They were later informed that a court had approved the petition and appointed a company called Advocate Services as Dorris's guardian, granting it control of her estate. Soon after Rio returned home, he learned that a lawyer he and Dorris had consulted about that process had "filed an emergency petition claiming my mother was incapacitated, and that I was the one who was claiming she was incapacitated," Rio said. He decided he would hire a company to clean out her house on her behalf, and perhaps find some home caregiving help - so Rio and Dorris began proceedings to give Rio power of attorney. In July 2019, when Rio lived in New York, he visited his mother for his birthday and noted that the house she had lived in for a half-century had fallen into disarray. The Hamiltons' guardianship battle was the subject of a February investigation by Searchlight New Mexico and a speech by Rio at a #FreeBritney rally in September. She was the first Black principal in the district, and according to a representative for the district, when it came time to rename another nearby middle school last year, "Dorris Hamilton" was a popular suggestion. They divorced, but she stayed, eventually serving as the principal of a middle school for more than 20 years.
She married a mathematician, and when he took a job building missiles, she moved with him to New Mexico and took a teaching job. before he was famous, when he came to speak nearby. (The difference between the two varies by state.) But Rio and Dorris's story is one of many allegations of the guardianship industry overstepping beyond what a family feels is necessary.ĭorris Hamilton was one of the first Black women to attend the University of Arkansas. Now that Rio and others like him are newly organized and inspired, the aftershocks of #FreeBritney could continue to rattle the American legal system long after Spears's victory.Ĭonservatorships and guardianships are typically intended to protect vulnerable individuals. But a formidable contingent say they have experienced guardianship or conservatorship abuse in their own lives. It would be easy, given its brief but memorable bursts into the spotlight over the last few years, to mistake the #FreeBritney movement for simply a collection of vocal, die-hard Spears fans who supported her as she fought for her freedom in court. " 'You need me here, I'm here for you.' " He wanted to show support for others fighting conservatorship abuse: "I wanted to show them I was completely, you know, on their side," he said. But he didn't come all this way just for her. Rio, 58, has seen Spears in concert three times. The celebration would be just the briefest of respites from his own guardianship ordeal back in Las Cruces, N.M., where his mother, 93-year-old Dorris Hamilton, has spent more than two years under a guardianship he said they hadn't asked for. Rio's flight out would leave first thing the next morning. A judge inside had finally ended the 13-year conservatorship that had controlled Spears's finances, movements and other aspects of her life. FEELS LIKE NO ONE ELSE IN THE ROOM BUT YOU WE CAN GET DOWN LIKE THERE'S NO ONE AROUND WE KEEP ON ROCKIN' WE KEEP ON ROCKIN' CAMERAS ARE FLASHIN' WHILE WE'RE DIRTY DANCIN' THEY KEEP WATCHIN' KEEP WATCHIN' FEELS LIKE THE CROWD WAS SAYIN' GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE GIMME MORE GIMME, GIMME MORE THE CENTRE OF ATTENTION.He had flown in just that day, arriving at the rally outside Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles just seconds before the good-news confetti cannons burst. JUST WANNA GO THAT EXTRA MILE FOR YOU YOU GOT MY DISPLAY OF AFFECTION. This karaoke version has been produced by Zoom Karaoke and the recording rights are owned and controlled by Zoom Entertainments Limited - Song lyrics: IT'S BRITNEY, B# I SEE YOU AND I JUST WANNA DANCE WITH YOU (Laugh) EVERYTIME THEY TURN THE LIGHTS DOWN.