A Pierce County couple will pay nearly $23,000 in restitution and fines after pleading guilty to charges they continued to employ workers in their Spanaway towing business after the state prohibited them from doing so, officials said Wednesday.
The state Department of Labor & Industries revoked the certificate of industrial insurance for A1 Towing Service in 2011 after owners Sandra and Billie Rouse failed to pay for workers’ compensation insurance for their employees.
According to court documents, the Rouses told a revenue agent that they were continuing to operate the business without employees. However, an L&I investigator determined several employees were continuing to work for the business, the documents state.
While observing the business over time, the investigator saw employees using company trucks to pick up and deliver various vehicles, including vehicles at the scenes of accidents.
The Rouses appeared in Pierce County Superior Court last week and entered guilty pleas to a felony charge of engaging in business after the certificate of coverage had been revoked, the department stated.
In addition to the restitution and fines, Billie Rouse was sentenced to a 30-day jail term that was converted to 240 hours of community service.
c.roberts@thenewstribune.com
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