DOVER, Del. — In a recent ruling, a Delaware judge has determined that a UPS driver who was involved in a serious crash after consuming alcohol is not eligible for workers’ compensation benefits due to his actions prior to the accident. Superior Court Judge Kathleen Vavala stated that the Delaware Industrial Accident Board made an error in granting compensation to Timothy Willis, who had been drinking before operating his vehicle.
Judge Vavala pointed out that Willis’s decision to consume alcoholic beverages while on duty deviated from the typical requirements of his employment. In her assessment, she described the board’s ruling as unreasonable, explaining that voluntary intoxication doesn’t align with the responsibilities expected of someone in his position.
The incident in question occurred in June 2021 when Willis crashed his semi-truck into a guardrail in Baltimore County, Maryland. On that day, he began his shift in Delaware, traveled through Pennsylvania, and was on his way back to Delaware after delivering a trailer. The crash happened around 4 a.m. as he was returning to his base.
According to Judge Vavala’s findings, Willis usually carried a cooler filled with beers to celebrate the end of his shifts. However, on the day of the incident, he started his drinking earlier than usual and admitted to consuming three beers before driving. Despite having attended Alcoholics Anonymous to combat his drinking problem, he acknowledged that he regularly drank and drove after work.
When law enforcement arrived at the scene, they found several beer cans being disposed of by Willis. He displayed symptoms consistent with heavy drinking, including slurred speech and a strong odor of alcohol. Further investigation revealed an open can of beer in his truck and two others found outside. Although Willis refused sobriety tests, subsequent blood tests revealed high blood alcohol concentrations of 0.19 and 0.181, over double the legal limit. He faced charges related to drunk driving but sidestepped a formal conviction by entering a probationary agreement.
The Industrial Accident Board originally did not take the blood test results into account because the tests were not properly authenticated. They also chose to exclude statements made by Willis during a court proceeding in Maryland. In awarding Willis compensation, the board reasoned that the accident transpired during working hours and that breaking UPS’s no-alcohol policy alone did not disqualify him from being in the course of his employment. They claimed a lack of demonstrated intoxication at the time of the crash.
The board based its conclusions on the type of beer consumed, noting that light beer typically has a lower alcohol content and emphasized that there were uncertainties regarding when Willis had been drinking. At one point, they even acknowledged his explanation that he swerved to dodge a deer, which led to the crash.
While acknowledging the board’s ruling about the lack of DUI conviction and exclusion of breathalyzer data, Judge Vavala ruled that the board improperly restricted cross-examination related to Willis’s statements in his plea hearing. Ultimately, she concluded that the board made a significant error in their finding that Willis was acting within the realm of his employment when the accident occurred.
She strongly emphasized that it is neither reasonable nor acceptable for a truck driver to consume alcohol while operating a large vehicle, especially in early morning hours on winding roads. She pointed out that such behavior violates both company policy and legal regulations.
Judge Vavala also warned that upholding the board’s decision could create a hazardous precedent, suggesting that employees might believe they could avoid repercussions for impaired driving if they chose lighter alcoholic beverages. The ruling did not clarify the current employment status of Willis with UPS.