Kessler O/B/O Kessler V. Payette County

Lenore Kessler, the Claimant-Appellant, seeks death benefits under Idaho's Worker's Compensation Law for the death of her husband, Robert F. Kessler (Kessler). Kessler, who was a Payette County reserve deputy sheriff on the warrants entry team, was shot to death while state law enforcement officers were serving an arrest warrant on Kessler. The Industrial Commission (Commission) denied benefits, reasoning that Kessler's death did not arise out of and in the course of his employment. The Commission further found that, even if Kessler's death arose out of and in the course of his employment, his death was proximately caused by his wilful intent to injure another and that his widow, thus, was not entitled to benefits.