Don Cornelius was taken to a nearby hospital of his Califonia home where he was pronounced dead at the age of 75 years old around 4:00 am on February 1, 2012 after a long battle with his Russian wife, arrests and health issues that may have had him depressed.

Music legend, Don Cornelius was quoted shortly before the finalization of his divorce from his second wife, former Miss Ukraine, Viktoria Chapman that he just wants to be divorced from her before he dies. The court ordered Mr. Cornelius to sign over rights to her of two insurance policies equalling around $300,000.00 as part of the divorce settlement.  She is eligible to the policy because he had taken it out more than two years ago; California law does not pay out insurance to a beneficiary if a policyholder commits suicide within two years of its purchase.

Don and Viktoria had a troubled marriage since they wed in 2001. By 2007, his second wife filed for divorce and had filed two restraining orders again him.  This has been reported in the Daily Mall, a newspaper out of California.  One year after she filed for divorce, Mr. Cornelius was arrested at his Mulholland Drive home on alleged domestic violence.  It would be when his life began to change for the downfall.  A report claimed in the incident, his wife had pepper sprayed him several times before the police arrived. He pleaded not guilty to the changes, but the following year pleaded to contest and was put on a 36 month probation, as well as, ordered to complete a 52 week domestic battery violence treatment and 300 hours of community service.  Finally, Don Cornelius was ordered to stay 100 yards away from where the incident took place. His three year probabtion period just ended before the "Soul Train" creator took his own life with a apparent self inflicted gunshot wound.

The couple legally divorced in 2009.  He has been on record expressing that his troubled marriage had put enormous stress on him emotionally and help in hid declining health.  Mr. Cornelius had recently suffered a stroke and in recent years even had brain surgery as reported by TMZ by sources.

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