Jim Fausone
Veterans Disability Lawyer

In most organizations the people at the top get it.  The people at the bottom are just doing a job.  It is the people in the middle that make or break the team.  You have seen it where there is “no bench” strength.  If the star football player goes down, no one steps up.  It is about the LTs and the NCOs.  Well, one Congressman called this issue out.  “It’s become apparent to me and many others that there is a culture of complacency among the agency’s middle management,” Rep. Jeffrey Miller (R-Fla.), chair of the House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC), told International Business Times. “These mid-level managers know that as federal employees there is a good chance they’ll have their position longer than I will be chairman of oversight, and longer than the VA secretary will have his job. They’re evidently willing to just wait out those of us who are trying to change things, and unfortunately the consequences are as serious as life and death for our veterans.”  So Congress knows the problem, gosh I don’t want to keep blogging about that for the next decade, and where the bulk of the problem is located.  So, do something!  

Read more about this in a recent article.

http://www.ibtimes.com/va-broken-death-medical-mistreatment-claims-backlogs-neglect-veterans-affairs-hospitals-clinics   

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact an attorney about your PTSD, TBI, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, TDIU, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Veteran suicides continue to be a horrific issue in our country.

Almost one out of every five suicides in the U.S. is a veteran, though veterans only make up about 10 percent of the U.S. population.

The latest numbers indicate that there may be as many as 22 veterans committing suicide each day, or one suicide every 65 minutes. Former defense secretary Leon Panetta says the service member suicide rate is “an epidemic.”

A report by the Department of Veterans Affairs released in February 2013 looked at data reported from 21 states between 1999 and the end of 2011. But the numbers may be even higher, as many vets are missing from the official reports of vet suicides. There is no uniform reporting system of which veteran deaths were suicide-related in the U.S. A coroner or funeral director typically enters the veteran status of the deceased and that the manner of death was suicide on the death certificate. If a veteran dies in a manner that may nor may not be suicide, the incident may go under accidental death. Additionally, when a homeless person commits suicide, his or her veterans status might not be known in that community, and the stigma of suicide in some families and some communities may mean that the manner of death is not divulged or the coroner may be pressured to not list the cause of death as suicide. Veteran status is not verified or followed up by the VA or the Defense Department. Capturing accurate information is an ongoing issue.

A report released by a journalism student program, News21, states that the suicide rate for veterans annually is approximately 30 per 100,000, more than twice the rate of the civilian population (14 per 100,000), and it was also increasing at an accelerated rate compared to civilian suicides. From the 48 states they studied, they found that the suicide rate for vets was increasing an average of 2.6 percent each year, from 2005 to 2011, twice the rate of civilian suicide increase.

Though veteran suicides are happening among men and women, older vets and those who have just returned from Iraq and Afghanistan, almost 70 percent of vet suicides are being committed by those who were 50 and older. Vet mental health advocates currently think that the high levels for that cohort is a combination of Vietnam vets with ongoing combat stress who did not receive adequate support when they returned home, and men who have raised their children to adulthood.

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact an attorney about your Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Jim Fausone
Veterans Disability Lawyer

We deal with VA every day and are at the outer rings of DOD’s activities.  Our clients are guys that have been around the block before and know a thing or two about DOD and VA.  So I am never too surprised by the stories we are told about delay and incompetency.  However, a new report out on DOD tells the story of how DFAS simply makes up numbers, plug numbers, to make its books balance in reports to Treasury.  DFAS, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, is the Pentagon’s main accounting agency.  We all rely on the DFAS numbers like they are gospel.    VA will stick to a DFAS report of pay or benefits as evidence in VA determinations – like hazardous duty pay, flight status, etc.  As reported “At the DFAS offices that handle accounting for the Army, Navy, Air Force and other defense agencies, fudging the accounts with false entries is standard operating procedure, Reuters has found. And plugging isn’t confined to DFAS (pronounced DEE-fass). Former military service officials say record-keeping at the operational level throughout the services is rife with made-up numbers to cover lost or missing information.”

