Louisiana Auto Shop Owner Pleads Guilty to Felony in Workers’ Comp Case

Keith G. Dorr Sr., owner of Dorr’s Automotive in Slidell, La., has plead guilty to willfully failing to provide workers’ compensation coverage for his employees, some of whom suffered job-related injuries for which they were not covered by a workers’ comp policy.

Dorr entered his guilty plea Oct. 17 in 22nd Judicial District Court. State District Judge Peter J. Garcia placed Dorr on 5 years supervised probation and ordered him to pay a criminal fine of $21,687.01.

Employers in Louisiana are required to provide workers’ compensation insurance coverage for their employees by purchasing a workers’ compensation insurance policy, becoming an approved self-insured employer or by joining an approved group self-insurance fund.

An investigation by the Office of Workers’ Compensation revealed that Dorr failed to do any of those things on a continuous basis from around March 1, 2007, through March 9, 2010.

It was during that period that several of his employees at Dorr’s Automotive suffered job-related injuries. After an investigation, police arrested Dorr April 26, 2010, and booked him into St. Tammany Parish jail.

“The primary victims in this case are injured workers who didn’t have coverage,” said Wes Hataway, director of the Office of Workers’ Compensation. “But competing business can be victims as well when unscrupulous operators gain an unfair advantage by reducing their overhead costs.”

The Louisiana Workforce Commission continues to investigate suspected fraud using computer software and in collaboration with other agencies. “We’re continually improving our ability to detect fraud,” Hataway said.

Source: Louisiana Workforce Commission