North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Experts Debate Whether Trooper Who Killed a Girl Should Get Award
North Carolina workers’ compensation advocates and analysts are hotly debating an emotionally wrought case out of Illinois – the discussion focuses not just on the legal implications but also on the moral ones.
A Tragic Crash
In 2007, Matt Mitchell, an Illinois trooper, rushed to respond to an injury crash. Officer Mitchell – who allegedly had been texting on his cell phone and/or emailing a fellow officer – soared through an intersection at 126 miles per hour. His car lurched out of control on I-64 near Scott Air Force Base, raced over a median strip and slammed head on into a car driven by 18-year old Jessica Uhl. The blow killed both Jessica and her 13-year old sister Kelli.
Although Mitchell was convicted of reckless homicide – and the Uhl sisters’ parents have launched a $46 million wrongful death suit – the officer nevertheless stands to collect over $140,000 in workers compensation from the state.
According to the Tom Keefe, the Uhl sisters’ parents’ attorney, Mitchell’s workers’ comp claim will likely go through because the state acknowledged that he was “acting in the course of his employment” when he shot through the intersection and killed the girls. Keefe called Mitchell’s attempt to get the money “disgusting… nothing he does surprises me anymore.”
North Carolina workers’ compensation experts and policy wonks have spent some energy debating the broader implications of Mitchell’s impending award. On the one hand, if the homicidal officer manages to get state payments, the result could serve in essence as a delegitimization of workers’ comp as a social institution. After all, if a government program pays out someone who murdered children while talking on a cell phone… does it really deserve funding and support? On the other hand, other North Carolina workers’ compensation experts argue that the case is an anomaly, and that, if you look at the statistics, programs like workers’ comp are vital and generally fair. They provide key resources to injured and ill workers who might suffer grievously without them. And workers’ comp benefits cannot be taken away arbitrarily.
Many workplace illness and injury cases get quite complicated and nuanced. If you need help filing a claim, dealing with an employer who won’t cooperate, or holding a “bad faith” insurance carrier accountable for benefits owed, a results-driven North Carolina workers’ compensation law firm can assist you. Getting good guidance can be crucial to speeding up your benefit payments and avoiding needless and time consuming disputes.
More Web Resources
Ex-trooper seeks benefits
Cop Who Killed 2 Girls Asks for Workers Comp