I suspect that if Reuters was doing a similar story on VA it may find the same mentality of “plugging the numbers to get the report out the door.”  Those inaccuracies end up impacting the lives of real people.  Real veterans are not getting benefits or care because of the inability to account for information and resources.  I wish it was not so but this report seems to be well done and convincing.  What are your thoughts or experiences?

http://www.euronews.com/newswires/2215678-special-report-the-pentagons-doctored-ledgers-conceal-epic-waste

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact a veterans attorney, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Jim Fausone
Veterans Disability Lawyer

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder recently signed into law P.A. 161 of 2013. This Act amends MCL 211.7b regarding Veterans Exemptions to read as follows:

Sec. 7b. (1) Real property used and owned as a homestead by a disabled veteran who was discharged from the armed forces of the United States under honorable conditions or by an individual described in subsection (2) is exempt from the collection of taxes under this act. To obtain the exemption, an affidavit showing the facts required by this section and a description of the real property shall be filed by the property owner or his or her legal designee with the supervisor or other assessing officer during the period beginning with the tax day for each year and ending at the time of the final adjournment of the local board of review. The affidavit when filed shall be open to inspection. The county treasurer shall cancel taxes subject to collection under this act for any year in which a disabled veteran eligible for the exemption under this section has acquired title to real property exempt under this section. Upon granting the exemption under this section, each local taxing unit shall bear the loss of its portion of the taxes upon which the exemption has been granted.

(2) If a disabled veteran who is otherwise eligible for the exemption under this section dies, either before or after the exemption under this section is granted, the exemption shall remain available to or shall continue for his or her unremarried surviving spouse. The surviving spouse shall comply with the requirements of subsection (1) and shall indicate on the affidavit that he or she is the surviving spouse of a disabled veteran entitled to the exemption under this section. The exemption shall continue as long as the surviving spouse remains unremarried.

(3) As used in this section, “disabled veteran” means a person who is a resident of this state and who meets 1 of the following criteria:

(a)    Has been determined by the United States department of veterans affairs to be permanently and totally disabled as a result of military service and entitled to veterans’ benefits at the 100% rate.

(b)   Has a certificate from the United States veterans’ administration, or its successors, certifying that he or she is receiving or has received pecuniary assistance due to disability for specially adapted housing.

(c)    Has been rated by the United States department of veterans affairs as individually unemployable.

The State has told tax assessors that:

 This exemption is only available to disabled veterans or, if the veteran has died, to their unremarried surviving spouse who own and use the home as their homestead.

The disabled veteran or their surviving spouse must be a resident of the State of Michigan.

Assessors are advised that eligible disabled veterans will be able to apply for a 2013 exemption at the December 2013 Board of Review. An exemption will cancel the July and December 2013 taxes, but will not cancel any taxes levied before 2013.

The Act requires an Affidavit be filed but does not require this Affidavit to be an official State of Michigan form. A standard Affidavit is not planned to be developed at this time.

If you qualify do not miss out on this tax break for those who became 100% disabled serving the country.

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact a veterans lawyer, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Kristina Derro, Esq.

The 17^th District Court in Redford, Michigan, has established a special veterans court that addresses the problems of military veterans who have encountered legal issues stemming from their military experiences. It allows veterans who were convicted of or plead guilty to certain charges the opportunity to be placed into a special program that, while still holding them accountable for the charges, allows the veterans to receive a coordinated response to the unique problems they are facing. It provides the veterans with a positive interaction between court personnel, prosecutors, probation staff, the VA, and local veterans groups.

One of the big features of this court is that it has established a “Military Veterans Mentoring Program” to assist the veterans appearing before the court. The program pairs troubled veterans with veterans who successfully made the transition from military to civilian life.  It allows a positive interaction and provides the troubled veterans with the opportunity to receive advice and guidance from one of their veteran peers who understands the rigors of returning to civilian life.

