Mercer v. Department of Labor & Industries

The plaintiff (appellant) sought to establish her right to a widow’s pension under RCW 51.32.050, and appealed an unfavorable decision of the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals to the Lewis County Superior Court, which dismissed the case for insufficient evidence.

The plaintiff’s husband, Ray R. Mercer, injured his left hand in a logging accident on May 18, 1962, and she claims that this injury caused him to later take his own life, on January 12, 1963. The record shows that the hand injury was serious, involving deep lacerations of the forefinger and middle finger and damage to the flexor…