Degraffenreid v. R.L. Hannah Trucking Co.
| Decision Date | 30 July 2002 |
| Docket Number | No. WD 60221.,WD 60221. |
| Citation | 80 S.W.3d 866 |
| Parties | James DeGRAFFENREID, Respondent, v. R.L. HANNAH TRUCKING COMPANY, Appellant. |
| Court | Missouri Court of Appeals |
Dana Cutler, Kansas City, MO, for appellant.
James H. Bell, Kansas City, MO, for respondent.
Before ULRICH, P.J., BRECKENRIDGE and HARDWICK, JJ.
R.L. Hannah Trucking Co. appeals from an award of workers' compensation benefits to the estate of James DeGraffenreid. On appeal, Hannah Trucking alleges that the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission erred in awarding benefits to the estate because (1) there was not sufficient competent evidence that Mr. DeGraffenreid's injuries arose out of his employment; (2) there was not sufficient competent evidence of fraud, deceit, or a desire to suppress the truth to support application of the spoliation doctrine for failure to produce evidence; and (3) the spoliation doctrine was wrongfully applied to prove the estate's claim. This court finds that there was sufficient competent evidence to support the application of the spoliation doctrine for Hannah Trucking's failure to disclose telephone logs. The Commission misapplied the spoliation doctrine, however, when it found that the adverse inference rule established the estate's claim for worker's compensation benefits. Despite the Commission's misapplication of the spoliation doctrine, its findings unrelated to the spoliation doctrine compel the legal conclusion that Mr. DeGraffenreid's estate is entitled to the award. Finally, the Commission's finding that Mr. DeGraffenreid's injury arose out of his employment is supported by competent and substantial evidence and is not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence. Therefore, the award of worker's compensation benefits is affirmed.
The facts, viewed in the light most favorable to the Commission's award, are that Mr. DeGraffenreid was employed by Hannah Trucking as an over-the-road truck driver. In March of 1994, Mr. DeGraffenreid made a trip to San Antonio, Texas, for Hannah Trucking. In San Antonio, Mr. DeGraffenreid suffered a stroke while in the cab of his parked truck. At the time of his stroke, Mr. DeGraffenreid was fifty-one years old. After his stroke, Mr. DeGraffenreid was paralyzed and required constant care and observation.
On November 7, 1994, Mr. DeGraffenreid filed a claim for workers' compensation benefits. In his claim, Mr. DeGraffenreid alleged that his stroke was caused by the stress he suffered as a result of Hannah Trucking's "demanding over-the-road truck-driving schedule." Specifically, Mr. DeGraffenreid sought to establish that he was driving more hours than Department of Transportation regulations permitted, and he was keeping two sets of driver's logs to conceal his violation of the federal regulations. In an attempt to prove his allegation that he was violating the regulations, Mr. DeGraffenreid requested that Hannah Trucking produce various documents which would indicate the number of hours that he was driving and resting, and the number of miles he was driving. These documents included driver's logs, telephone logs, payroll records, and freight bills. Hannah Trucking produced many documents, but it did not produce complete telephone logs for the period from March 23, 1992, through February 7, 1994.
On January 17, 1998, Mr. DeGraffenreid died as a result of vascular disease. Thereafter, Mr. DeGraffenreid's estate was substituted as the claimant. On June 6, 2000, an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) heard evidence on the estate's claim. At the hearing, the estate presented evidence that Mr. DeGraffenreid drove more hours than federal regulations allowed and kept two sets of driver's logs. An expert witness for the estate testified that the stress of driving more hours than legally permitted and the guilt associated with keeping two sets of driver's logs were a substantial factor in Mr. DeGraffenreid's stroke.1 In defense, Hannah Trucking presented evidence that Mr. DeGraffenreid had several of the high-risk factors for a stroke, including age, gender, genetic predisposition, hypertension, cigarette smoking, alcohol abuse, infection, high cholesterol, and arterial disease. Hannah Trucking's experts opined that Mr. DeGraffenreid's stroke was caused by these factors and did not arise out of his job as a truck driver.
After hearing the evidence, the ALJ found that "[e]ven if [Mr. DeGraffenreid's estate] had clearly proven that he was driving in excess of the allowed hours and mileage, lacked the requisite sleep and suffered from guilt, this Court is not convinced that such stress was the substantial factor in [Mr. DeGraffenreid's] stroke." The ALJ concluded that "it is far more likely that the combination of his pre-existing risk factors were [sic] the substantial factors in [Mr. DeGraffenreid's] stroke." Accordingly, the ALJ found in favor of Hannah Trucking and denied benefits.
