you READ abt Amber Heard & then saw trial. I also stated they may be wrong! It seems ppl are commenting on what they READ abt Michael & sympathizing which is their right but maybe could read/analyze both sides (IF THEY WANT!)& maybe use critically thinking skills that there are 2 sides or maybe they already have & have come to a different conclusion then me.
So I’m for family side bc “I THINK” there was no malicious intent-after all they took him in!
He’s 37 & whining now IMO.
I did a little research(READ) & realized he just put out a book 8-8-23. Retired football, made millions then tried to blackmail fam 4 $15mil which he’s tried to take to court BEFORE. I could be all wrong just like the others who have opposing views.
@@eirenmist2301This is the 5th UA-cam video about this where you racist trolls keep saying the same exact thing, word for word. Get more creative.
Well I didn’t think I could be anymore ticked off about this entire cluster.. unreal!! These people definitely “Blind sided” this poor man and it’s unconscionable for them to cut him out of the proceeds from his own story.. and the fact that they played down his intelligence and athletic talent in the movie is DISGUSTING!!
Ngl, this makes me feel extremely vindicated in my bad vibes about the movie and Michael's situation and my refusal to watch the movie back in the day, despite it being such a cultural phenomenon.
I watched it but found it cringeworthy. Didn't know why but now I do
I really disliked the movie. The entire story seemed to be about how nice the family who accepted him was, instead of actually telling his story. He barely speaks in the movie!
The trailer was offensive to me and not because idgaf about football. It was like, ima fix this big mess look at lil ole me! Toot toot yaw!
Agreed, it looked a lot like praising a white person for helping a person of color. It was not the type of movie I would like to watch. I can't say the savior complex vibes were the only reason I did not see it, but they definitely contributed to my lack of interest.
I mean… the movie was racist as hell. So hopefully that’s why you found it cringeworthy. White saviorism is racism.
This is infuriating. But also, the saddest part is that Michael really believed for all these years that he had a real family. I can't even imagine what it would feel like to learn that not only did they take advantage of you for their own selfish needs, but never even adopted you. This breaks my heart 💔😭
I want to adopt so bad and seeing people who can afford to adopt treating a kid who clearly needed a loving family to such a shady situation hurts my heart. I want to be a mom more than anything and seeing people waste that just kills me. I feel terrible for poor micheal.
Adoption via foster care is usually free.
@@EmP-2022 usually being the key w0rd here where i am it is not.
I think the most damning thing about the whole thing is the _denial_ of Guardian Ad Litem. If it were _actually_ on the up & up, why not have an Ad Litem to guarantee that Oher knew what he was doing, legally speaking?
I also wonder what cut his biomom got...
Yes I agree
I am VERY invested! Did you notice the Tuohy statement says the tension began around the time Mr. Oher got married.
Michael has been with his baby mama for 17 years, I wonder if they married now because his health is declining due to CTE and that’s why she needed power of attorney but discovered his conservators had that.
@annan.3283 wow! This could be true!
Leann Tuohy has made money off the fame from the movie and used that to further her public speaking career. We aren’t just talking a few dollars from the movie but the entire course of events thereafter. Speeches, interviews, and tv appearances (see the Below Deck clip) center on the subject of Michael, his childhood, the adoption. If the Tuohy family did put money in a trust account, then fantastic, show us, we will wait. Simple fact of the matter here is the contracts show the Tuohy children were treated differently than Michael was and that is sad and unfair. It was his life story and he was not represented by appropriate representation for any of the contracts they helped him enter into.
*Leigh Anne:* "Sean, who's that enormous homeless kid? Is he a school football star?"
*Sean:* "No, he doesn't play any sports. The school won't let him because his grades are horrible."
*Leigh Anne:* "We should take him home to live with us. We can feed him, clothe him, buy him a truck. And...
*IF* he plays football next year and is great... (he did and he sucked)
and *IF* he plays his senior year.... (he did and got better)
then *IF* he plays in college and is good enough... (he did and was)
then *IF* he gets drafted to an NFL team and makes millions.... then we can grift off of that."
