Piasa Motor Fuels v. Industrial Com'n

• Decision Date: 23 October 2006
• Docket Number: No. 5-05-0570 WC.,5-05-0570 WC.
• Citation: 858 N.E.2d 946,306 Ill.Dec. 888
• Parties: PIASA MOTOR FUELS, Appellant, v. The INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION et al. (Kenneth Ruyle, Appellee).
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

858 N.E.2d 946

306 Ill.Dec. 888

PIASA MOTOR FUELS, Appellant, v. The INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION et al. (Kenneth Ruyle, Appellee).

No. 5-05-0570 WC.

Appellate Court of Illinois, Fifth District, Workers' Compensation Commission Division.

October 23, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

D. Scott Murphy, Livingstone, Mueller, O'Brien, and Davlin, P.C., Springfield, for Appellant.

Lisa Madigan, Attorney General, Gary Feinerman, Solicitor General, Jan E. Hughes, Assistant Attorney General, Chicago, for Workers' Compensation Commission.

Edward W. Unsell, Law Office of Edward W. Unsell, East Alton, for Kenneth Ruyle.

Justice CALLUM delivered the opinion of the court:

I. INTRODUCTION

Claimant, Kenneth Ruyle, filed an application for adjustment of claim under the Workers' Compensation Act (Act) (820 ILCS 305/1 et seq. (West 2002)) for injuries he allegedly sustained while working for employer, Piasa Motor Fuels. The arbitrator denied benefits. The Industrial Commission¹ (Commission), in a decision signed by Chairman Dennis R. Ruth and two commissioners, reversed. It awarded claimant 24 weeks' temporary total disability (TTD) benefits and $95,915.50 in medical expenses and found that claimant was disabled to the extent of 25% of a person as a whole. The circuit court confirmed the Commission's decision. Employer appeals, arguing that the Commission's decision is void because Chairman Ruth participated in the decision and that the Commission's causation finding is against the manifest weight of the evidence.

II. BACKGROUND

An arbitration hearing was held on November 27, 2002. Claimant, age 45, testified that he worked for employer as a tanker-truck driver. On September 21, 2001, claimant was at the Sauget terminal loading his truck with gasoline to transport it to a station in Missouri. Claimant explained that he used a riser, which is a 6- or 8-inch-diameter steel pipe, to fill his truck with gasoline. The riser comes up from ground level to a height of about eight feet. It has a hinge or spring and moves horizontally about four feet. It also has a large pipe that dangles vertically from it about three or four feet and comes down about waist height. The end of the riser has a large, pumpkin-like valve that is connected to a valve on the side of the truck. The riser is composed entirely of steel piping. Claimant estimated that the riser weighs about 200 pounds. A user, however, does not have to lift this weight because the riser is suspended. Claimant further explained that the user moves the riser and "fights" the weight of the spring to connect the riser to the tanker. This can be done with one hand; however, claimant usually used two hands and wore rubber gloves because the springs were typically covered with oil or gasoline.

On September 21, 2001, claimant was filling his truck with three risers. After he was finished with one riser, he disconnected it and pushed it to his left out of the way about 20 feet. He explained that, as he bent over and capped off one of the compartments, the riser that he had pushed out of the way swung back and struck him in the back on the left side of his spine. It skidded across the top of his hip bone and went into the soft area to the left of his spine and below his rib cage. Claimant did not fall but was knocked against the riser that was connected to the tanker. He stood and backed away from the riser and moved it out of the way. Claimant then finished loading his truck and delivered the load to the O'Fallon station in Missouri.

On his way to Missouri, claimant encountered traffic congestion. Once he arrived at the station, he purchased a sandwich and began unloading his truck. He observed a couple next to his truck arguing. As he listened to them, his stomach began to hurt. At this time, he attributed the pain to the stress of listening to the couple and the traffic congestion. During his run back to Illinois, claimant again encountered traffic congestion. He testified that he became frustrated and started experiencing chest pains. Claimant returned to the Sauget terminal and again loaded his truck to make deliveries to the Imperial and Festus stations. While at the Imperial station, claimant experienced "fairly severe" chest pains and was feeling queasy. When he reached the Festus station, his pain was "letting up a little bit." Claimant completed his shift that day. He was scheduled to work the following day, but called in sick because he was experiencing stomach and chest pains. The pain was in the same general area as constipation pain he felt in the spring of 2001, but the pain was of a different type. Claimant explained that his stomach hurt and he would experience constipation for five-day periods. His primary care physician performed various diagnostic tests. According to claimant, the results were negative.

