California deputy pleads guilty to weapons charge

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A former Sacramento County sheriff's deputy has pleaded guilty to a federal charge stemming from the illegal sale of dozens of weapons, some of which were used by criminals.

Prosecutors in Sacramento say Thomas Lu and fellow former deputy Ryan McGowan, both of Elk Grove, bought and sold handguns that cannot be legally owned by citizens in California.

Lu, age 42, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court to one count of dealing in firearms without a license, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

He is agreeing to cooperate with investigators as part of a deal that could bring him a lighter sentence.

The deputies are charged with serving as straw buyers who trafficked in restricted handguns.

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Does a car or truck accident count as a work injury?

If an employee is injured in a car crash while on the job, they are eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits. “On the job” injuries are not limited to accidents and injuries that happen inside the workplace, they may also include injuries suffered away from an employee’s place of work while performing a job-related task, such as making a delivery or traveling to a client meeting.

Regular commutes to and from work don’t usually count. If you get into an accident on your way in on a regular workday, it’s probably not considered a work injury for the purposes of workers’ compensation.

If you drive around as part of your job, an injury on the road or loading/unloading accident is likely a work injury. If you don’t typically drive around for work but are required to drive for the benefit of your employer, that would be a work injury in many cases. If you are out of town for work, pretty much any driving would count as work related. For traveling employees, any accidents or injuries that happen on a work trip, even while not technically working, can be considered a work injury. The reason is because you wouldn’t be in that town in the first place, had you not been on a work trip.

Workers’ compensation claims for truck drivers, traveling employees and work-related injuries that occur away from the job site can be challenging and complex. At Krol, Bongiorno & Given, we understand that many families depend on the income of an injured worker, and we are proud of our record protecting the injured and disabled. We have handled well over 30,000 claims for injured workers throughout the state of Illinois.

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