*Sean:* "Seriously? Why on earth would we do that when we own 115 Taco Bell and KFC franchises in six states?"
The amount of blind *hatred* some people have for rich, white people astounds me.
What?!?
@@malyroberts4054 When the Tuohys first began taking Michael home to stay with them, he was playing NO SPORTS at Briarcrest Christian School. They had no idea if he had an ounce of athletic ability. They did it because they had compassion.
Anyone suggesting that they took him into their home and family because they *magically knew* he would one day be in the NFL is either a complete moron... or just wants to HATE the Tuohys.
This isn't rocket science.
He was already playing football, and being recruited by colleges by the time they met him. @@aldoabruzzi6417
@@aldoabruzzi6417what are you talking about? He was already an All American when they met him. He was already playing basketball, football and track and field. So that means his grades were already good enough to play. He was staying at different homes at the time and they just became one of many. He was 17 when he moved in and stayed with them for one year. He was already getting scholarship offers form all over the country. So sir they already knew full well who he was and that he was going to play D1 ball.
@@Lovelyone1 Don't know where you folks get this stuff from but your timeline is off.
He supposedly played some football as a freshman at Westwood public high school in Memphis. He starts his 2002 sophomore year at Briarcrest Christian School, but they wouldn't let him play any sports because his grades were so bad. Sean meets him and funds a school lunch account so the kid can eat. His wife takes him out clothes shopping and he starts spending some nights with the Tuohys that November... when they had no idea if he had an ounce of athletic ability.
They let him play football his junior year and he is mediocre at best. He's splitting his nights between them and a few other families. In the fall of 2003 after seeing where he spends many nights (a trailer on a leaky air mattress) she goes out and buys him his own bed and dresser and gives him his own room. So now he's staying at their house almost every night, they have collected his clothes from all the places he had them stashed, and they are washed and in his dresser.
By December, he's included in their family Christmas photo. Then in March of 2004 (Spring of his junior year) his raw size, strength and speed are noticed by college scout Tom Lemming. By this time he has been spending nights with them for a year and a half... and then began basically living in their house for past 5 months.
As for the other D1 schools looking to give him scholarships... if they didn't hire that 20-hour/week tutor for him and then pay for his extra study courses.... he never would have had the grades to GO to college. None of the other families who let him crash on their couch once in a while would EVER do that for him.
Yeah. So you make a good point. He sells his business for 200MM but is so naive to believe they can’t adopt the young man? But then hires Marty singer. That’s bull….
He is lying. But he has lots of money to pay lawyers and get good defense.
He’s 💯 lying. They did all of this on purpose
Marty Singer is one of the most powerful CRIMINAL lawyers in Hollywood. He wheels power in this town and is a master at spinning the narrative “he threatened/blackmailed” no doubt, his influence. It’s not a threat to negotiate what you feel you’re owed when according to SJ in a podcast, Michael has been asking them since 2016 so the family knew he was going file but we didn’t know when. The fact the Tuophys hired a CRIMINAL lawyer to be on their team of lawyers says it all. Michael filed a petition to end conservatorship in probate court and they hire a criminal lawyer?
I'd say he was naive to believe Aunt Deb the lawyer when she told him conservatorship was the only way. I think she's the shady one.
@@TheSadlerandreayour assuming she told him that…. I highly doubt that she actually did…
It seems to me that the Tuohy's knew whoever was presiding over this case and took advantage of the fact that Michael would have been completely ignorant of his legal rights. If this is the case then I hope Michael sues them into the ground.
Sure! They are well connected in the area plus the attorney-their friend-likely knew which judge would sign off. Hell, the Toueys were probably good friends with the judge too!
It really looks like the Tuohys did everything they could to make sure that Michael Oher had no legal connection to them but that they had total legal control over him. I can’t imagine how this messed with his mind discovering it as an adult in his 30s.
How could it be possible that he didn't know? He wouldn't have been able to do anything without them signing the contract with him...... get a credit card, get a bank account, buy a car, buy a house, get married, get any medical treatment, etc. That's the part I'm not buying. It's not possible that he didn't know for 20 years.
