Matter of Tierney v New York State Comptroller

 

            This case was brought by an Article 78 proceeding to review decision by the NYS Comptroller denying petitioner a police lieutenant with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, accidental disability retirement benefits. 

            Petitioner slipped on May 1, 2006 resulting in a knee injury.  The incident occurred in a place where the petitioner had worked consistently, where discarded food was located on a step adjoining an office building and a parking lot. 

            The denial of petitioner’s accidental disability benefits then went to a hearing and redetermination.  The Hearing Officer declared the May 1, 2006 incident to not be an accident within the meaning of Retirement and Social Security Law 363.  This is because petitioner stated that the discarded food was near a waste can, therefore the petitioner “had to see foreign objects on these steps on prior occasions,” thus “foreign objects on the steps was foreseeable.”  The previous decision was upheld.

            The determination of the court believed that “The conclusion that petitioner actually saw debris on prior dates, based solely on the presence for an unknown amount of time of a waste can in the vicinity, is speculative and unsupported by substantial evidence in this record.” 

            The determination was annulled and the petition was granted, with the matter remitted to respondent for further proceedings not inconsistent with the Court’s decision.