Suspect's lawyer describes Minn. courthouse attack

National News

In the moments after authorities say a man just convicted in a criminal trial opened fire at a small northern Minnesota courthouse, it was his defense attorney who rushed to the aid of two shooting victims.

John Lillie III described a chaotic scene Thursday just minutes after his client, Daniel Schlienz, was convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Authorities have identified Schlienz, 42, as the man who shot the prosecutor who handled his case and another man.

In an interview with the Star Tribune of Minneapolis, Lillie said he was speaking to Schlienz's mother when he heard a shot ring out inside the Cook County courthouse.

Lillie said he followed a man's pleas for help and found Gregory Thompson, of Grand Marais, wounded. He dragged Thompson outside, then re-entered the courthouse to warn workers. Lillie said he heard two more shots on the second floor and ran up to find Tim Scannell, the county prosecutor, bleeding from three gunshot wounds.

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Workers’ Compensation Subrogation of Administrative Fees and Costs

When a worker covered by workers’ compensation makes a claim against a third party, the workers’ compensation insurance retains the right to subrogate against any recovery from that third party for all benefits paid to or on behalf of a claimant injured at work. When subrogating for more than basic medical and indemnity benefits, the Texas workers’ compensation subrogation statute provides that “the net amount recovered by a claimant in a third‑party action shall be used to reimburse the carrier for benefits, including medical benefits that have been paid for the compensable injury.” TX Labor Code § 417.002.

In fact, all 50 states provide for similar subrogation. However, none of them precisely outlines which payments or costs paid by a compensation carrier constitute “compensation” and can be recovered. The result is industry-wide confusion and an ongoing debate and argument with claimants’ attorneys over what can and can’t be included in a carrier’s lien for recovery purposes.

In addition to medical expenses, death benefits, funeral costs and/or indemnity benefits for lost wages and loss of earning capacity resulting from a compensable injury, workers’ compensation insurance carriers also expend considerable dollars for case management costs, medical bill audit fees, rehabilitation benefits, nurse case worker fees, and other similar fees. They also incur other expenses in conjunction with the handling and adjusting of workers’ compensation claims. Workers’ compensation carriers typically assert, of course, that, they are entitled to reimbursement for such expenditures when it recovers its workers’ compensation lien. Injured workers and their attorneys disagree.

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