@@concernedamerican8 It looks like they only cared in regard to UMiss and the movie. They didn’t bring it up to him, weren’t doing any court filings or estate keeping so who is going to follow up when he’s doing the steps to live his life? The bank or DMV or credit card company aren’t going to say hey where’s your conservator? And they aren’t checking unless they have a reason to. And the Tuohys aren’t saying anything as he lives his life or they would out themselves.
@teehlfx5238 still not buying it. The government knows and he wouldn't be able to sign a marriage license. Also, where did all of his money from UMiss go? If it was all about money why would they just allow him to put all of his money in a bank account that they aren't attached to? So the claim is that they wanted his money but then just let him keep it all anyway? I've only heard that he complained about the money they made from the movie but not that they took all of his money from UMiss. It just doesn't make sense. Seriously just think about it. They should be in charge of every dime he's ever made and that's not what is being claimed unless I'm missing something. I'm not saying the Tuohy's are innocent by any means but I don't think there is any way he didn't know.
13:08 This, this is what had me so baffled by their statement. "We didn't adopt him, because he was 18." Wtf are you talking about?! I have friends who were 20+ when their step-parent adopted them! This whole situation is so freaking suspect, and leaves _such_ a bad taste in my mouth 🤢
And they told him they adopted him.. and he was part of their family..
It makes me so sad.. and mad for him..
This is directly tied to his college “scholarship “ possibilities.
Bingo, the judge, lawyers and doctors could of been fans of the ‘ol miss.
@@acovert8241 they were alumni. At least Leigh Anne & Sean were.
@@mbgeralds3010Yep, and big time donors.
If the Tuehy's cared so much about Michael, they certainly had enough money to pay for his college education.
Wonder if they would have even been interested in him if he had not been a very talented athlete ?
That's my team when the movie came out the Baltimore Ravens. The filing was a bit of a hard pill to swallow
What's sad is that if the Tuohy's had had their way and the conservatorship had automatically expired when he was 25, Michael wouldn't have known about it.
The dumber part I think is they waited and they could have shut the conservatorship down probably without him knowing as well. I think they wanted to profit off of an nfl star and took advantage of a kid with no parents in his life and no opportunities
He knew about it, he wrote about in his memoir in 2011, in the book he makes it sounds like he knew about it when it all happened in 2004.
@@kaila288 Now Michael wants the conservatorship ended! And the right to know about the finances since the Touhys have neglected to file the annual financial documents as required by the conservatorship.
@@kaila288 I was going to say the same thing. He's quoted talking about the conservatorship in the book.
@@shonastar42 which is more than fine, but I don’t see how it’s necessary to drag anyone’s name in the mud. No matter what that family took him in, considered him their son and brother, adoption or not they all thought each other as family. Also in the movie and the books it is never said he was adopted.
The story isn’t all what Mr Oher would like you to believe. He wrote a memoir of his own. In which he states 3 TIMES he was put into a conservatorship. He KNEW he wasn’t adopted. And if the Tuohy’s were trying to make make $$ off the boy, they wouldn’t have messed with the hundreds of thousands paid by the movie studio, of which they paid Mr Oher’s taxes when he refused his share.(which they probably paid on tuition, tutoring, clothes, etc).They would’ve gone after the TENS OF MILLIONS of his football contracts. But the biggest proof is maybe Collins Tuohy’s wedding, held after Mr Oher’s career had ended by injury. Check the pics out online(no really, it’s UNBELIEVABLE). He’s front & center as a groomsman(not as a trophy, there’s 22 other groomsmen). There’s pics of him & his brother Sean walking their mom Leann down the aisle to her seat. Pics of him with Collins, pics of his son with Collins looking like a ring bearer. You can’t look at these pics & concluded anything other than he’s a much beloved member of the family. Now, Sean Tuohy said Michael started to become distant about a year and a half ago. So what happened then??? He married his longtime girlfriend & baby mama. I’m GUESSING she got a look at the finances & thought he was worth more & asked why he was in a conservatorship. Hence, why Mr Oher tried to extort 15 million from his family. Which is more than any of his NFL contracts EVER paid out.
