Correctional officer arrested for fraud and theft

October 2, 2014

arrestSanta Barbara County Sheriff deputies arrested a correctional officer for insurance fraud and grand theft for allegedly collecting more than $60,000 in workers’ compensation benefits he was not entitled to receive.

In November 2012, James Levice Davis Junious, 33, injured his elbow while performing his duties as a juvenile institutional officer. Five days later, Junious was granted temporary disability, which he continued to collect until his arrest.

In addition to his employment as an institutional officer, Junious owns and operates a landscaping business, College Students Lawn Service. Junious told his doctor and claims adjuster that he was not working or collecting any source of income from his business, but evidence showed that Junious was back to landscaping in April 2013 while collecting workers’ comp benefits.

Department investigators found evidence that showed Junious lifting 60 pounds of stones, building a wall, laying sod, lifting and working with concrete blocks and numerous other tasks Junious claimed he could not perform. When the evidence was shown to the physician treating Junious for his injury, the physician stated that had Junious been honest about his recovery he would have returned him to light duty after he had surgery.

The total loss in this case amounted to more than $71,000 for collection of benefits and investigation costs.
“Workers’ compensation fraud is a multi-billion dollar drain on our economy,” said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. “In California, it costs insurers hundreds of millions of dollars every year in losses, which are then passed along to employers through higher premiums and ultimately to consumers through higher costs for goods and services.”


Loading...
14 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

So what if he was lifting 60 lb rocks and mixing cement. That elbow was quite tender. He deserves an apology, full reinstatement of his disability benefits and a taxpayer funded medical marijuana prescription to help ease that elbow discomfort.


Beware of Poe’s Law.


That’s a term I’ve never heard before. Had to look it up. I like it. Thanks.


Federal, state and local government is loaded with fraud, waste and abuse.


The hand writing is on the wall. One has to be deaf, dumb and blind not to see that government is loaded with mismanagement and corruption.


Theft, ineptitude and incompetence is rewarded. Honesty is punished.


Government-unions are a huge part of the problem.


This is not limited to government. I abandoned a private business years ago due to Work Comp costs (and other lesser factors.) I suppose that the legal system’s role in those costs could be partly attributed to government but I view it as simple human greed which can be found anywhere.


This has been going on for a long time but now that the voters are done with tax increases the money has to come from somewhere. How about stop paying disability to those who are just milking the system? Well daaaaaaa, new revenue! How about raising the retirement eligibility for gov employees so that the gov and non-gov workers are the same. Again daaaaaaa, more revenue! Maybe throwing tax dollars away will out do and become the new GREENY WEENY.


Work Comp is different than Disability. It is paid by the employer — or rather collectively by all employers of a specific type of worker. It hits us all indirectly through increased costs for goods and services but is only regulated by government not run by it.


In this case it was a government employee ripping off the government but it was also a government regulatory agency which caught him in the act.


He was a probation officer–http://www.noozhawk.com/article/probation_department_employee_charged_with_workers_comp_fraud_grand_theft


For every one that gets caught there are dozens still getting away with this.


Really? I’m surprised beyond belief!


Dozens? Sadly in CA, more like thousands…


Paso, are you talking about illegal aliens…. if you were .. its more like millions! Seriously, how much does it cost the taxpayers to educate illegal aliens??????


everyone is interested in the cost no one considers the value education provides long term.


What does another cop/”peace officer” being corrupt have to do with illegal aliens? Nothing?! If cops were doing their jobs you wouldn’t be talking about the millions they are taking from the government.