SEATTLE (AP) - Authorities said ailing radio host Casey Kasem was on vacation - not in danger - when they found him in Washington state this week.
A Los Angeles judge on Monday expressed concerns about his whereabouts and safety amid a dispute between his wife and children from another marriage.
But the sheriff's office in Kitsap County, west of Seattle, tracked him down the next day. He was at a home where he and his wife, Jean, had been staying with longtime friends, Deputy Scott Wilson said.
"We know he has an affliction, but he was alert, upright, dressed, groomed and cognizant of what was going on," Wilson said. "We see a lot of at-risk adults and children. This wasn't anywhere close to being suspicious."
Kasem, 82, gained fame with his radio music countdown shows, "American Top 40" and "Casey's Top 40," and he was the voice of Shaggy in the cartoon "Scooby Doo."
His children rejoiced after days of uncertainty.
"We are grateful to the local authorities for finding my dad," Kasem's daughter, Kerri Kasem, wrote in a statement. "We are one step closer to bringing him home."
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Daniel S. Murphy on Monday ordered adult protective services and court investigators to try to locate Kasem after an attorney for his wife said he did not know where Kasem was.
Apparently unaware that he had already been located, the children filed a missing person's report on Wednesday.
Danny Deraney, a spokesman for three of Kasem's children, said Thursday the family still had "grave concerns" about his health.
Kerri Kasem's court filings state her father is suffering from a form of dementia called Lewy Body Disease.
Casey Kasem's wife of 34 years, Jean, has been in control of his medical care and controlled access to him, blocking three of Kasem's children from seeing him in recent months, according to court filings.
The judge appointed an independent attorney and doctor to evaluate the radio host, and he scheduled a hearing for June 20 to receive updates on Kasem's well-being.
Earlier coverage, posted at 2:01 a.m.:
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Casey Kasem was located in Washington state three days after a Los Angeles judge expressed concerns about the ailing radio host's whereabouts and safety.
Kasem's condition was not immediately known, although his children rejoiced after days of uncertainty and said in a statement that locating their father was the first step in bringing him back to the Los Angeles area.
Santa Monica police Sgt. Mario Toti said Kasem was located by the Kitsap County Sheriff's Department on Wednesday, hours after Kasem's children filed a missing person's report. Kasem's daughter Kerri, who was appointed his temporary conservator at a court hearing on Monday, had to wait for court filings before she was able to file the report.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Daniel S. Murphy ordered adult protective services and court investigators to try to locate Kasem after an attorney for his wife told the court that the former "Top 40" host was no longer in the United States but he did not know where he was.
Kerri Kasem's attorney Troy Martin said during the hearing that Kasem had been moved to an Indian reservation but was not sure because he had been frequently moved from medical facilities.
"We are grateful to the local authorities for finding my dad," Kerri Kasem wrote in a statement. "We are one step closer to bringing him home."
Casey Kasem, 82, has been in poor health in recent years. Kerri Kasem's court filings state her father is suffering from a form of dementia called Lewy Body Disease that had previously been incorrectly diagnosed as an advanced form of Parkinson's disease.
Until Monday, Casey Kasem's wife of 34 years, Jean, had been in control of his medical care and controlled access to him. She has blocked three of Kasem's children from a previous marriage, including Kerri Kasem, from seeing him in recent months, according to court filings.
Danny Deraney, a spokesman for Kerri Kasem and her siblings, said the family still had "grave concerns" about Casey Kasem's health.
Jean Kasem's attorney Craig Marcus argued Monday that his client had the right to move her husband to any facility she saw fit. Murphy said he had the authority to order an investigation into Casey Kasem's whereabouts and appointed an independent attorney and doctor to evaluate the radio host.
Casey Kasem gained fame with his radio music countdown shows, "American Top 40" and "Casey's Top 40," and was the voice of Shaggy in the cartoon "Scooby Doo."
Murphy scheduled a hearing for June 20 to receive updates on Kasem's health and wellbeing.
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