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PRESS RELEASE December 11, 2003 Prosecutor's evidence cites Ridgway's workers' comp claims Serial killer Gary Ridgway’s gruesome but flippant claims about defrauding the state workers’ compensation system can be found in the King County Prosecutor’s summary of evidence. Last week, EFF cited a Washington Post story which alluded to Ridgway’s comments. Page 30 of the report states: “[Ridgway] acknowledged that he had reported some injuries, such as shoulder pain to the infirmary at work, ‘...if I got hurt like pulling her because of her weight and it bothered me I’d just blame it on work so State Industrial [would] pay for it.’” In a legislative hearing last Friday addressing the Department of Labor & Industries’ recent 9.8 percent rate increase, L&I Director Paul Trause acknowledged that one of the major concerns of more than 300 individuals who attended the hearing was the fraud and abuse plaguing the workers’ compensation system. Eligibility standards and oversight were also concerns raised by the State Auditor in his 2002 Statewide Accountability Report.
King County Prosecutor’s summary of evidence
Washington State Auditor’s 2002 Statewide Accountability Report Contact: Jason Mercier | Budget Analyst | 360.956.3482
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1 Part Honesty; 2 Parts Arrogance At a March 23, 2005, House Appropriations hearing on a bill to gut the voter-approved I-601 spending limit, Rep. Jim McIntire (D) asked a supporter of I-601’s two-third supermajority requirement for the legislature to raise taxes the following question: "Can you name a time when we [legislators] have actually not just set it [supermajority requirement] aside by majority vote? I mean, this is in many respects a procedural motion that has no bearing. It’s a statutory constraint that cannot constrain any legislature that chooses as a majority to set it aside . . . have we ever used a supermajority [to raise taxes]?" - Rep. Jim McIntire (D - 46) Despite the arrogance of some state officials, Washington's constitution is clear: "All political power is inherent in the people..." |
