If a person without a will dies and is married doesn't everything go to the spouse assuming someone doesn't try to say they deserve money from the person who died?
In our most recent cases, the ex wives were the designated recipients on the paperwork, and the deceased had new long term cohabitation partners.
We used to be able to use the phrase " by law " instead of naming a person and then it would automatically go to your current spouse if alive and to your surviving children if divorced or spouse had pre-deceased. It made things a little better in that it automatically updated to the most current wife. As police, we tend to do the revolving spouse game
The Federal money for LOD deaths follows this pattern, I highlighted in red part of the text.
(
1) if there is no surviving child of such officer, to the surviving spouse of such officer;
(2) if there is a surviving child or children and a surviving spouse, one-half to the surviving child or children of such officer in equal shares and one-half to the surviving spouse;
(3) if there is no surviving spouse, to the child or children of such officer in equal shares;
(4) if there is no surviving spouse or surviving child, to the individual designated by such officer as beneficiary under such officer’s most recently executed life insurance policy, provided that such individual survived such officer; or**
(5) if none of the above, to the parent or parents of such officer in equal shares.
** Beneficiaries to receive the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits death payment for line-of-duty death were changed by the “Mychal Judge Police and Fire Chaplains Public Safety Officer’s Benefit Act of 2002”, enacted as Public Law No. 107-196 on June 24, 2002. Live-in situations and/or same sex partners will be eligible for the PSOB benefit if the most-recent life insurance policy lists them as beneficiary. Live-ins and same sex partners who are listed as beneficiary on the most-recent life insurance policy will receive the benefit before surviving parents of the officer. If the officer is divorced, has not remarried and has no eligible children, the former spouse could receive the benefit if she is still listed as a beneficiary on paperwork the officer failed to revise. If the officer is divorced, has not remarried but has had a live-in partner for 7 years, the former spouse could receive the benefit if she is still listed as a beneficiary on the most-recent life insurance policy. IT CANNOT BE STRESSED ENOUGH HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO KEEP YOUR LIFE INSURANCE BENEFICIARY INFORMATION UP-TO-DATE Public safety officers cannot name their own beneficiaries under the Act. Under the Act, "child" means any natural, illegitimate, adopted, or posthumous child or stepchild of a deceased public safety officer who is: 18 years of age or younger. 19 through 22 years of age, who has not completed four years of education beyond high school, and who is pursuing a full time course of study or training. 19 years of age or over and incapable of self support because of a physical or mental disability.
My short term goal is going to be to try and institute a mandatory yearly review by the deputies, and to work on some info Wink provided to help push the guys towards having a will.
