Deported Illegal Returns To R.I. for $30K Injury Settlement

http://www.wvwnews.net/story.php?id=3112

An illegal immigrant from Mexico has won $30,000 in a settlement with his former Rhode Island employer after accidentally injuring himself with a chain saw.

Edgar Velasquez, who worked for a tree service company in Warwick, was chopping tree branches on March 31, 2006, when he accidentally slashed his face, slicing his nose, eyelid and forehead.

He underwent surgery but still has trouble closing his left eye.

Velasquez sued William Gorman Jr., his former boss and owner of Billy G’s Tree Care, seeking compensation for his injuries. He also accused Gorman of notifying immigration authorities that he was here illegally to block him from pursuing his case.Immigration agents arrested Velasquez outside the courthouse in August 2006 on the day of a scheduled court hearing. Though Velasquez was deported, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security later granted him a humanitarian visa to return to the United States for three months for his court case.

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2008/01/16/86500.htm

2008-01-22