The estate appealed to the Commission. The Commission reversed the ALJ's decision, with one commissioner dissenting. In awarding benefits, the Commission found that the estate's expert, Dr. Gerald B. Lee, was credible. Dr. Lee testified that the medical evidence did not support a finding that Mr. DeGraffenreid had high cholesterol and there was no medical evidence of long-standing hypertension. Dr. Lee acknowledged Mr. DeGraffenreid's preexisting risk factors of cigarette smoking, age, gender, and, preexisting atherosclerosis. Nevertheless, Dr. Lee found that the stress from Mr. DeGraffenreid's employment was a substantial factor in causing his stroke. Dr. Lee testified that the stress of driving too far, too long, and under too much pressure was a substantial factor in the increase in Mr. DeGraffenreid's vascular blood pressure and his pulse, which caused the stroke.
In coming to this conclusion, Dr. Lee reviewed the available driver's logs, telephone logs, and freight bills. The unavailability of all of the requested information was recognized by the Commission. The Commission found that:
Dr. Lee's assessment of [Mr. DeGraffenreid's] driving history in the period preceding his stroke was hindered, however, because of missing portions of the documentation.
Based upon the incomplete set of documents that Dr. Lee was able to review, he credibly testified that the number of hours and distance that claimant was driving, the insufficient number of hours that he slept and the stresses of maintaining two log books to cover-up that information, created the stress that was the substantial factor in causing [Mr. DeGraffenreid's] stroke on March 22, 1994.
In its ruling, the Commission discussed in detail Hannah Trucking's failure to provide the records Mr. DeGraffenreid's counsel requested, primarily the complete telephone logs. The Commission noted that Hannah Trucking's corporate representative, Sharon Green, admitted that Hannah Trucking had possession of the requested documents. In addition, the Commission stated that Ms. Green also testified that she had not looked for some of the telephone logs. The Commission believed that "Ms. Green offered no satisfactory explanation as to what employer had done with the complete telephone log" and, in fact, was evasive. Thus, it found her testimony not credible.
Based upon Ms. Green's evasive testimony, the Commission found that Hannah Trucking was guilty of spoliating the telephone logs, and stated that it was applying the adverse inference rule. The Commission stated that it would apply the adverse inference rule to "presume that the evidence employer destroyed or concealed would have established the justness of claimant's demand for workers' compensation benefits." The Commission sanctioned Hannah Trucking by finding "that employer admits the truth of claimant's allegation that claimant's truck driving was a substantial factor in causing claimant's March 22, 1994 stroke." The Commission then awarded Mr. DeGraffenreid's estate permanent total disability benefits, medical expenses and nursing services. Hannah Trucking filed this appeal to challenge the Commission's award.
On an appeal from the Commission, this court will not disturb the Commission's award unless the Commission acted without or beyond its power, the award was procured by fraud, the facts found do not support the award, or the award is not supported by sufficient competent evidence in the record. Section 287.495.1, RSMo 2000. Here, the estate has the burden of proving all elements of its claim to a reasonable probability. Ransburg v. Great Plains Drilling, 22 S.W.3d 726, 730 (Mo.App.2000). Hannah Trucking asserts that the estate did not meet that burden, and that the award was not supported by sufficient competent and substantial evidence. "[T]o determine whether the Commission could have reasonably made its findings and award upon consideration of all the evidence before it," this court uses a two-step process:
In the first step, the court examines the whole record, viewing the evidence and all reasonable inferences drawn therefrom in the light most favorable to the award, to determine if the record contains sufficient competent and substantial evidence to support the award. If not, the Commission's award must be reversed. If there is competent and substantial evidence supporting the award, the court moves to the second step, where it views the evidence in the light most favorable to the award, but must consider all evidence in the record, including that which opposes or is unfavorable to the award, take account of the overall effect of all of the evidence, and determine whether the award is against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
Davis v. Research Med. Ctr., 903 S.W.2d 557, 571 (Mo.App.1995). In reviewing the Commission's award, this court cannot substitute its judgment regarding questions of fact for that of the Commission. Id.
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