This is my kind of "I told you so" moment. I remember when this movie came out, I was immediately put off by it and refused to watch it. At first I thought it was a typical white savior complex movie until I realized it was "based on a true story" and my heart broke. You know, when people actually care about a child's well being, they don't sell the rights to their story. The people who actually care aren't doing it for applause or an audience.
I've always believed that there is an easy way to tell if someone is not a good person: They insist on telling you about all the good things they've done.
People who genuinely care are out there actually doing things, not just telling stories.
@sarah 1862 I get what you’re saying and you make some good points.
I admit I may be a bit biased here, because I used to teach at the school where the story was set, but when I saw the movie, much of what impacted me was not about the Tuohys- it was about Michael - his strength, kindness, diligence, resilience, intelligence, and even heroism.
He was the one who showed the Tuohys how Thanksgiving dinner should be observed - intentionally and with meaning.
He prevented 10 year old SJ from being terribly harmed in a car accident, by stopping the airbags with his right arm, which was then injured.
He survived an extremely difficult upbringing, and was excelling in football even before this family came into the picture.
He made his way to an academically challenging school, and was able to become successful.
So for me, the movie was partially about the Tuohys, but even more about the mental toughness, determination, strength, and amazing success of Michael Oher.
I just hope the good things and parts about this story will not be lost because of what is coming out now.
And I hope we can get over the white savior complex issue. Does it really matter make what skin color any of them have? All are just human beings, trying to get through life as best they can, doing what they can to help each other, even if some of it may have been done in the wrong way or maybe not even for the right reasons.
Time will tell, as more of the story comes out.
But in the meantime, can we begin to look past color and see each other as fellow humans? Our world needs this more than ever before.
@@Lindapmay Yes, it does matter what color of skin they have when we depict stories of black being being "rescued" by benevolent white folks who are also given total reign over that individual's life because the system seems to agree that a black person should be grateful such a family even took interest in them. Yes, it does matter when it is used to excuse abuse.
@@sarahb1862 thank you for responding. I do understand what you’re saying, nd maybe this is one of those cases. I’m reserving judgment until all the facts are in.
But what I took from the movie is that Michael helped the Tuohy family as much as they helped him, and that they were grateful to have him in their lives.
That may not be the true story, I’m just referring to the movie, at the moment.
I am very interested to see what the real story is, as the truth unfolds.
Being raised in the south, by a young widowed mom who had to work to support us, our relationship with a black family was a perfect picture of this.
The wife was my childcare provider and our housekeeper from the time I was a baby until I was grown, and her husband and sons take care of our yard.
So the salaries they were paid (including Social Security even before it was the law that it be paid) helped their family, and they were a huge help and blessing to us as well.
They were part of our family and vice versa.
There was no white savior complex in any sense. It was a beautiful partnership and our skin color did not matter to any of us involved.
I just don’t see that as being the primary issue here either. For me, the issue is whether or not Michael was treated fairly or unknowingly being taken advantage of.
As the truth comes out, we will all be able to see for ourselves what the real story is.
I’m sure you have valid reasons for feeling/thinking the way you do, just as I do. But hopefully, we are able to discuss issues like this as fellow human beings who care about our world and those around us, and who hope to see racial harmony become a reality, as we work together.
I work in all this-Aunt Debbie got 15-20% and a new career from this.
IMAGINE calling people mum and dad for 20 years, only to find out everything you thought you knew was a lie. My heart goes out to Michael. Hopefully he can reconcile this betrayal and find some peace.
This is the worst part to me. The money is a close second. But the emotional betrayal is just insane.
He knew this in 2011. Wrote about it in his book.
Imagine opening your home to someone doing everything you can to help them only for them to turn around and see you when their money runs out. he knew he was never getting adopted by them. He knew it was a conservatorship. He admitted that in 2011 when he wrote a book
Limited outlook. If Michael had no parental guidance in his early years, is taken in by a family that love him in a way he hasn't experienced before, it's entirely possible that he would be naive and trusting of their advice. He states that they presented him with documents and said "this makes you part of our family". There is absolutely no fathomable reason an adult without diminished capacity (learning difficulties, addiction, severe mental health needs etc.) would require a conservatorship. It provides him nothing, them everything. The family may have loved and cared for him, gave him a much needed safe space with structure. It's still absolutely possible that there were abuses of trust. They're all only human. If Michael feels he was misled, he deserves a chance to speak on it now he knows more.
