JAMES BARNETT, APPELLANT,
v.
LAKELAND CONSTRUCTION COMPANY AND UNITED STATES FIDELITY & GUARANTY, APPELLEE
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The court held that the deputy commissioner was not required to believe the claimant's evidence despite the absence of contradictory evidence.
The claimant presented evidence of a compensable accident, but the deputy commissioner denied compensation due to inconsistencies in the evidence.…
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MILLS, Judge.
Barnett appeals a deputy commissioner’s order denying workers’ compensation. We affirm.
Barnett presented evidence of a compensable accident at the hearing. However, due to various inconsistencies, the deputy commissioner refused to believe the evidence and denied compensation.
Barnett contends that the deputy commissioner erred in refusing to apply the “logical cause” doctrine because the employer/carrier presented no contradictory evidence. He also contends that the deputy commissioner was not free to disbelieve the evidence in the absence of other evidence tending to show that the injury could have been attributable to an event which occurred on an earlier date. Tatum v. Leon Moss Dairy, 339 So. 2d 639 (Fla.1976). We disagree. Tatum does not require such a showing; rather, Tatum simply addressed itself to a situation where such evidence was present. As the deputy commissioner had the opportunity to observe the behavior and demeanor of Barnett and his witnesses, he is in a better position to judge their credibility. This court will not reweigh the evidence.
AFFIRMED.
BOOTH and THOMPSON, JJ., concur.
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Manley v. Bennett's Truck Equip. & Claims Mgmt. Sys., 506 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987)…laimant’s evidence regarding causation and choose not to apply the logical cause doctrine where the dc finds the claimant lacks credibility. See Bahr v. Howard Johnson #24609, 498 So. 2d 518 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986); Barnett v. Lakeland Construction Co., 417 So. 2d 834 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982). In the instant case the dc concluded that the claimant was not credible. We cannot agree on the record before us. We find that in the absence of any substantial proof that claimant deliberately injured himself, the dc may not re…
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- Tatum v. Leon Moss Dairy, 339 So. 2d 639 (Fla. 1976)