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NEWS MARCH 22, 2021 ¦ 21

Insurance Surveillance Helps Connecticut
Plaintiff Prove Injury, Secure Settlement

By Robert Storace

An insurance company surveillance of a laborer
injured when a water main he was working on
underground burst proved to be the clincher
in securing a $240,000 workers’ compensation settle-
ment for plaintiff Robert Kelley.
That surveillance was important for what it didn’t
show—not what it did.
Plaintiffs counsel Leslie McPadden said it’s not
uncommon for insurance carriers to conduct sur-
veillance in workers’ compensation cases.
In this case, McPadden said the fact that inves-
tigators from Charter Oak Fire Insurance Co., the Photo: Sopradit/stock.adobe.com

carrier for employer CJ Fucci Inc. in New Haven, injury because he banged his head when coming out
found nothing suspicious after five days of surveil- of the manhole.
lance on Kelley helped her seal the deal. McPadden said the biggest pushback from the in-
“If they think you are not credible, private detec- surance carrier was that Kelley’s workers’ compensa-
tives will watch you for a period of time to see if you tion carrier through his former employer had com-
are doing things inconsistent with the claimed injury,” pensated about $350,000 soon after the incident in
said McPadden, a partner with Forrest McPadden in Danbury in 2016.
Wethersfield. “Their tracking showed a hyper guy who “It was their position, for awhile, that he was already
could not do much of anything. He wasn’t lifting any- compensated for his physical injuries. We were able to
thing, wasn’t bending over and wasn’t doing things like convince them that there was some physical risk that had
lifting heavy groceries. The surveillance was consistent not been compensated for, as well as the brain injury. Our
with his claims at deposition that he had a lot of diffi- position was that the brain injury, especially, was likely to
culty with his right arm and right shoulder.” require a much larger payment,” McPadden said.
McPadden said if the surveillance had showed McPadden said doctors, psychologists and psychia-
Kelley lifting or bending or doing something incon- trists supported the traumatic brain injury diagnosis.
sistent with his injuries, that could have “been prob- Representing the insurance carrier is attorney Ger-
lematic” and might have delayed or even ended the ald Davino II of Testan Law in Rocky Hill. Davino
claim for workers’ compensation benefits. didn’t respond to requests for comment Thursday.
McPadden said she finalized the one lump sum of McPadden said her client has made some progress
$240,000 for Kelley late Wednesday afternoon. since the incident four and a half years ago. But “he
Kelley suffered a traumatic brain injury as well as in- still has a lot of pain from his right shoulder,” she said.
juries to his head, left knee, back, neck, right shoulder, McPadden said Kelley had surgery for a rotator
eyes, right hip, and left ankle after he was pulled from a cuff tear on his right shoulder and said another sur-
manhole that was about to be covered with water after gery on that shoulder is possible. ¦

a mishap caused the water to overflow. “He practically Robert Storace covers legal trends, lawsuits and analysis
drowned in that manhole,” McPadden said.
McPadden said Kelley, a 47-year-old Torrington for the Connecticut Law Tribune. Follow him on Twit-
resident, believes he sustained the traumatic brain ter @RobertSCTLaw or reach him at 203-437-5950.

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