Dexter Scott King, the youngest son of Martin Luther King Jr., died Monday in Malibu following a battle with prostate cancer. He was 62.
“He transitioned peacefully in his sleep at home with me in Malibu,” his wife, Leah Weber King, said in a statement released by the King Center in Atlanta. “He gave it everything and battled this terrible disease until the end. As with all the challenges in his life, he faced this hurdle with bravery and might.”
Dexter Scott King, who was seven years old when his father was assassinated in 1968, was the chairman of the King Center and president of the King Estate. His mother, Coretta Scott King, died in 2006. His older sister Yolanda died in 2007.
“Words cannot express the heartbreak I feel from losing another sibling. I’m praying for strength to get through this very difficult time,” his sister, the Rev. Bernice A. King, CEO of the King Center, said in a statement.
According to the King Center, Dexter Scott King “devoted his life to the continued perpetuation of his father’s legacy and the protection of the intellectual property his father left behind.”
An attorney, Dexter King’s work to become well-versed in intellectual property law “was the result of his dedication to the delegated task and the memory of both his father and mother.”
Dexter King was born in Atlanta and was named after Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, where his father served as a pastor.
He is survived by his wife, his sister Bernice King, his brother Martin Luther King III, and his niece, Yolanda Renee King.