Claimant returned to work the next day, a Sunday. His chest pains had let up "quite a bit." There was not a lot of work, and claimant was able to complete his assignments. Claimant was off of work on Monday and stayed in bed. When he woke up Tuesday morning, he felt stomach and chest pains. He completed a short route at work. When he returned home, his stomach pain worsened. Claimant went to the emergency room.

In a history he provided to emergency room personnel, claimant stated that he had driven in heavy traffic the previous day and felt that he had experienced an anxiety attack. He came under Dr. Maudie Miller's care. In her September 25, 2001, office notes, Dr. Miller noted that claimant had been having abdominal pain for several months, but also noted that she could not "elicit a clear-cut history of trauma." Claimant conceded that he told emergency room personnel that he had been experiencing pain for several weeks. He further testified that he did not inform hospital personnel about the incident involving the riser because he was in pain and did not know what was going on. On the same day, he underwent a splenectomy and evacuation of an intra-abdominal hematoma. Dr. Miller's operative notes state that she suspected claimant's condition was related to trauma, "although [claimant] cannot give me a history of trauma." He spent five days in the hospital. According to claimant, Dr. Miller asked him if he was struck, but he could not remember precisely what he told her because he was in intense pain and had difficulty concentrating. An October 4, 2001, office note states that Dr. Miller discussed with claimant whether there was a trauma and that claimant could not recall anything severe enough to cause a splenic trauma. Several days after he was discharged, claimant's toes began to swell and turned black and blue. He saw Dr. Miller, who again asked claimant if he was struck by anything. At this time, claimant related to her the riser incident. He testified that he had pieced it together two days before his appointment. In her October 16, 2001, office notes, Dr. Miller wrote that claimant was able to recall an episode of trauma that occurred on September 21, 2001, at work. Tests revealed that claimant's platelet count was up. Dr. Miller prescribed aspirin and Plavix.

Shortly after this time, claimant began experiencing severe left shoulder pain. An ultrasound revealed fluid buildup in the area. Claimant underwent several aspirations of the shoulder area. Medical personnel punctured claimant's lung when they attempted to insert a catheter to drain his shoulder. He subsequently came under Dr. Steven Strasberg's care. On November 13, 2001, claimant underwent a vascular interventional radiology replacement of his present drain. Dr. Strasberg's discharge summary notes state that claimant suffered a splenic rupture following a traumatic injury.

According to claimant, on October 8, 2001, he first notified employer that his condition might be related to the riser incident. Specifically, he notified Matt Schrimpf. He conceded that he spoke to Schrimpf and Bob Long, employer's dispatcher, three times before October 8, 2001, and did not mention to them his work accident. Claimant denied ever having mononucleosis.

Dr. Strasberg released claimant to full-duty work on March 11, 2002. Claimant worked for five days and then was terminated.

Claimant explained that he feels that he has aged five or ten years since the riser incident. He experiences stomach pain and pain at the incision point, which increases with activity. He also experiences pain at the entry point of the catheter drain. Claimant cannot eat spicy foods. He also cannot drink soda pop without food. He explained that he generally feels weak. Claimant continues to experience shoulder pain and has week-long headaches. Claimant never experienced these symptoms before his work accident. He has not worked since being terminated by employer.

Matthew Schrimpf, employer's operations manager, testified on employer's behalf as follows. He examined the riser that allegedly struck claimant and testified that it would not go past the resting position. He could not duplicate the incident as claimant described it. Schrimpf explained that the spring-loaded apparatus moved the riser only up and down. He was first notified of claimant's alleged accident on October 8, 2001. Between September 25 and October 8, 2001, he spoke with claimant on one occasion; he also spoke twice with Bob Long, who was unaware of the cause of claimant's medical problems.

Dr. Mark Kuhnke reviewed claimant's medical records at employer's request. In a letter dated April 22, 2002, Dr. Kuhnke opined that it was doubtful that claimant's ruptured spleen was causally related to his alleged work accident. He explained that claimant had complained for several months of flank pain; however, there was no report of fractured ribs or a history of flank ecchymoses. Dr. Kuhnke also noted that claimant's spleen was not actually fractured, but had a subcapsular hematoma, which is not what he would have expected following a direct blow. He wrote that other causes of...