Spires v. RAYMOND WESTBROOK LOGGING

997 So. 2d 175, 2008 La. App. LEXIS 1352, 2008 WL 4648407
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 22, 2008
Docket43,690-WCA
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 997 So. 2d 175 (Spires v. RAYMOND WESTBROOK LOGGING) 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
Spires v. RAYMOND WESTBROOK LOGGING, 997 So. 2d 175, 2008 La. App. LEXIS 1352, 2008 WL 4648407 (La. Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

997 So.2d 175 (2008)

John SPIRES, Plaintiff-Appellee
v.
RAYMOND WESTBROOK LOGGING, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 43,690-WCA.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

October 22, 2008.

*176 Lunn, Irion, Salley, Carlisle & Gardner, by J. Martin Lattier, Shreveport, for Appellant.

Lee & Broussard, by Francis C. Broussard, West Monroe, for Appellee.

Before STEWART, PEATROSS and LOLLEY, JJ.

STEWART, J.

Defendant-Appellant, Raymond Westbrook Logging ("R.W.L."), is appealing a judgment from the Office of Workers' Compensation, which awarded Claimant-Appellee, John Spires, temporary total disability benefits from the date disability began and continuing until he was released to return to work, reasonable and necessary medical treatment, related and previously incurred medical bills to be paid pursuant to the fee schedule, a penalty of $6,869.71, and an attorney fee of $7,000 for failure of appellant to have paid for emergency *177 care. For the following reasons, we affirm the portion of the judgment denying R.W.L.'s defense of intoxication and holding that claimant is entitled to workers' compensation wage indemnity and medical benefits, as well as the penalty and attorney fees imposed by the court below for R.W.L.'s failure to pay for Spires's emergency care pursuant to La. R.S. 23:1081(13). Additionally, we remand this order for modification of the portion of the judgment regarding the medical expenses, to declare a separate and distinct pronouncement of each award of medical expenses and modify this judgment to order R.W.L. pay the reimbursement for medical expenses directly to Spires, without the benefit of the fee schedule, together with legal interest in accordance with the law. Finally, we award additional attorney fees to Spires in the amount of $2,000.00, for representation in this appeal.

FACTS

On October 26, 2005, John Spires was injured while working as a log cutter for his employer, R.W.L., when he crawled under a tree that had partially fallen and was still attached to the stump. The tree fell on him, crushing his pelvis. Spires was taken to the hospital, where drug tests were conducted. The medical records from Citizens Medical Center/Lab Corp and LSU Health Sciences Center-Shreveport establish that the claimant tested positive for marijuana, amphetamines, and opiates on the date of the accident.

Spires filed a claim for workers' compensation. R.W.L. answered the claim alleging the claimant was intoxicated at the time of the accident and precluded from receiving workers' compensation.

Workers' Compensation Judge Brenza Irving ("W.C.J.") orally ruled in favor of Spires, after finding the drug tests performed did not meet the requirements of La. R.S. 23:1081(9)(e), which provides:

(9) All sample of collection and testing for drugs under this Chapter shall be performed in accordance with rules and regulations adopted by the director which ensure the following:
(e) Sample testing shall conform to scientifically accepted analytical methods and procedures. Testing shall include verification or confirmation of any positive test result by gas chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy, or other comparably reliable analytical method, before the result of any test may be used as a basis for any disqualification pursuant to this Section. Test results which do not exclude the possibility of passive inhalation of marijuana may not be used as a basis for disqualification under this Chapter. However, test results which indicate that the concentration of total urinary cannabinoids as determined by immunoassay equals or exceeds fifty nanograms/ml shall exclude the possibility of passive inhalation.

The W.C.J. mentioned several reasons for her judgment, including: (1) the testimony of Spires's direct employer that Spires appeared completely normal, with no slurred speech, staggering or any other signs of drug intoxication shortly before this accident; (2) the undisputed fact that Spires cut down over 30 large trees that morning before the accident, which the W.C.J. did not believe was an indication that Spires had some impairment; (3) the drug tests did not meet statutory requirements; and (4) this accident was unavoidable.

Spires was awarded temporary total disability benefits from the date disability *178 began and continuing until he was released to return to work, reasonable and necessary medical treatment, related and previously incurred medical bills to be paid pursuant to the fee schedule, a penalty of $6,869.71, and an attorney fee of $7,000 for R.W.L.'s failure to pay Spires's emergency care. On March 3, 2008, the judgment was filed and signed. Soon thereafter, Spires filed a motion for a new trial, which was subsequently denied. R.W.L. now appeals.

LAW AND DISCUSSION

R.W.L.'s Appeal:

R.W.L. argues that the W.C.J. erred in finding that Spires's requested recovery of worker's compensation benefits was not barred by the intoxication/impairment defense asserted by appellant. More specifically, R.W.L. asserts that the toxicology reports satisfy the requirements of La. R.S. 23:1081(9)(e), supra, so as to create a presumption of intoxication.

A W.C.J.'s findings are subject to the same standard of review, manifest error, as the trial court's. Alexander v. Pellerin Marble and Granite, 93-1698 (La. 1/14/94), 630 So.2d 706. Under this standard, the reviewing court does not ask whether the factfinder is right or wrong, but whether its conclusion was reasonable. Stobart v. State through Department of Transp. and Development, 617 So.2d 880 (La.1993).

In order for the plaintiff to receive workers' compensation benefits, he must establish by a preponderance of the evidence, "personal injury by accident arising out of and in the course of his employment." La. R.S. 23:1031(A). In this case, it is undisputed that the plaintiff was injured by an accident during the course of his employment.

However, La. R.S. 23:1081(1)(b) provides a defense to employer liability for workers' compensation benefits where an employee, working under the influence of drugs or alcohol, is injured and the injury can be attributed to the employee's intoxication. Deal v. Bancroft Bag, Inc., 28,188 (La.App. 2 Cir. 4/3/96), 671 So.2d 1264. If there was, at the time of the accident, evidence of either on or off the job use of a nonprescribed controlled substance, it shall be presumed that the employee was intoxicated. La. R.S. 23:1081(5).

To determine if intoxication contributed to a workplace injury, an employer has the right to administer drug and alcohol testing or demand that the employee submit himself to such testing immediately after a job-related accident. La. R.S. 23:1081(7)(a). The collection, handling and testing process must be trustworthy. Deal, supra. In such cases and in order to support a finding of intoxication, an employer need only prove the use of such drugs by the employee by a preponderance of the evidence. La. R.S. 23:1081(8).

Once such employer has satisfied its burden of proving intoxication at the time of the accident, a presumption of causation due to the intoxication arises. La. R.S. 23:1081(2). The burden of proof is then placed upon the employee to prove that the intoxication was not a contributing cause of the accident in order to defeat the intoxication defense of the employer. La. R.S. 23:1081(12).

It is clear from the language of the above statute that two presumptions apply in these cases.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
997 So. 2d 175, 2008 La. App. LEXIS 1352, 2008 WL 4648407, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/spires-v-raymond-westbrook-logging-lactapp-2008.