April 2, 2018 #18-008
Dental
hygienist pleads guilty for lying to state in workers’ comp case
SEATTLE — A Lynnwood woman has been sentenced to community
service after admitting she lied when she claimed she wasn’t working while
receiving workers’ comp benefits.
Shari Lee Kristiansen, 55, pleaded guilty on
Thursday to making a false or
misleading statement to the state Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). The agency administers
the state workers' compensation system, which helps workers who are injured on
the job heal and return to work.
King County Superior Court Judge Pro Tem Ken
Comstock sentenced Kristiansen to serve 180 hours of community service. Under
terms of the deferred sentence, the gross misdemeanor charge will be dismissed
after two years if she makes no further false statements to L&I, does not
break the law, and complies with other requirements.
In pleading guilty, Kristiansen stated she made a false or misleading
statement when she signed an L&I form verifying that she wasn’t employed
when she was actually working part time.
The Washington Attorney General's Office prosecuted
the case based on an L&I investigation.
Routine records check triggers investigation
Kristiansen filed a claim with L&I in
March 2013, saying she injured her thumbs and hands while working as a dental
hygienist for several dentists in King and Snohomish counties.
L&I provided medical and wage-replacement
benefits to Kristiansen based on her physicians’ assessments and her signed
declarations. An L&I investigation later
found she worked for various dentists for much of the time she was receiving workers’
comp benefits.
L&I started the investigation after a
routine comparison of L&I and state Employment Security Department records.
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For media information: Debby Abe (debby.abe@Lni.wa.gov), L&I Public
Affairs, (360) 902-6043
Connect with L&I: Facebook (facebook.com/laborandindustries) and Twitter (twitter.com/lniwa)
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