Settlement with injured illegal immigrant is jeopardy

June 5, 2008

PROVIDENCE, R.I.—A $30,000 settlement awarded to an illegal immigrant from Mexico who injured himself on the job is in jeopardy.
more stories like this

Edgar Velasquez slashed his face with a chain saw in March 2006 while working for a Warwick tree-company.

A lawyer for the owner of the company, William Gorman Jr., reached the settlement with lawyers for Velasquez in January.

But on Wednesday, Gorman told a worker's compensation judge that he had never heard of the agreement and asked that his lawyer be dismissed.

Gorman's lawyer, Michael St. Pierre, told the judge that he had informed Gorman of the agreement in three detailed letters that spelled out the terms.

The judge has granted Gorman until June 27 to find a new lawyer. Meanwhile, Velasquez's attorneys have filed a motion to hold Gorman in contempt.

------

Information from: The Providence Journal, http://www.projo.com/



http://tinyurl.com/54s54m