Walker, Dontay

Bus operator Dontay Walker claimed a specific injury from an altercation on his bus on January 14, 2020. The only issue tried was whether the applicant was the initial physical aggressor under Labor Code section 3600(a)(7), which would bar recovery. The WCJ found the applicant was not the initial aggressor based on his credible, unrebutted testimony and a four-minute DVD of the incident, and the defendant (self-insured LACMTA) petitioned for reconsideration, arguing the WCJ made conclusory findings violating Labor Code section 5313 and erred in finding the applicant not the aggressor. The WCAB denied reconsideration, adopting and incorporating the WCJ's detailed report, which gave the WCJ's credibility determination great weight under Garza. The Board concluded there was no evidence of considerable substantiality warranting rejection of the WCJ's credibility findings.