Chapter 18 - OWEN’S FALSE STATEMENT
Owen’s legal exposure came from his insurer statement.
He had written:
I observed Ms. Park step backward while adjusting the train. I did not observe Vanessa Hale make physical contact before the fall.
False.
He had seen Vanessa’s hands on Cecily’s shoulders.
Maybe he could argue:
I did not see the exact instant of force.
But the statement said no observed physical contact.
He observed contact.
Why write it?
“Attorney suggested neutral facts?”
Which attorney?
Vanessa’s first civil attorney had sent a template.
But the attorney had not witnessed the event and relied on Owen.
Owen chose the sentence.
The attorney was not charged.
The attorney later testified:
“I specifically instructed Mr. Hale that he could not sign anything inaccurate.”
Good.
No evil lawyer.
Owen eventually corrected the statement after the fountain assault.
Too late to erase the original.
Prosecutors considered insurance fraud? The claim was workers’ comp through employer; his statement was supplemental in liability inquiry. No payout directly caused by his lie established.
They pursued a narrower false-statement/obstruction-related charge where applicable.
Measured.
His attorney negotiated.
Owen refused the first deal because it called his conduct:
A coordinated scheme to defraud the insurer.
Too broad.
He had tried to protect Vanessa from blame.
Not steal insurance money.
May you like
Prosecutor revised later.
Words matter.
