Content courtesy of  "Insurance Journal" - 1/31/06

SAN DIEGO/SAN FRANCISCO -- San Diego County Superior Court Judge David Danielsen has sentenced a roofing contractor to a six month jail term, three years formal probation and ordered him to pay $272,000 in restitution to State Compensation Insurance Fund as part of his sentence on felony workers' compensation and unemployment insurance fraud.

William J. Kennedy, 39, owner of San Diego-based Kennedy Roofing that was insured by State Fund, also was ordered to serve 160 hours of volunteer work. His jail sentence is stayed, provided he completes probation terms. Kennedy, who violated insurance code 11800 (a) and unemployment insurance code 2117.5, has already paid $200,000 of the restitution owed to State Fund.

The fraud was reportedly discovered through a State Fund audit of Kennedy's business records after one of his employees filed a workers' comp claim.

Kennedy reported he did not have employees or payroll covering the injury period. The audit also uncovered that Kennedy misclassified payroll by falsifying his employees' hourly rate and hours on time cards. State Fund submitted its suspected fraud case to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office for its review.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Established by the California Legislature in 1914, State Compensation Insurance Fund guarantees the availability of workers' compensation coverage at cost to all California employers and competes fairly with private carriers. State Fund is a wholly self-supporting non-profit enterprise that serves as a moderating and stabilizing influence on California's workers' compensation insurance system.