Brighthouse Asks Court for Help With Annuity Tied to Murder Case
Prosecutors have charged the beneficiary with providing the gun the owner used to kill herself.
A life insurer owned by Brighthouse Financial wants a court to take charge of deciding what to do with an individual variable annuity that was owned by a 72-year-old Oklahoma woman who died as the result of a gunshot wound Sept. 10, 2023.
The woman, Lynda Watts, named a daughter, Jaye Dee Watts, as the beneficiary when she applied for the annuity, in February 2022.
Prosecutors have charged Jaye Dee Watts with aiding her mother’s suicide by giving her mother a weapon and murder in the first degree in commission of a crime, according to Oklahoma court records.
The annuity issuer, Brighthouse Life Insurance Co., has filed an interpleader complaint against Jaye Dee Watts, the estate of Lynda Watts and Lynda Watts’ other daughter, Lorrie Stephens, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma.
An interpleader is a legal action that one party can use to force other parties to settle a dispute over the ownership of property amongst themselves.
Brighthouse Life says in the complaint that it’s “ready, willing, and able to pay the Death Benefit” associated with the annuity, but that it wants to deposit the death benefit with the court, along with any interest it might owe, and have the court determine the recipient of the benefits.
“Brighthouse brings this Complaint in Interpleader of its own free will and to avoid being vexed and harassed by conflicting and multiple claims,” the company says in the complaint.
Brighthouse declined to comment on pending litigation.
Attorneys for Jaye Dee Watts, Lorrie Stephens and Lynda Watts’ estate have not appeared. Jaye Dee Watts and Lorrie Stephens could not be reached for comment.
Brighthouse Life: Brighthouse Life is part of Brighthouse Financial.
Brighthouse Financial is the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company that was formed when MetLife decided to put its individual life and annuity operations in a separate company.
The annuity: An exhibit filed with the complaint shows that Lynda Watts transferred $400,000 from another life or annuity contract into a Brighthouse Variable Annuity Series VA contract with a FlexChoice Access Expedite rider.
The annuity was held inside an individual retirement account.
The contract had a maturity date of Oct. 1, 2040 and a seven-year surrender-charge period. The mortality and expense charge was 1.05%. The administration charge was 0.25%. The rider fee rate was 1.35%.
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