The criminal case against two North Dakota state workers’ compensation officials has been assigned to the district judge who earlier dismissed some charges against one of the defendants.
Sandy Blunt, the chief executive officer of Workforce Safety and Insurance, and Romi Leingang, the director of its special investigations unit, are to be arraigned before South Central District Judge Robert Wefald on Oct. 24.
They will be asked to enter a plea to conspiring to commit disclosure of confidential information. The charge is a felony that carries a maximum punishment of five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Attorneys for both Blunt and Leingang have said their clients are not guilty.
The two officials are accused of obtaining at least two Department of Transportation driver’s license photos as part of an effort to track down a person who was e-mailing WSI employee pay information to agency workers. Normally, the photos are confidential records under state law.
South Central District Judge Donald Jorgensen ruled in late August that prosecutors had enough evidence to bring the case to trial.
Wefald earlier had dismissed two separate felony charges against Blunt accusing him of misspending agency funds on employee gifts, refreshments and trinkets.
Jorgensen initially was assigned as the trial judge in the conspiracy case against Blunt and Leingang. Lawyers for both sides made a total of three change-of-judge requests, and two judges recused themselves, before the case finally ended up with Wefald.
Topics Legislation Workers' Compensation
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