Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca8-04-01508/USCOURTS-ca8-04-01508-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Jo Anne B. Barnhart
Appellee
David W. Gibson
Appellant

Document Text:

1

The Honorable Charles A. Shaw, United States District Judge for the Eastern

District of Missouri, adopting the report and recommendations of the Honorable

Lewis M. Blanton, United States Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of

Missouri.

United States Court of Appeals

FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT

___________

No. 04-1508

___________

David W. Gibson, *

*

Appellant, *

* Appeal from the United States

v. * District Court for the Eastern

* District of Missouri.

Jo Anne B. Barnhart, Commissioner, *

Social Security Administration, * [UNPUBLISHED]

*

Appellee. *

___________

Submitted: February 7, 2005

Filed: February 10, 2005

___________

Before WOLLMAN, MURPHY, and BENTON, Circuit Judges.

___________

PER CURIAM.

David Gibson appeals from the judgment of the district court1

 upholding the

Commissioner’s decision to order repayment of social security benefits he received

while imprisoned on a felony charge. For reversal, Gibson contends that the

administrative law judge (ALJ) erred in refusing to waive recovery of the

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The Honorable Dean Whipple, United States District Judge for the Western

District of Missouri.

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overpayment. In particular, Gibson argues he was “without fault” in receiving the

overpayment, within the meaning of 20 C.F.R. § 404.506 (2004), which prohibits

recovery of an overpayment that “has been made to an individual who is without fault

if adjustment or recovery would either defeat the purpose of title II of the Act, or be

against equity and good conscience.” Concluding that the ALJ’s decision was

supported by substantial evidence on the record as a whole, see Harris v. Barnhart,

356 F.3d 926, 928 (8th Cir. 2004), we affirm.

Initially, we note that when Gibson was sentenced on his felony charge in

1992, the district court2

 ordered him to “partially pay for his incarceration costs by

signing over his monthly Social Security disability checks to the Bureau of Prisons

during his period of incarceration.” If Gibson had followed that order, the Social

Security Administration (SSA) would have received notice that Gibson was not

entitled to receive the checks. Gibson argues that his sentencing was “traumatic,” the

judge’s order “didn’t register,” he did not think about the checks because they were

being directly deposited into his checking account, and no one provided paperwork

for him to follow through with the order.

The ALJ found that although Gibson had experienced stress, he remained

mentally capable of taking care of his financial interests. The ALJ noted that Gibson

continued to make payments on commercial property he owned while incarcerated,

and that Gibson spent the $10,000 he had remaining even after he was specifically

advised by the SSA that he had been overpaid. We find that substantial evidence

supports the ALJ’s finding that Gibson was not without fault because he “accepted

a payment he knew or could have been expected to know was incorrect.” See 20

C.F.R. § 404.507(a) (2004); Gregg v. Barnhart, 354 F.3d 710, 714 (8th Cir. 2003) (if

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ALJ explicitly discredits claimant, and gives good reasons for doing so, this court

normally defers to credibility findings).

Further, the record supports the overpayment amount of $45,040.30 calculated

by the ALJ. Accordingly, we affirm.

______________________________

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