FRANKFORT — The state Court of Appeals on Friday reversed a $100,000 award to an inmate who was injured while trimming his warden's tree.

        A three-judge panel said a Boyle Circuit Court judge exceeded his authority in awarding money after the Kentucky Board of Claims rejected the case.

        The ruling did not necessarily end the dispute. The appeals court said the Board of Claims ignored evidence of negligence by prison officials. It ordered the case returned to the board.

        Inmate Johnnie Renner was hurt in 1989 when he fell from a tree at Northpoint Training Center. Mr. Renner had climbed to reach a high limb.

        The Board of Claims blamed Mr. Renner for his injuries. Mr. Renner acknowledged that the Department of Corrections would have given him additional equipment if asked.

        The board concluded that Mr. Renner “took it upon himself to trim the tree in an unsafe manner,” without direction from guard Lt. Virgil Lanham.

        Boyle Circuit Judge Stephen M. Shewmaker ruled, and the appeals court agreed, that the board missed the point. Lt. Lanham merely dropped Mr. Renner off and never discussed how the job should be done. Mr. Renner was unsupervised.

        The $100,000 awarded by Judge Shewmaker was to compensate Mr. Renner for his inability to work in the future. In the appellate opinion, Judge Joseph Huddleston said Judge Shewmaker could have sent the case back to the board but had no authority to award damages.

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