Nurses Beware of Florida Statute 440. How do we change this Law?

[JEHORAPHA]

:redbeathe[/fontj it's time for a change in florida. the nurses in the following article link were given a bad deal. two of the nurses were employees of corrections corporation of america. the agency that the other nurse worked for did not give her counseling nor were they "responsible" for her being taken hostage on her first day of assignment since she was "covered" by the jail. florida statute 440 states worker's compensation will only be paid if the employee is physically injured. it does not take into account of the mental anguish as in this hostage takeover and the 5 years of court with the court system these nurses underwent. if you are employed by an agency be informed about who handles your medical bill(physical and mental) in the event you are working in a facility and you are injured. it may become your own liability as was the following case:how can we change this law?

judge rules in favor of cca, bay county in hostage case

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june 02, 2009 05:31:00 pm

by s. brady calhoun / news herald writer

panama city-three nurses who were held hostage at the bay county jail in 2004 are asking florida's first district court of appeals to overturn a local judge and find against bay county and corrections corporation of america.

the plaintiffs, amie hunt, glenda baker and kathleen baucum, are claiming that nashville-based cca should be held liable for the actions of officer james clayton hall. hall was breaking cca rules by allowing more than one inmate out of his cell at a time, according to a final judgment written by circuit judge hentz mcclellan.

mcclellan ruled that hall was concealing this activity from other employees and his supervisors.

"there is no evidence here that cca knew of the dangerous situation created by hall based on prior similar incidents or on explicit warnings of hall's actions," mcclellan wrote in march.

he added that the nurses are only eligible for monetary claims from cca and the county under florida's workman's comp statutes. the case is now being reviewed by florida's first district court of appeals.

hall, hunt, baker and baucum were held hostage for 11 hours by four inmates. during negotiations all of the hostages except for hunt were released in exchange for pizza and a cell phone. the sheriff's office's tactical team stormed into the third floor of the old bay county jail and freed hunt.

however, hunt was shot three times by deputies in the sept. 6, 2004 incident. she filed suit for loss of earnings, pain and suffering and medical expenses incurred.

the bullets entered her hip, back and left leg, damaging bones and vital organs. she survived but had to undergo physical rehabilitation. the other nurses were not physically injured in the incident.

three of the four men involved in the takeover, kevin nix, james norton and matthew coffin were convicted of false imprisonment. nix, norton and coffin were acquitted of more serious charges in the incident, but still sentenced to 15 years in prison for their roles.

the fourth, alleged ringleader kevin winslett, plead guilty to grand theft auto, resisting an officer with violence, assault on a corrections officer, three counts of false imprisonment and six counts of battery on corrections officers. he was sentenced to 22 years in prison in 2007.

h. lawrence perry, the attorney for baucum, baker and hunt, did not return calls seeking comment tuesday. cca and county officials declined to comment because the matter is facing an appeal.