News-Record.com

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Anne R. Harris

Your coverage of a workers' compensation decision from the N.C. Court of Appeals on Feb. 6, "Judges: Woman entitled to one new breast implant, but not two," was thoughtless. A firestorm of controversy has resulted from the media coverage of this case.

You printed the full name of the injured party, Penny M. Rumple Richardson, who is my client and a local resident. You reported on only a part of the court's decision dealing with breast implant replacement. You excluded any reference to the context of the rest of the case.

This case involved a serious car accident in 2001, caused by a driver who hit my client's car and left the scene. Richardson sustained multiple injuries, requiring numerous knee and wrist surgeries, and extensive dental work. She had continuous problems with headaches. In addition, her existing breast implants were damaged and required replacement.

The accident occurred on her job as a nursing assistant. Her employer had insurance to cover these injuries. However, the insurance carrier denied liability for all of these injuries, forcing Richardson to take her claim into court. Her injuries have been found compensable throughout the trial and appeal process, with the exception of the one breast implant in the most recent decision.

Someone released the most recent decision to the Associated Press, which circulated the article worldwide. The published article reports the breast implant decision in isolation, without providing the context of the rest of the story. It has resulted in Richardson's name and reputation being attacked in the media all over the world, as if she sued her employer just to get breast implants. Her daughter has even been approached at school by a stranger with a camera.

Richardson was not at fault in this accident and did not deserve her injuries. Neither did she deserve the unwanted invasion of her privacy, or the skewed portrayal of her motives in the media. Injured workers across this state do not deserve to pay this kind of price to obtain access to justice.

Printing this misleading article in her local community was unfair to Richardson and has caused her significant distress. Greensboro is her home. If you are going to report on this decision, it is incumbent upon you to present a fair and balanced report. You got it wrong this time.

The writer is an attorney and a board-certified specialist in workers' compensation law who lives in Greensboro.