A recent ruling in Delaware has denied workers’ compensation to a UPS driver involved in a crash while under the influence of alcohol, a case that highlights the complex interplay between employment law and substance use.
Timothy Willis, a UPS driver, was involved in an incident where his semi-truck crashed into a guardrail in Baltimore County, Maryland. This accident occurred in June 2021 around 4 a.m. as Willis was returning to Delaware after delivering a trailer in Pennsylvania and Maryland. On his way back to New Jersey, Willis chose to drink alcohol, a decision that led to significant legal consequences.
Following the crash, Superior Court Judge Kathleen Vavala overturned a previous decision by Delaware’s Industrial Accident Board that awarded Willis workers’ compensation. The judge stated that Willis’s actions constituted ‘voluntary intoxication,’ which deviated from standard employment protocol, thus removing the protections typically offered by workers’ compensation. Vavala emphasized that such behavior exceeded reasonable bounds since the truck was operated under the influence, which is both a violation of company policy and the law.
The circumstances of the crash revealed Willis’s routine of carrying a cooler of beers to enjoy after his shift, which on this occasion, he began consuming earlier than usual. This revelation was compounded by Willis’s candid admissions during proceedings that he regularly drank while driving home and had attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in an effort to address his drinking issues.
At the crash site, responding officers noted Willis’s impaired state, citing indicators such as slurred speech, the scent of alcohol, and evidence of drinking within the vehicle. Willis’s refusal to undergo field sobriety checks resulted in blood alcohol content tests that indicated levels over twice the legal limit, at 0.19 and 0.181, respectively. Despite these findings, the Industrial Accident Board initially awarded him compensation based on their interpretation of the accident’s timing and location as within his expected work activities.
Judge Vavala’s ruling combated this viewpoint, asserting that a precedent allowing impaired driving in jobs like truck driving could lead to dangerous outcomes. Her decision emphasized the significance of maintaining stringent expectations for driver sobriety, particularly when operating large vehicles under potentially hazardous conditions.
Interestingly, despite his blood alcohol levels and initial charges of drunken driving, Willis avoided formal conviction through a ‘probation before judgment’ agreement, a legal nuance that the board considered in its initial ruling. The board also noted the context of light beer consumption and the possibility that Willis swerved to avoid a deer, factors they saw as mitigating.
Ultimately, Vavala found fault with the board’s handling of the case, particularly its exclusion of cross-examination opportunities regarding Willis’s statements in a Maryland court. She underscored that driving under the influence directly contradicted employment activities and nullified any claims to workers’ compensation under such circumstances.
The decision to deny workers’ compensation to Timothy Willis serves as a cautionary tale about the responsibilities of drivers and the repercussions of alcohol use while operating a vehicle. The case underscores the legal and safety obligations of professionals in roles with public safety implications, reinforcing the expectation of sober conduct in the execution of duties.
Source: Apnews
