Lawyer: Coleman was divorced when he died

SALT LAKE CITY, June 3 (UPI) -- Gary Coleman's lawyer says the actor was divorced from Shannon Price when he died after a brain hemorrhage last week.

Price authorized doctors to take Coleman, 42, off life support and she is making arrangements for his funeral even though she has been legally divorced from the actor since August 2008, Coleman's attorney, Randy Kester, told UsMagazine.com. The couple married in 2007.

"Their relationship has been on-again, off-again," Kester told the Web site. "I know that there were periods of time where she resided in the home with Gary, and there were periods of time where she didn't."

The couple's marital status at the time of Coleman's death has sparked speculation that Price may not have had the right to have the former "Diff'rent Strokes" star taken off life support.

However, the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, the facility where Coleman died, issued a statement to TMZ explaining Coleman granted his ex-wife permission to make medical choices for him.

The statement said Coleman had signed an "Advanced Health Care Directive that granted Shannon Price permission to make medical decisions on his behalf if he was unable to do so."

Hospital officials told TMZ the document remains in effect regardless of marital status unless the patient changes it.