Right now, the court is in need of veteran mentors. If you or someone you know is a veteran is willing to commit to a few hours each month to assist a fellow veteran in need, please call the Veterans Coordinator for the 17^th District Court, Jim Badeen, at (313) 387-2792 or visit the mentoring program’s website at www.17thvetmentorsredford.co. You will be trained prior to being paired with a veteran involved in the program.

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact an attorney about your PTSD, TBI, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, TDIU, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Jim Fausone
Veteran Disability Lawyer

If you have served, someone you know in the unit, platoon or brigade was a Native American.  The First Americans have a long and distinguished history of service to the country. As an ethnic group, Native Americans serve at a higher rate than other groups.  That history is marked by 25 Medal of Honor recipients being Native American.  You may not know that Native Americans have their own veteran service organization.

Starting in 2002, the Native American Veterans Association (NAVA) is a mutual fraternal non-profit organization (501 C 19), built around the American Military culture with a rich history and legacy that dates back to and around the creation of the nation. As a Native-American based organization, NAVA stretches its helping hand out to all tribal and non-tribal veterans and their families.

NAVA is an advocate dedicated to serving veterans and their families. This service includes assisting veterans and dependents when applying for Federal, State, and County benefits and all other rights to which they are entitled in the most expedient manner possible.  The official colors of NAVA are Black, Red, Purple, and Gold. The Black represents POW/MIA’s and those who still have not returned. The Red represents the blood of those shed in battle. The Purple represents the Purple Heart. And the Gold represents Honor in Service.

The US Army recognizes the value of Native Americans to the country.  You may find the attached article from Indian Country Media Today.

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/11/04/us-army-recognize-american-indians-throughout-november-152066

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact a veterans attorney, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

The Labor Department is under scrutiny this month by a House subcommittee. The Education and the Workforce subcommittee on Workforce Protections is looking at the Labor Department rules that set the target goals for the number of vets and people with disabilities hired by government contractors. The quotas will only instigate expensive litigation, argued Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.). But regulation backers argue that the regulations will support vets and others to become gainfully employed.

The veteran unemployment rate for those who served post-Sept. 11, 2001 is significantly higher than for civilians. There is also a “substantial disparity,” advocates say, between the unemployment rate for individuals with disabilities and the unemployment rate for individuals without disabilities. Advocates for veterans also say that vets have earned the quota support.

According to Joe Sharpe, the director of the American Legion’s economic division, employers who put an emphasis on hiring veterans when possible are doing their own part to serve their country.  And vets, Sharpe argues, are at a disadvantage, pulled out of the workforce for extended periods of time to serve, which means they have less time and opportunity to gain valuable skills and network. The two regulations, slated to go into effect in March 2014, will set the benchmarks for hiring by government contractors to be at least seven percent individuals with disabilities , and the percentage of veterans determined by the number of veterans presently in the workforce. Currently, the percentage of vets in the workforce is eight percent. Those opposing the rule says that the goals are the same as a quota. However, if a contractor does not comply with the benchmarks for hiring, there are no predetermined fines or penalties.

Mark Perriello, the president and chief executive of the American Association of People with Disabilities argues that the rules are not the same as a quota. The rules, he says, are “an inspirational target” for government contractors. All that is needed is a “good faith effort.” Seven percent is not set in stone. It is a target.

But some advocacy groups are not comfortable with the rules. Contractors will be facing an increase in paperwork requirements.

The public was invited to comment for two months on the federal contractor restrictions. 

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact a veterans lawyer, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Jim Fausone
Veteran Advocate

A 67-year-old Harvard-trained lawyer and former military intelligence officer, John Donald Cody, is on trial in Cleveland after masterminding a $100 million multi-state fraud scheme. Cody was in court this Monday after two years on the run. He is charged with defrauding people who donated to the reputed United States Navy Veterans Association, based in Tampa, FL.

During his scheme, Cody used his many political connections to encourage donations to the charity. However, according to authorities, little to none of the money collected by Cody was actually used to aid Navy Veterans. In fact, most of the money collected went to republican politicians, including Mitt Romney, John McCain, Rudy Giuliani, and former President George W. Bush.

