“As such, Ms. Kilcher will vigorously defend herself and asks that she be afforded the presumption of innocence both in and outside the courthouse,” he said.
Kilcher starred as Pocahontas in the 2005 film “The New World” alongside Colin Farrell and Christian Bale, and as the title character in 2009’s “Princess Kaiulani,” the story of the last heir apparent to the Hawaiian throne.
While filming “Dora and the Lost City of Gold” in October 2018, Becker said, Kilcher was riding in a production vehicle when her neck and right shoulder were injured.
She saw a doctor a few times that year but allegedly stopped treatment for her injuries and quit responding to the insurance company handling her claim, according to the California Department of Insurance’s investigation.
Kilcher allegedly contacted the insurance company in October 2019, telling her doctor that she needed treatment and that she had been offered jobs since her injury but had not been able to take them because her neck pain was so acute, investigators said.
Kilcher then filed for and received temporary disability benefits.
The investigation found that Kilcher worked on the Paramount Network’s “Yellowstone” from July 2019 to October 2019 even though she had filed a claim saying she was unable to work for a year.
She received disability payments five days after working on the show, according to investigators.
Becker, her attorney, rebuffed the notion that she had received the payments with intentional deception, and he said she provided regular updates to her Division of Workers’ Compensation caseworker.
“Third-party doctors verified her injury and entitlement to benefits,” he said. “Ms. Kilcher was at all times candid with her doctors and treatment providers.”
The doctor on her claim told insurance investigators he would never have approved her disability payments had he known about her recent employment, the Department of Insurance said.
Kilcher surrendered and was arraigned May 27, according to the Department of Insurance. Her next scheduled court date is Aug. 7.
If convicted, Kilcher could face up five years in state prison and a $50,000 fine for each count.
