The officer was 80 and hadn't worked in 16 years – here's what the court decided
A Connecticut court has ruled that a retired police officer's disability benefits cannot be set at zero – no matter how long ago he stopped working.
In a decision, the Connecticut Appellate Court affirmed a workers' compensation award that carries a clear message for employers: your workers' compensation obligations do not expire when an employee walks out the door for the last time.
Louis Martinoli spent more than two decades with the Stamford Police Department before retiring in October 1999 at age 64. Earlier that year, he had established a compensable claim for coronary artery disease, hypertension, and congestive heart failure under a Connecticut statute that covers police officers and firefighters who develop heart conditions after passing a clean physical upon entering service. He underwent quadruple bypass surgery, received a permanent partial disability rating of 43.75 percent to the heart, and collected weekly benefits. He never returned to work and never intended to.
Then, 16 years later, his health took another turn.
On July 15, 2015, at 80 years old, Martinoli was admitted to the hospital with abdominal pain, developed atrial fibrillation, and sustained a stroke. A workers' compensation commissioner found those conditions flowed directly from his original heart disease claim, making them compensable. Both sides agreed he had been temporarily totally disabled since that date.
The...
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