How’s it going, dear readers?  We all hanging in there?

Well Wednesdays are tough – but there’s never a bad time to remind us of the need for vigilance.  Routine and complacency are so much easier and so seductively inviting, that once in a while we all need a good shake at the shoulders to remind us to be on our guard.

Let this blog post be such a shake for you – MyNewsLA reports that a CHP patrol officer has been arrested on allegations of workers’ compensation insurance fraud.  Your humble blogger declines to name the criminal defendant because accusations and four quarters will only get you a crisp dollar bill.

But the point isn’t that a CHP officer is charged with fraud, but that even those in a position of trust don’t always prove themselves trustworthy. 

In this particular case, after filing an application alleging a 2019 injury to various body parts, someone spotted the applicant/criminal-defendant engaged in various “outdoor activities” presumably in conflict with her allegations and reporting of injury.  Subsequent surveillance gave the powers involved sufficient evidence to proceed with an arrest and a criminal charge – the results of a seven month investigation.

The details will come out at trial, unless the matter is resolved before then.  But what’s the likely scenario?  If you assume the prosecution will prove its case, someone tipped off the CHP and subsequent surveillance confirmed the tip.

Without the tipoff, the SCIF would likely have not picked up on the alleged fraud in time to do anything about it.

Well, we can’t hope for an honest citizen to do the right thing in every case.  Periodically we have to be the help we’re looking for.  So, let’s let this situation remind us to follow up on tips when we receive them, but to do our own inquiries as well.

Straight on to Friday, dear readers!