In re Application of PATTY L. BRYANT
Case summary
Claimant sought compensation under the Crime Victims Compensation Act for injuries from a DUI incident. The court found the claim timely filed and awarded $4,846.63, with direct payments to medical providers.
Statutes cited: 740 ILCS 45/1; 740 ILCS 45/2(c); 740 ILCS 45/6.1(a); 740 ILCS 45/10.1(e); 740 ILCS 45/18(c); 625 ILCS 5/11-501; 5 ILCS 70/1.25
AI-generated summary from the opinion text — may contain errors. The opinion text and PDF above are the official record.
Headnotes
- Claim deemed filed by date of registration or certification- A claim shall be deemed filed with or received by the State or subdivision to which it was required to be directed on the date it was mailed. The date of registration, certification or certificate shall be deemed the postmarked date, therefore, Claimant filed her claim in the time frame required by the Act as the date of registration was within two years from the incident.
- No compensation shall be made for unsubstantiated claims- If an applicant fails to submit all materials substantiating the claim as requested by the AG, the AG shall notify the applicant of additional items required and the applicant has 30 days to supply those items to the AG. Claimant failed to respond to this request and by doing so, failed to meet a required condition precedent for compensation under the Act in regards to her claimed acupuncture expenses.
OPINION
Storino, J.
This claim arises out of an incident that occurred on Saturday, July 12, 2008.
The claimant, Patty L. Bryant, seeks compensation pursuant to the provisions of the
Crime Victims Compensation Act, hereafter referred to as the Act, 740 ILCS 45/1, et
seq. (2000).
This Court has carefully considered the application for benefits submitted on
Thursday, July 15, 2010, on the form prescribed by the Illinois Attorney General,
and an investigatory report of the Illinois Attorney General which substantiates
matters set forth in the application.
Based upon these documents and other
evidence submitted to the Illinois Attorney General's Office, the Court finds:
1. That on Saturday, July 12, 2008, the claimant, Patty L. Bryant, age 58, [*253] was a victim of a violent crime as defined in §2(c) of the Act, to wit:
Driving Under
the Influence 625 ILCS 5/11-501 (2000).
2. That pursuant to §6.1(a) of the Act, a person is entitled to compensation under the Act if within 2 years of the occurrence of the crime, or within one year after a criminal indictment of a person for an offense, upon which the claim is based, an application is filed, under oath, with the Court of Claims and on a form prescribed in accordance with Section 7.1 furnished by the Attorney General.
If the person entitled to compensation is under 18 years of age or under other legal disability at the time of the occurrence or becomes legally disabled as a result of the occurrence, he may file the application within two years after he attains the age of eighteen years or the disability is removed, as the case may be. Legal disability includes a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Legal disability includes a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder.
3. That the crime occurred on July 12, 2008.
The application for the crime victims compensation program was filed on July 15, 2010.
Two years from the crime date was July 12, 2010.
The date of registration or certification was July 12, 2010.
"Any writing of any kind or description required or authorized to be filed with ... the State ... if mailed but not received by the State or political subdivision, or if received but without a cancellation mark or with the cancellation mark illegible or erroneous, shall be deemed filed with or received by the State or political subdivision to which it was required or authorized to be directed on the date it was mailed, but only if the sender establishes by competent evidence that the writing or payment was deposited, properly addressed, in the United States mail on or before [*254] the date on which it was required or authorized to be filed or was due. ... If a writing or payment is sent by United States registered mail, certified mail or certificate of mailing, a record authenticated by the United States Post Office of such registration, certification or certificate shall be considered competent evidence that the writing or payment was mailed.
The date of registration, certification or certificate shall be deemed the postmarked date."
5 ILCS 70/1.25.
Therefore, the claim was filed in the time frame required by §6.1 (a) of the Act.
4. That the crime occurred in Springfield, Illinois, and all of the eligibility requirements of §6.1 of the Act have been met.
5. That the claimant seeks compensation for medical/hospital expenses, loss of earnings and tuition reimbursement.
6. That after considering insurance and other sources of recovery, the claimant's net compensable loss for medical/ hospital expenses is $4,846.63.
To
date, the claimant has paid $1,542.52 towards this amount.
7. That the claimant has submitted medical/hospital expenses from various providers of service.
Available evidence indicates that these bills are still pending payment by the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois.
In the event that the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois does not pay these expenses, the Claimant can petition the Court for payment of these expenses.
8. That the claimant has indicated that she incurred acupuncture expenses as a result of the crime.
However, the claimant has not demonstrated that the expense was directly related to the crime through the information and documentation provided.
Therefore, pursuant to §10.1(a) of the Act, the [*255] claimant has not incurred a pecuniary loss for acupuncture as defined by the Act.
9. That pursuant to §8.1 of the Act, if an applicant does not submit all materials requested by the Attorney General, the Attorney General shall notify the applicant in writing of the specific additional items of information or materials required and that he has 30 days in which to supply those items to the Attorney General.
10. That on September 23, 2011, the claimant was notified by a letter sent through the U.S. Mail of the materials required to be submitted to the Attorney General to substantiate the claim for loss of earnings and tuition reimbursement.
11. That the claimant has failed to file the substantiating materials within the 30 days required by §8.1 of the Act and has not requested additional time to file this information.
12. That the claimant's net compensable loss is based upon the following:
Compensable Amount
Frisina Family Chiropractic Ltd. $1,008.51
Sunil Bansal, MD 856.40
Illinois Diagnostic Imaging 730.80
Springfield Clinic, LLP 400.00
Capitol Chiropractic 288.40
Orthopaedic Center of Illinois 20.00
Paid Medical Expenses 1,542.52
Total
$4,846.63
13. That the claimant has received no reimbursements that can be counted as an applicable deduction under §l0.1(e) of the Act.
[*256] 14. That the claimant has complied with all pertinent provisions of the Act and qualifies for compensation thereunder.
15. That pursuant to §18(c) of the Act, the Court may order that all or a portion of an award be paid solely and directly to the provider of services.
In the instant case, the Court finds this section applicable and orders that direct payment be made.
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the sum of $1,542.52 (ONE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED FORTY-TWO DOLLARS AND FIFTY-TWO CENTS) be and is hereby awarded to Patty L. Bryant, an innocent victim of a violent crime.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the sum of $1,008.51 (ONE THOUSAND EIGHT DOLLARS AND FIFTY-ONE CENTS) be and is hereby awarded to Frisina Family Chiropractic Ltd. for the medical expenses of Patty L. Bryant.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the sum of $856.40 (EIGHT HUNDRED FIFTYSIX DOLLARS AND FORTY CENTS) be and is hereby awarded to Sunil Bansal, MD for the medical expenses of Patty L. Bryant.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the sum of $730.80 (SEVEN HUNDRED THIRTY DOLLARS AND EIGHTY CENTS) be and is hereby awarded to Illinois Diagnostic Imaging for the medical expenses of Patty L. Bryant.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the sum of $400.00 (FOUR HUNDRED DOLLARS) be and is hereby awarded to Springfield Clinic, LLP for the medical expenses of Patty L. Bryant.
[*257] IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the sum of $288.40 (TWO HUNDRED EIGHTYEIGHT DOLLARS AND FORTY CENTS) be and is hereby awarded to Capitol Chiropractic for the medical expenses of Patty L. Bryant.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the sum of $20.00 (TWENTY DOLLARS) be and is hereby awarded to Orthopaedic Center of Illinois for the medical expenses of Patty L. Bryant.