Richardson v. City of New Orleans

890 So. 2d 661, 2003 La.App. 4 Cir. 2211, 2004 La. App. LEXIS 3215, 2004 WL 3029924
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 1, 2004
DocketNo. 2003-CA-2211
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 890 So. 2d 661 (Richardson v. City of New Orleans) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Richardson v. City of New Orleans, 890 So. 2d 661, 2003 La.App. 4 Cir. 2211, 2004 La. App. LEXIS 3215, 2004 WL 3029924 (La. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

JjMICHAEL E. KIRBY, Judge.

The City of New Orleans appeals a Judgment of the Workers’ Compensation Court that found claimant, John Richardson, to have sustained a compensable heart-related injury under La. R.S. 23:1021(7)(e) while employed by the City. The judgment awarded medical expenses in addition to the emergency room treatment for Mr. Richardson immediately subsequent to the accident..

STATEMENT OF THE FACTS

On or about January 10, 1972, the New Orleans Police Department (hereinafter “NOPD”) hired the claimant/appellee, John A. Richardson. After years in the employ of the NOPD, claimant was reassigned to Central Lockup as a Corrections Officer I. This position involved booking and processing prisoners.

When the Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff assumed responsibility of Central Lockup, the NOPD offered claimant a transfer into communications. Subsequent to his placement in communications, the NOPD transferred claimant several more times. Around 1987, the NOPD transferred claimant to Fleet Management, which I ¡¿was a mechanic’s position. After six months within that division, claimant was assigned the title of “brake inspector.”

Even though claimant was assigned to Fleet Management, he continued to be classified as Correctional Officer I. This continued classification was not practical, however, as the Correctional Officers were in limbo following the change in control of the Central Lockup from the NOPD to the Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff. Those officers who retained the classification of [663]*663Correctional Officers did not receive raises and were in jeopardy of layoffs.

While assigned to Fleet Management, claimant performed a variety of tasks. Claimant testified his duties consisted of more than brake inspections, and would often involve vehicle inspections. These vehicle inspections included tire inspections, front-end inspections, steering inspections, headlights essentially every part of a vehicle that could contribute to an accident.

His duties as brake inspector included inspecting the vehicle’s brakes whereever the vehicle was located, often at the scene of an accident amidst heavy traffic.

Claimant worked an eight-hour shift, but was on call twenty-four hours a day. He testified he would receive frequent calls, two or three times a night, after his regular shift ended. Not only was Richardson the sole brake inspector for the NOPD, but he was also the entire fleet inspector, performing inventory, gassing, bringing vehicles into the fleet, delivering vehicles out of the fleet, participating in | ¡¡narcotics seizures, retrieving license plates and any and all other duties that the department felt should be assigned to his division.

On April 10, 2001, claimant received a call regarding the need for a brake inspection of a school bus on Canal Boulevard. Claimant arrived at the scene and began his routine inspection of the bus, including the outside and inside of the bus, as well as going underneath the bus to inspect the brake lines. This bus was equipped with an air brake system, requiring claimant to physically manipulate the lines and rod to check for leaks. Claimant testified that working on air brakes is more difficult than working on hydraulic brakes because air brakes require one to manually pull out the chambers and brake drives using a tool for leverage. This requires the exertion of force due to the spring system.

While claimant was checking the steering rods, he felt a sharp, severe pain in his chest. He struggled to get to his police car to radio for assistance. Other officers had to complete the call for assistance as claimant’s pain was so severe he could not.

Emergency Medical Services transported claimant to Mercy Hospital, where he was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit. The next day, April 11, 2001, claimant underwent a coronary angiogram, which revealed a complete blockage of all grafts,1 except the left internal mammary to the left anterior descending coronary artery.

| ¿Claimant testified that he was out of work for two weeks after April 10, 2001, and then returned to work at the NOPD as a brake inspector, although he no longer climbed under vehicles, but rather used an NOPD tow truck driver to do such work for him. He also testified that the position of brake inspector was stressful and that he had requested additional assistance on several occasions. At various times claimant was given two or three different people to train to assist him in the performance of these duties. However,4 after several weeks in the position, the trainees would eventually quit, finding the job too stressful.

Claimant continues to work with the ÑOPD. At the date of the accident he had been re-classified from a Correctional Officer I to a Protective Services Officer II. Moreover, it was because of the claimant and similarly situated officers, that new classifications were created, namely Protective Services Officer I-IV, which were broadly defined employment categories open only to those few remaining Correc[664]*664tion Officers still employed by the NOPD. The re-classification of the claimant in no way affected his job duties.

CLAIMANT’S MEDICAL HISTORY

Claimant’s cardiovascular problems began as far back as 1981. He originally treated with Dr. Melville Sternberg in September of 1981 for chest pain of four weeks duration, which Dr. Sternberg described as “classic anginal type pain.” Dr. Charles Pearce performed a triple aortoco-ronary bypass on claimant in October of 1981, after an angiogram revealed a ninety percent (90%) blockage in |fihis distal right coronary artery. Dr. Sternberg diagnosed claimant on discharge with arteriosclerotic coronary artery disease with anginal syndrome.

Dr. Sternberg recorded that claimant smoked two packs of cigarettes per day since age fifteen and drank twenty-five cups of coffee per day until the triple bypass. Claimant had a family history of diabetes and heart disease. On June 25, 1985, claimant had a sudden episode of severe pain that extended from his mid-back to anterior chest. Claimant had two subsequent episodes of chest pain and was admitted by Dr. Sternberg at the Touro Infirmary emergency room with unstable angina and arteriosclerotic heart disease.

In July 1987, claimant was hospitalized for a myocardial infarction. A coronary angiogram revealed a complete blockage of the left diagonal distal branch of his coronary arteries. Claimant was also found to have arteriosclerotic peripheral vascular disease. In November of 1988, claimant was rushed to the Touro emergency room, where he underwent an emergency angio-gram which revealed a complete occlusion of the graft to the obtuse marginal coronary artery. Claimant underwent a balloon angioplasty performed by his cardiologist, Dr. Raja Dhurandhar. There he was also diagnosed with diabetes mellitus, among previously mentioned heart conditions. Dr. Sternberg noted that claimant had continued smoking two packs of cigarettes per day after his July 1987 heart attack and had discontinued his prescription medicines.

On November 2, 1990, claimant was admitted to Touro again with unstable angina pectoris and progressive arteriosclerotic heart disease after experiencing 1 ¿recurrent substernal chest pain that radiated down his left arm since October 29, 1990. On November 5, 1990, claimant underwent coronary angiogram that showed a complete blockage of all grafts and severe four-vessel coronary artery disease. On November 7, 1990, Dr.

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890 So. 2d 661, 2003 La.App. 4 Cir. 2211, 2004 La. App. LEXIS 3215, 2004 WL 3029924, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/richardson-v-city-of-new-orleans-lactapp-2004.