By now many people have heard of the sentence imposed on Modupe Adunni Martin. On Thursday, she was ordered to serve nine
months in San Mateo County Jail for workers' compensation fraud.
The
29-year-old Hayward resident was convicted of falsely claiming that she suffered
an ankle injury while employed by the Sequoia Union High School District in
2009 that rendered her unable to walk.
Martin
was exposed when photographic evidence was obtained showing her scampering
through a public park while wearing high-heeled shoes. After doctors grew suspicious that Martin was
exaggerating her injury, she was placed under video surveillance. Besides the frolic in the park, Martin was
filmed using crutches to walk to her medical appointments, but walking without
crutches afterwards.
At her sentencing hearing, in addition to her
confinement, Superior
Court Judge Craig Parsons ordered Martin to serve three years of probation
after her release from custody as well as to repay over $79,000 in fraudulently-obtained
benefits.
What surprised most people about the Martin case was that
she was punished at all. The state of
California’s Department of Insurance notes on its website that no matter how diligent
the state may be in their response to these cases, only a small portion of actual fraud is prosecuted as many fraudulent
activities are not identified and, consequently, not investigated.
Unfortunately, the focus of the Martin case has been on the
salacious nature of the material used to identify the workers’ compensation
fraud. (I have omitted the “juicy” details;
you’ll have to read them elsewhere.) I
would like to see more observers broadcast the serious nature of the crime
itself and have them advertise the serious jail sentence that was imposed as a
cautionary tale to those who might contemplate similar behavior.
For too long employees have viewed workers’ compensation
payments as an opportunity for a paid vacation at the boss’ expense; a chance
for some compensated rest and relaxation.
The fraud usually (hopefully) begins with a genuine injury, but morphs
into a situation where the employee develops a sense of entitlement to the “free”
money. Until we attack the fraud for the
crime that it is, this job-killing expense will continue to spiral out of
control.
It’s not that we do not ever punish those caught committing
workers compensation fraud, it’s just the punishment is not normally of the
type or extent that would act as a deterrent.
As an example, I reviewed the website established by California’s
Department of Insurance. Since 2005, the
state has been required to list for public review a roster of those convicted of
workers’ compensation fraud. The most
recent posting is from October 2012. It
lists a single case from Los Angeles County for the entire state. The employee named was convicted of stealing $160,203
in benefits. The required reparation for
her actions - 50 hours of community service!
She was assessed no jail time for a six-figure theft. There was not an order issued for repayment
of the stolen funds nor was there a fine to be paid for the offense.
This meager punishment is even more troubling when a review
of the Insurance Department’s website
shows that during the fiscal year ending in 2011,
the Fraud Division identified and reported 5,741 suspected fraud cases. The potential loss amounted to $276,894,742. Even if we weren’t in a fiscal climate where
every penny counted, this sum would still have a serious negative impact on our
economy.
If the sanctions for this offense continue to be so lenient,
it will communicate to potential offenders that it is well worth the risk to
steal with impunity.
Hopefully, the Martin case is the beginning of meting out
discipline that recognizes workers’ compensation fraud as a real crime.
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