The Tuolumne County District Attorney’s Office announced the conviction of a Social Services Department employee for workers’ compensation insurance fraud. Janice Richardson was employed as a personal care assistant provider for Tuolumne County and reported an on the job injury in April of 2014. The alleged injuries arose from a motor vehicle collision Richardson was involved in during her scheduled work hours and in the performance of her duties. Richardson filed a workers’ compensation injury claim and as a result, received medical treatment and workers’ compensation benefits. During a subsequent investigation, it was alleged Richardson presented false statements and material misrepresentations during a deposition before the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board. Richardson misrepresented facts as it related to her physical abilities and limitations associated with her injury.
On June 25, 2018, Richardson pleaded no contest to Insurance Fraud, in violation of Penal Code section 550(b)(2), in that she unlawfully and knowingly made a statement containing false and misleading information in support of her claim to obtain workers’ compensation insurance benefits. Richardson was sentenced to three years probation, ordered to pay a fine of $1,000.00 to the workers’ compensation fraud account and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $27,500.00 to the County of Tuolumne for reimbursement of workers’ compensation benefits and investigation costs.
This case was a joint investigation by Probe Information Services, the Tuolumne County District Attorney’s Office and the Amador County District Attorney’s Workers’ Compensation Fraud Unit. The Fraud Unit investigates insurance fraud cases in Amador, Tuolumne, Stanislaus and Calaveras Counties through a grant provided by the California Department of Insurance. If you think someone is committing workers’ compensation fraud, report it to the California Department of Insurance Fraud Hotline at (916) 854-5700 or the Amador County District Attorney’s Office at (209) 223-6444.
