N.Y. Appellate Court Reinstates Police Officer’s 9/11-Related Disability Claim

NEW YORK — A New York appellate court has reinstated a police officer’s claim for disability benefits arising from his post-9/11 work at the World Trade Center site and a Staten Island landfill, saying an administrative board erred in rejecting evidence that his sleep and breathing difficulties constitute a line-of-duty injury. Dement v. Kelly, 2012 N.Y Slip Op 04949 [Index No. 112762/2009] (N.Y. Sup. Ct. App. Div., 1st Dept.).

A three-judge panel of the New York Supreme Court Appellate Division, First Department concluded June 19 that a medical board considering petitioner William Dement’s claim failed to cite any evidence contradicting …