Family of Benghazi victim seeks death benefits

Oct. 23--When CIA contractor Glen Doherty was killed in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012, he had the required insurance policy that would pay death benefits if he died in the line of duty.

What he didn't have was a wife and children.

Thanks to wording in a 1941 statute, the Encinitas man's family wasn't able to collect a payout, unlike those who fell around him.

Now the CIA and Congress are close to changing that.

The Senate Intelligence Committee is poised to endorse a CIA plan that would provide an up to $400,000 lump-sum payout to families of contractors killed while working in danger zones -- regardless if they have dependents.

The policy change would retroactively affect several dozen of CIA contractors going back to the 1983 Beirut Marine Corps barracks bombing, according to someone familiar with the plan.

Doherty, a 42-year-old former Navy SEAL, left behind a mother, sister and brother who have formed a memorial foundation in his name. The executor of his estate is his best friend and roommate.

Reached Thursday, Doherty's mother, Barbara, said, "Our hope is that everything is going to be resolved."

The plan has been percolating in the CIA for more than a year, said Amy Carnevale, an attorney working with the Doherty family.

It mirrors a State Department policy, she said.

Changing the policy requires the approval of the House and Senate intelligence committees and defense authorization subcommittees. All but the Senate intelligence committee had signed off as of this week, Carnevale said.

That permission appears to be on the way.

"The Senate Intelligence Committee has been working with the agency to identify the legal and regulatory authorities that support the (CIA) director's decision, and believe recent updates provided by the agency set it on the path to deliver benefits to the families of those who have made the greatest sacrifice for our country," said a spokeswoman for Sen. Richard Burr, the North Carolina Republican who chairs the committee.

"Sen. Burr will continue to fight for these families and is pleased that the government is making a pathway possible," Burr spokeswoman Becca Glover Watkins said late Thursday.

Glen Doherty paid $7,000 in premiums over the course of two to three years for the insurance plan, according to Carnevale. The policy is designed to deliver workers compensation checks in the event of an on-the-job injury, or a death benefit.

But the plan, which is mandated for workers under the 1941 Defense Base Act, only provides death benefits to spouses and children.

A spouse with at least two children is eligible for two-thirds of the deceased's salary, up to $1,030 a week for life, according to a description of the current program.

Doherty's family did receive a $3,000 payout to cover funeral expenses, Carnevale said.

The family sued insurance broker Rutherford Financial for selling Doherty a policy that was largely worthless upon his death.

The suit, filed in San Diego last September, was settled for an undisclosed amount, said Michael Mortenson, an attorney with law firm K&L Gates. The firm, which includes Carnevale, is representing the Dohertys pro bono, the family said.

The lawsuit provides a little window into the life of a CIA security contractor. In 2011, when Doherty initiated the policy, he was headed to Afghanistan. In 2012, he was in Tripoli for a 54-day mission.

The $400,000 paid out for Doherty and others like him would come from public money, according to people familiar with the situation.

The new CIA policy would extend into the future as well. The money would be tax free to the recipients.

If someone has a separate life insurance policy, any payout from it would offset the $400,000, Carnevale said. Doherty did not, she said.

The Doherty family is poised to sue the CIA and the State department if the death benefit policy isn't changed. The family has already filed claims with the two federal agencies, which is a precursor to a lawsuit.

If the policy is reformed, there would be no reason for the lawsuits, Mortenson said.

Doherty was one of four Americans killed in an attack that started on Sept. 11, 2012.

Islamic militants attacked the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, killing U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and State Department officer Sean Smith, who grew up in San Diego.

Doherty and another San Diego County resident and former Navy SEAL, Tyrone Woods, were working as CIA security contractors in Libya.

When militants moved the attack to a nearby CIA annex, Doherty and Woods were killed while fighting to protect the site. Others were injured.

The incident has turned into a continuing political firestorm, with Republicans attacking then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for not providing enough security for a diplomatic compound in a contentious area.

On Thursday, Clinton -- now a Democratic candidate for president -- testified for 11 hours before a Benghazi committee.

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