The fierce arm-wrestling between Palm Beach County moneybags Paul D. Pope and his mother Lois looks like it's cooled down -- at least for the time being.
Since March, mother and son have been squabbling over what's left of the family fortune built off the proceeds of the National Enquirer, the supermarket check-out aisle staple which sold for $412 million in 1989. The fight got so dirty in May, the younger Pope was arrested on charges of stalking.
Now, it appears both Popes have reached a deal to avoid the courtroom.
According to Gossip Extra, the criminal charges filed against Paul Pope in May were recently dropped. In addition, he dropped a civil lawsuit filed this spring against his mother.
The latter complaint is what started the most recent chapter of the family drama.
Pope initially alleged that Lois Pope had taken out kidnapping insurance on her son's children as a backhanded threat against his inquiries into her philanthropic spending.
Following the suit, Paul Pope began sending out packages of material to media outlets -- New Times included -- with allegations that not only had his mother mismanaged the family wealth, but that there were unlisted assets still floating around from the original Enquirer sale. Lois fired back by saying in court filings that her son had simply blown through his money and was looking for a payday.
At the time, Paul Pope told New Times he hoped to finally get to the bottom of the matter.
"There's been a constant sort of battling on and off for 25 years," he said at the time.
Not long after New Times published a story on the family drama, Paul Pope was arrested on a stalking charge. He had been accused of badgering his then-79-year-old mother and, after failing to surrender in Palm Beach, was caught by authorities in Cocoa Beach. It was -- of all days -- Mother's Day weekend.
Since the arrest, the son hasn't talked to reporters. Last night, we spoke briefly with the embattled heir, and he said he'd reach out today with an update about where things sit with his legal case. We'll update today with more information.
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