They are very Opportunistic . Wonder what these Foundations actually do
I think the answer is obvious. Adoption for a multi-hundred million dollar couple means inheritance. They wanted to help but didn’t want him to be eligible for any of their legacy.
Could've just helped without the conservatorship. The conservatorship got the book and movie deal without his input/explicit consent. There are no clear financials filed.
Among the many layers of horrible here the thought that an adult can be under a conservator with no knowledge of the arrangement is terrifying. Upon reaching adulthood there should have been discovery/review.
Also, that a person allegedly so vulnerable that they required a conservator was allowed to play professional football - a life threatening sport - is disgusting. The NFL should be held accountable as well.
My son has dyspraxia and is now 20. He struggles with decision making. We assist him and ultimately give him the final decision, it is in his hands. We stand behind him. This is very hard but one day, we will no longer be there so he must be able to answer for himself.
Uhmmm dyspraxia is difficulty with coordinated movements….
My 18 year old son also has dyspraxia. His is global. He struggles in many areas. After years of speech and occupational therapy he is doing really well. He graduated high school in the spring, and has learned how to drive. I was told that driving wouldn't be possible but he learned.
@@madreep my son also drives. Did not graduate high school in regular program but an adapted one. He has a full time job and gouvernement pays part of his salary. Very proud mom. Still struggles sometimes. 💕
@@efolinsky exactly. Can affect speech, planing skills etc. He also has ADHD.
@rondadoliveira1305 that's great to hear! My son hasn't found a job yet but he's looking. There's alot of warehouse jobs near where we live in Phoenix. I'm thinking something like that would be a good fit for him due to the repetition of the work but ultimately it's his choice. I'm hoping that he finds something soon. He tends to just stay in his room if he has nowhere to go
In Michaels first book, I Beat the Odds, from 2011, Michael says he is in a Conservatorship. He also says he chose a different agent then the Tuohys wanted him to choose. That leaves me with questions because he wasn’t completely blindsided (sorry) and it doesn’t sound like he was hamstrung in making decisions. In the JD allegations, folks were quick to jump on the bandwagon and accuse him. A Conservatorship definitely sounds awful! But I want to wait until we have more information before I condemn the Tuohys.
Thank you.
@@breannacarlisle5441 guilty or innocent, I am not at all surprised that both sides have attorneys. The Tuohys owned a restaurant chain that they sold for $200 Million. Michael made $36 Million in his football career. Both sides would want to protect what they have and then hope for reconciliation.
Agreed!!!!!!
@@breannacarlisle5441 He knew he was since 2011. It's documented in his own words. Multimillionaire always have lawyers.
This is the quote from the book where he mentions the conservatorship.
Since I was already over the age of eighteen and considered an adult by the state of Tennessee, Sean and Leigh Anne would be named as my ‘legal conservators.’ They explained to me it means pretty much the exact same thing as ‘adoptive parents,’ but that the laws were just written in a way that took my age into account,”
Micheal Ohr knew he was not adopted he states so in a his book. I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness, to The Blind Side, and Beyond that he wrote when he was 25 years old. All these years have gone by and now he brings this up Oh publicity for his new book he just released When Your Back's Against the Wall: Fame, Football, and Lessons Learned Through a Lifetime of Adversity. The Tuohys in my opinion did the conservatorship instead of the adoption because it was quicker. They got him his car, car insurance, medical insurance, put a roof over his head got him a tutor and got him into college all with their own money. They did not enforce any of the provisions in the conservatorship after that time. Michael Ohr entered many contracts after this time with out the Tuohys interference including his NFL contract, Buying, homes, cars etc. They put Micheals money from Blind side into a trust fund. They very wealthy and just recently sold off a lot if not all of there restaurant's for like 200 million dollars. Michael wrote a book and now is drumming up interest in his story and potential sales by doing this NOW!