According to the San Francisco Chronicle, a raging racist killed Taneka Talley in March 2006 while she was working as a clerk at a Dollar Tree store in Fairfield, north of SF. But the company’s worker’s comp insurance company denied her 11-year-old son the $250,000 in death benefits because they claim it was a hate crime and not job related. Dollar Tree supports the insurer.

“They’re saying (the killing) didn’t arise out of her employment, except that in this case she wouldn’t have been killed if she hadn’t been at work,” said Frazier’s attorney, Moira Stagliano. “This person didn’t know her, just walked into the store and picked her out.”

The killer, Tommy Joe Thompson, 45, of West Sacramento — had previously served a prison sentence for beating his young son in 1994 — walked in and stabbed Talley.

[A] defense psychiatrist, Herb McGrew, testified that Thompson had told him he stabbed Talley because she was black. Thompson is white.

“You know that he got up that morning, and he said, ‘I’m going to kill a black person,’ ” said Deputy District Attorney Dane Neilson, according to a transcript of the hearing. “She was, unfortunately, the first person he saw, correct?”

“Correct,” McGrew replied.

An insurance company lawyer later cited that exchange in a letter to Stagliano defending the denial of benefits to Talley’s son.

“The doctors testify that Mr. Thompson’s motivation in stabbing Taneka Talley was purely race motivated,” attorney Kelly Hamilton wrote. “As such, it is our belief that our denial in this matter is proper.”

“Taneka Talley was at work, doing her job, when she was killed,” the lawyer said. “If she had not been in that store, she would not have been available to (the killer), and she would still be alive.

“It’s shocking that Dollar Tree and its insurance carrier are using the alleged racist motivation of a killer as an excuse to get out of paying benefits,” Stagliano said.

Killed on the Job? Tough luck. We’re SRS and Dollar Tree. We’ll save a buck by screwing you out of your money. Talk about a hate crime! Find a Dollar Tree near you and let them know what you think.




  1. Paddy-O says:

    # 30 bobbo said, “Maybe Paddy can confirm but I don’t think there are “settlements” per se in Workers Comp. If you prove coverage, you get the statutory amount. End of story.”

    Yes, death, loss an eye, hand, etc., have statutory payouts. I guess someone could settle for less but there is no incentive to do so. Once there is a positive ruling, the Ins Co has to pay.

  2. Mr. Fusion says:

    The insurance company and Dollar Tree are balking because of $250,000. It is a cheap gamble with a healthy payoff for them. And yes, they have every right to challenge the payout.

    Maybe they have a small chance at winning. For the couple of thousand it will cost for a lawyer why not?

    People shop at Dollar Tree because they can buy crap cheaply. They don’t give two hoots that the shit they are buying came from China. Bad publicity only means something to those that care more about people than how cheap they can buy crap. Which is why on any given day half the Republican leadership can be seen in a Dollar Store.

  3. James Hill says:

    #30 – Negative. As I’ve outlined, I take the threads seriously that I choose to. My first post was serious, therefore I was never in character in this thread.

    If you’re going to play the game, play it right.

    That’s another loss for Bobbo.

    Now, as for the content of your post, yes, there are settlements in workers compensation payouts. Further, work on that reading comprehension some more: The issue is with the laws around employees gaining and losing employing, and how they could potentially be interpreted. In this case, there is no wiggle room: Since race can’t be considered at either end of the equation, the insurance company can’t factor in the racial aspect of the killing into its compensation decision.

    Owned your dumb ass again.

    You managed to lose twice with one post. Epic fail for Bobbo, and another thread won by The Great One.


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