Britney Spears’ brother-in-law defends family over conservatorship fight

Singer Britney Spears shocked the world with her June 23 testimony at the trial over the conservatorship she has been under for 13 years.

Speaking for more than 20 minutes in her first public statement about the court-ordered guardianship, the singer pleaded with the judge and opened up about how she has been traumatised by the arrangement.

However, her brother-in-law has said the family is not out to get her.

“I can assure you her family loves her and wants the best for her,” Jamie Watson told the The New York Post. “I wouldn’t be around people who weren’t. Who wouldn’t want to be in support of Britney?”

Watson is the husband of Britney’s younger sister Jamie Lynn Spears.

During the hearing in Los Angeles, Britney’s father Jamie (yes, they’re all named Jamie) said he was “sorry to see his daughter suffering and in so much pain. Mr Spears loves his daughter and misses her very much.”

The conservatorship — a measure typically reserved for people who cannot take care of themselves, such as the elderly, infirm and mentally disabled — places the 39-year-old singer and her estimated $60-million (Dh220.3 million) estate under the control of Jamie Spears and the Bessemer Trust Co.

“I truly believe this conservatorship is abusive,” Britney said during her hearing. “My dad and anyone involved in this conservatorship and my management who played a key role in punishing — ma’am, they should be in jail.”

Apart from not being in control of her finances and work, Britney said she was not allowed to remove her IUD method of birth control. “This so-called team won’t let me go to the doctor to take it out because they don’t want me to have children,” she said.