A couple of recent news articles highlighted the fact that if you are behind bars, or are supposed to be behind bars you are not entitled to Social Security benefits. These two very different stories illustrate that fact how you can get there in two very different ways.
This story from the Philadelphia Inquirer is a rather unique situation. William Lewis escaped from a Maryland prison in 1970 and has been a fugitive of justice until he was arrested March 30 of this year. After 47 years as a fugitive of justice, Williams was charged with a new crime – illegally collecting Social Security benefits from January 1991 to March of 2017. Lewis reportedly collect more than $450,000 in benefits during this time despite the fact he was not allowed to under the law because he was a fugitive. Social Security does not allow someone to receive benefits while they are incarcerated or if they are wanted for a crime and are a fugitive of the law.
Williams managed to collect these benefits under a false name, James Wilson, after applying for a new Social Security number, using a fraudulent date of birth and fraudulent names of his parents.
For his deeds Lewis was charged with two counts of mail and wire fraud and one count each of theft of government funds and Social Security fraud. Prior to escaping from prison, Lewis was sentenced to three years in prison December 15, 1969 for breaking and entering and larceny, according to the Maryland Department of Public Safety. He escaped July 3, 1970 from the Poplar Hill Pre-Release Unit less than two years before his sentence was up. Lewis is now 89 years of age.
Getting Angry At A Social Security Office
Anyone who has ever dealt with Social Security can easily become frustrated with the process. There are long lines at local Social Security offices, extreme wait times on phone calls to Social Security offices and a lot of confusion about the process. This all boiled over into a beneficiary’s violent act at a downtown Fresno, California Social Security office.
According to a story from The Modesto Bee, 33-year-old Matthew Faron Blair was sentenced to more than 8 years in federal prison for assaulting a security guard at the Social Security office.
Blair entered the Social Security office October 14, 2014 to collect his monthly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) check, but was informed that his benefits had stopped, but could be renewed if he completed paperwork. This agitated Blair to the point where he needed to be escorted out of the office by a security guard, but Blair was not finished with his outrage. While being escorted by the security guard, Blair became violent, assaulting the guard, who sustained injuries on his head and mouth, which required medical treatment. Authorities claim Blair punched the guard in the mouth and on top of his head before fleeing on foot. Blair was captured 12 days later.
Violence is never acceptable, especially at the offices of a federal agency. In his rash decision Blair not only has 8 years of prison to look forward to, but also will not be eligible for any SSI payments while he is incarcerated.
