Atty: Peter Kantorowski Won't Evict 98-Year-Old Mother Mary From Fairfield Home

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP/CBSNewYork) - It's a happy ending to a story many in the Tri-State Area cannot stop talking about.

WCBS 880 Connecticut Bureau Chief Fran Schneidau On The Story

Peter Kantorowski has withdrawn a lawsuit trying to evict his elderly mother and will allow her to remain in her Fairfield, Conn. home.

Kantorowski, 71, is the estranged son of 98-year-old Mary Kantorowski and has been trying to have his mother evicted from the house he grew up in. Kantorowski has also been on the receiving end of many hate messages.

Attorney Nick D'Agosto tells The Associated Press that Kantorowski ended the lawsuit a day before the case was going to trial in Bridgeport Superior Court.

D'Agosto said Thursday that his client has been vilified but in fact cares deeply about his mother. He said Kantorowski wanted his mother to live with him because he was concerned about her living conditions, but she didn't want to leave her home.

Mary Kantorowski's attorney, Richard Bortolot Jr., said she can take of herself. She said she still does some of her own cooking and is seen regularly in her home by doctors and nurses.

Last month, CBS 2's Lou Young spoke exclusively with Kantorowski about his mother and the attempted eviction. "I'm the bad guy," Kantorowski joked as he spoke with Young.

"I've done everything possible that I could do for her and I'm portrayed like I started this process and I'm trying to help her,"  Kantorowski said. "I love my mother."

The eviction attempt was really a battle between the two brothers Jack and Peter, Young reported. Peter was given the home when his dad died 15 years ago with the condition his mother live in as long as she wants. She's allowing Jack to live there as well. The brothers don't talk.

"He did his own thing with drinking and it got escalated all these years — it got worse and worse and worse and it's out of control," Peter Kantorowski said. "He's taking advantage of her."

Mary's expense included more liquor store and cigar purchases than you would expect from a 98-year-old woman, which is why a judge appointed a conservator to handle her bills last summer. Now part of the family wants to cut Jack out of the picture entirely, including Jack's own son.

John Kantorowski, Jack's son, said the intention of the eviction notice was "To get Jack Kantorowski out of the house, not my grandmother." He explained that he was fine with the scenario provided his grandmother was taken care of.

Because of the dispute, Mary Kantorowski's financial affairs have been in the hands of a court-appointed conservator since July.

Both brothers insist they want only what's best for her, Young reported.

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