Woman ordered to stay away from grave

PONTIAC, Mich., Feb. 14 (UPI) -- A judge has ordered a Michigan woman to stay away from the grave of the late figure skating star Christopher Bowman, who died from a drug overdose in 2008.

The judge also said April Freeman, 47, cannot invoke Bowman's name or likeness for marketing purposes, The Detroit News reported Monday.

The order is the result of a lawsuit filed in by Bowman's mother, Joyce Bowman, who lives in Van Nuys, Calif., and his former wife, Annette Bowman Jasinkiewicz, and the couple's teenage daughter, both of Dearborn, Mich. Jasinkiewicz divorced Bowman in 2004 after 10 years of marriage.

The suit alleges that Freeman is trying to capitalize on her purported relationship with the late skater. The Oakland Circuit Court ruling prohibits Freeman from using Bowman's "name, marks, likeness, photographs, signatures, handwritten memoirs and any or all writings authored by Bowman."

Freeman claims Bowman lived with her and her husband the last six years of his life. She was reportedly trying to market a "tell-all" autobiography Bowman was working on at the time of his death.

Judge James Alexander also barred Freeman from visiting Bowman's grave site. Bowman's family had him buried in an unmarked grave when Freeman allegedly tried to claim his body.