While One Fawcett Fights, Another Fossett is Turned Off

Self-made business tycoon Steve Fossett, whose thirst for adrenaline drove him to fly around the world solo in a balloon, climb mountains and aim for speed records, has been declared dead, 5 months after his small plane vanished. He was 63.

"Steve's lived his life to the full, and he hasn't wasted a minute of his life," his rival-turned-comrade, British billionaire Sir Richard Branson, said after Fossett's single-engine plane disappeared on Sept. 3. "Everything he's done, he's taken a calculated risk with."

Fossett was last seen after taking off in a single-engine plane from an airstrip near Yerington, Nev., heading toward Bishop, Calif. Cook County Judge Jeffrey Malak's declaration Friday at the request of Fossett's wife, Peggy V. Fossett, ended the legal limbo of his estate, said her attorney, Michael LoVallo. The judge heard testimony from Peggy Fossett, a family friend and a search-and-rescue expert before deciding there was sufficient evidence to declare him dead.

Fossett's death is the latest in a series of deaths in absentia that includes the likes of Jimmy Hoffa, Amelia Earhart and D.B. Cooper. Fossett's family first requested the pronouncement late last year, releasing them from the uncertainty of his return.

[AP]

Steve Fossett May Become Victim of the Seven Year Itch

We brought you news earlier this week about Steve Fossett, explorer not-so-extraordinaire, who disappeared while flying his plane in September. Now, I am no explorer. I don't even play one on TV like Bear Grylls. But I think I could guess some of the rules to "How to explore stuff 101." For example, I would put the following somewhere on my list:

1. Bring a Parachute
2. Have something (let's say a transponder) to send out a distress signal
   

Fossett brought neither. And now his wife wants him to be declared legally dead. But what are the rules on that? When can a death announcement be made? Like craps, it's a 7 that changes everything:

"Seven years is simply the line in Illinois after which the basic presumption changes," said Floyd Perkins, a former Illinois assistant attorney general... "Before seven years, anyone who wants you declared legally dead has to offer evidence that you're not alive. But after you've been missing seven years, anyone who wants you declared alive has to offer evidence that you're not dead."

So what are Mrs. Fossett's chances here? In reality it comes down to one basic issue:

If the preponderance of evidence points toward death, then the missing person is declared dead. If it points toward life, the legal waiting game continues, sometimes well beyond seven years.

So Mrs. Fossett might not be up a creek without a parachute after all...

[Chicago Tribune]

Mostly Dead or All Dead? Sadly, Miracle Max Was Unavailable for Comment

Whether you're Jewish or not, being an Agunah really sucks. Peggy Fossett is kind of sick of it, and is trying to take action:

The wife of millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett, who disappeared while flying his plane in September in rugged Western terrain, asked a court Monday to declare him legally dead. The request was a step toward resolving the legal status of Fossett's estate, which according to court papers is "vast, surpassing eight figures in liquid assets, various entities and real estate," LoVallo said.

Fossett, 63, disappeared Sept. 3 after taking off in a single-engine plane from an airstrip near Yerington, Nev., heading toward Bishop, Calif. Fossett was on a pleasure flight and not looking for a dry lake to use as a surface on which to set the world land speed record, as was initially reported, according to the petition filed on behalf of Peggy V. Fossett. He did not have a parachute, nor did he take a watch that had a transponder and could have sent out a distress signal, the petition said. There was a transponder aboard but no signal was received. With winter closing in, a rescue effort that involved dozens of planes and helicopters was officially suspended after more than a month of searching. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded in a preliminary report that the plane was destroyed in a fatal accident.

If she still has trouble getting the pronouncement, I recommend calling Meinhardt Raabe.

[Houston Chronicle]