Louisiana Woman Arrested in Workers’ Comp Case

Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti, Jr. announced the arrest of a Vernon Parish woman who reportedly manipulated her workers’ compensation program to fraudulently obtain nearly $60,000 in compensation benefits, medical and other expenses.

Attorney General investigators arrested 27-year-old Georgianna Smith, Anacoco, on one count of misrepresentation concerning workers’ comp benefits and one count of theft in excess of $500. Bond was set for Smith at $1000 and she was released.

Smith claimed to have suffered a disabling back injury on the job in March 2001. She reportedly did not reveal any previous injuries on an employment questionnaire in 2000. However, an investigation into her 2001 claim revealed that she had been treated for lower back injuries suffered during an automobile accident in 1998.

Because she did not report her previous injuries, Smith fraudulently collected $29,412 in workers’ comp benefits; $13,935 in temporary total indemnity benefits; $14,662 in medical expenses and $814 in rehabilitation expenses.

Latest Comments

• September 2, 2011 at 8:06 pm

  georgianna says:

  I am Georgianna Smith when i filled out my job application there wasn't a place for old or existing injuries so there for I didn't answer any of those questions. I was young a... read more
• March 30, 2004 at 4:28 am

  R. Murphy says:

  The story leaves a lot of unanswered questions. For instance, was the new back injury related to the old one or had she been released by a doctor to do the job? Lower back inj... read more
• March 30, 2004 at 12:53 pm

  Robert Lane says:

  Seems like you never hear in the national news how the expenses related to faud impact insurance costs all consumers must bear. Please keep these up so we can share these horr... read more