WCPanelIQ
PanelDenied

D' Alessandro, Thomas

THOMAS D’ALESSANDRO, Applicant vs. CITY OF MENIFEE; permissibly self-insured, Defendant

ADJ number
ADJ16610370
Decision date
Dec 18, 2024
District office
Riverside
WCJ
—
Claim administrator
City of Menifee (permissibly self-insured)
Commissioners
JOSÉ H. RAZO, COMMISSIONER

Injury / body parts: left knee

LC §3600LC §5909LC §5900

Summary

Thomas D'Alessandro, a police officer and defensive tactics instructor for the City of Menifee, injured his left knee while taking an off-duty jiu-jitsu class on August 8, 2022. The WCJ initially found the injury barred under Labor Code section 3600(a)(9) because applicant failed the second (objective reasonableness) prong of the Ezzy two-prong test. On reconsideration (September 30, 2024 O&O), the Board rescinded the F&O and found injury AOE/COE to the left knee, concluding both Ezzy prongs were met. Defendant sought reconsideration of that O&O, arguing the Board over-relied on an August 17, 2021 email from team lead Lieutenant Gutierrez and that applicant's belief was neither held nor objectively reasonable. The Board (2-1) denied reconsideration, finding applicant subjectively and objectively reasonably believed off-duty jiu-jitsu was expected given fitness requirements, the email, and integration of jiu-jitsu into Artemis/Gracie Survival Tactics training. Commissioner Razo dissented, viewing the case as akin to Jenneiahn (general fitness maintenance) rather than Wilson/Tomlin (training for required fitness tests).

Issues

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Holding

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Analysis

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Applicant takeaway

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Defense takeaway

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Provider takeaway

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