One way to verify this claim would be for someone to get FLEK's entire name change request file. I've been very curious what she put as her reason for the name change and how she established her Dallas residency. Does anyone here know how to request the name change documents?
I couldn't stop thinking about this. What would looking at her name request file reveal? So I did a little Googling...
From
https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/sites/default/files/tickets/hcc0026/Name Change FINAL.pdf (Note: the following is the current
process. Undoubtedly the process in 1988 was slightly different, but that would require doing more research on when & how the laws changed.
The process involves filling out two forms: an "Original Petition for Change of Name of an Adult", & an "Order Granting Change of Name of an Adult". What we have is the second. What the first form would contain is the petitioner's current name, address, gender, race, date & place of birth,Texas drivers license number (if the petitioner has one), the last 4 digits of her Social Security number (which even in the 1980s a person might not have), a statement that the petitioner has not committed any serious crimes or is a sex offender (the last was an offense that was not on the public's radar in the 1980s, so I suspect it was asked), & the reason for the requested change.
As much as some think there might be something in the answer to that last question, the instructions downplay the importance of that answer. "This doesnt have to be lengthy. You can simply write: 'I never liked my name,' or 'I want to take my stepfathers last name as my own,' or whatever explanation suits your situation."
However, I think the information on this form might still provide some useful information. One would be a possible address for her in July 1988 -- if it's not the maildrop at 6102 Mockingbird. (And if it is, that raises the question: was one of the first things LEK did when she appeared in Dallas to open a mailbox at this address? If so, out of all of the possible maildrops in Dallas, why did she pick this one?) Another would be that we'd have another sample of her handwriting -- something that some of us have wished for in order to pry some more information from the notes page.
But as for her reason for the name change, I suspect we'll find she wrote something like "I never liked my name". It's simple, & doesn't force her to come up with any detailed explanation. Then again, someone who forged an unneeded letter of reference might have felt compelled to invent a story; if so, the story might contain a grain of truth.
I'd still make investigating her bankruptcy case a priority over this case, though.
