-13- neglected to confirm independently petitioner’s physical condition, she did not doubt the veracity of his alleged health complications, because she regarded petitioner’s representative as a prominent, trustworthy attorney and observed petitioner in what may be inferred to have been impaired physical health. Teal’s testimony excerpted above conflates petitioner’s emotional suffering with the consequent physical reaction petitioner experienced as a result of that trauma. This illustrates the fact that the District conceived of petitioner’s illness, although evidently grievous, as emanating from a physical manifestation of emotional distress encompassed within the limitation set forth in the penultimate sentence of section 104(a). Petitioner’s divergent positions during the course of the proceedings regarding the cause of his injuries further indicate that his symptoms exhibit the hallmarks of a stress- induced condition. At trial, petitioner testified that negative publicity engendered by the Washington Post’s investigative reports was a substantial contributing factor to the onset of his ailments: Q You testified that you had a physical and emotional reaction to this whole process. Did this publicity have any effect on that, and if so, what? A Yes. This was a significant component of the whole problem. * * * But there is my name in The Washington Post. You know, my name is at the city council hearing when they had the investigation. So yes, all this publicity had a huge impact on me.Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011