An Appellate Court in Kentucky upheld an earlier decision by the Kentucky Workers’ Compensation Board which awarded benefits to a man who was injured at work even though he tested positive for cocaine at the time of the injury.

On December 18, 2014 Bernabe Aguirre was injured after he fell from a ladder working for National Drywall, LLC in the construction of an H.H. Gregg store. He received treatment for fractures to his ankle and foot. He gave a sample during treatment and tested positive for cocaine. He filed for workers’ compensation benefits and it was determined that R&T Acoustics (RTA) was really the responsible employer in the case. They argued that he was voluntarily intoxicated, and they were not liable.

Two physicians gave their opinion and the Workers’ Comp Board determined that their opinions did not provide enough evidence to support the claim of voluntary intoxication. The opinion said the physician did not have enough information to determine if he was a frequent user or if he had even ingested cocaine that day, it could have been the day before. They could not conclude that voluntary ingestion of cocaine was the proximate cause of injury. That burden of proof laid with RTA who could not prove intoxication was the primary cause.

The Kentucky Court of Appeals affirmed the decision from the Workers’ Compensation Board.

Read the case here.