George H. Austin, Inc. v. Gardner

ROBERT P. SMITH, Jr., Judge.

The deputy’s order rejecting the employer’s intoxication defense, sec. 440.09(3), Fla. Stat. (1981), must be reversed for its error in holding that the presumption afforded the employer by that statute did not arise from the evidence of claimant’s blood alcohol content. But because the presence of that presumption may not conclude the factfinder’s inquiry, we remand the case for further consideration by the deputy, on the same record.

This 51 year-old illiterate claimant worked for ten years or more for this employer, as a fruit picker. One day he was found beneath…