Mississippi Court Will Hear Electrocution Workers’ Compensation Appeal

The Mississippi Supreme Court will hear an appeal from a former Ripley alderman who lost both hands after being electrocuted.

WTVA-TV in Tupelo reported that Lonnie Smith was working for the Tippah Electric Power Association when he came in contact with powerlines while inside a bucket truck on April 29, 2010.

Smith lost both hands in the accident.

The Mississippi Worker’s Compensation Commission appointed a judge to hear Smith’s claim. The judge ruled he intentionally injured himself and was not entitled to any compensation.

The Mississippi Court of Appeals upheld the judge’s ruling this past May.

Smith is currently being held in the hospital unit of the Mississippi State Penitentiary, where he is serving 12 years for manslaughter in a 2010 fatal shooting.