Joseph Patituce, Cody’s defense attorney, hinted at a defense strategy focused on CIA and government secrets involving a secretive operation decades ago in Arizona. Brad Tammaro, an assistant attorney general who is handling the trial, said that even if “by some fantasy” there was government involvement, it did not vindicate the defendant of his actions.

People ask all the time to which veteran charities they should donate.  I tell them to be careful.  You have to know the person asking and the work being done.

To learn more or to see the original article, please visit:
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/09/30/man-accused-in-100m-navy-charity-scam-headed-to-trial/

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact an attorney about your Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

Jim Fausone
Veterans Disability Lawyer

So I am no fashion expert.  I suspect most guys just toss on what is in the closet and hope it does not clash too badly.  Uniforms are supposed to be functional, not clash with the environment, create esprit de corps and be distinguishable.  But when I read about the government’s continuing attempt to reinvent the military uniform it drives me batty.  Eight years ago DOD spent $5 billion on a heavily-criticized universal camouflage pattern (UCP).  Nobody liked it and the pattern did not work in Afghanistan.  Someone said it was only camouflage if you were hiding in a gravel parking lot.   Now the Army is back at the drawing board looking for a new design that’s estimated to cost another $4 billion.

So here is my comparison.  A veteran with a 50% disability receives about $12,000 a year, which is not much to live on and support your wife and child.  We are going to blow $9 billion on fashion choices in a decade.  That would cover the annual cost for 750,000 veterans to receive benefits.  Sometimes I think the government’s priorities are screwed up.  Are you a fan of the UCP or do you want it gone no matter what the price?

http://www.thedailybeast.com/the-hero-project/articles/2013/10/14/the-army-s-5-billion-new-uniform-already-being-replaced.html

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact a veterans attorney, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800

A memorial ceremony has been held for 25 military veterans whose cremains were left unclaimed by family members. The cremains will be recognized in a ceremony inNew Jerseyand then the ashes will be laid to rest inWashington, in a military cemetery there.

The unclaimed cremains include those from seven veterans born in the 1830s or ’40s, and may be from the Civil War, There are also cremains from 12 veterans of World War I and as many as ten others from more recent conflicts.

Francis Carrasco is the chairman of New Jersey Mission of Honor, an organization working to reunite unclaimed ashes of veterans with family members or, barring that, a formal burial. Carrasco said that, as a Vietnam vet, he feels he knows what it is like to be disrespected and pushed aside. The unclaimed veterans deserve better.

Most of the 25 military veterans recently interred were left at Garden State Crematorium inNorth Bergen,New Jersey; the veterans were all fromBergenandHudsoncounties. New Jersey Mission of Honor worked with the parent company to locate the families of the vets prior to interment.

New Jersey Mission of Honor, started in 2009, aims to coordinate with state veterans’ organizations to find, properly identify and properly inter any unclaimedU.S.veteran cremains. To date, New Jersey Mission of Honor has located the cremains of almost 200 veterans with surviving family members and has formally buried 105 more. The oldest cremains located so far date from a vet who fought in the Mexican Border War between 1915 and 1918.  New Jersey Mission of Honor also looks for unclaimed veteran cremains left behind at hospitals, crematoriums, veterans’ homes, prisons and senior homes.

The cremains of veterans that are unclaimed can remain in the basements of funeral homes for decades. Determining the next of kin for relocated cremains can take months or even years. New Jersey Mission of Honor is also working with cremains of an additional 75 vets, looking for their next of kin. Each veteran is buried within a mahogany urn and with an American flag.

New Jersey Mission of Honor is entirely funded by private donations and is comprised entirely of volunteers from non-profit groups and veteran organizations.

Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC fights for veterans rights. We fight to make sure you get the benefits you deserve from the Department of Veterans Affairs. To learn more or contact an attorney about your Post Traumatic Stress, Traumatic Brain Injury, Mental Health, Sexual Assault, Hearing Loss and Tinnitus, Total Disability Based on Individual Unemployability, Medical Malpractice, or Aid and Attendance claim, visit http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com/ or call 800.693.4800