New lawsuit says pentagon breaking law by withholding information from interest groups
February 02, 2020
According to a lawsuit filed in federal court in Virginia by the National Veterans Legal Services Program, the Department of Defense is violating the law by no longer sharing information that helps veterans overturn less-than-honorable discharges from the military.
The group says it no longer has access to military review board decisions on requests to change or upgrade a veteran’s discharge status. This information is used by attorneys arguing for a reconsideration on previous decisions for veterans whose less-than-honorable discharge may have been influenced by post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries.
Research has shown that service-related mental health conditions, PTSD and TBI in particular, have a huge effect on behavior, and these behaviors could easily contribute to a less-than-honorable discharge.
As understanding of this grows, past decisions are more often being contested, reviewed and upgraded. Review boards have evolved in recent years and are much more likely to give the cases of former servicemembers who have a history of these conditions or who were sexually assaulted while in the military special consideration.
Having a less-than-honorable discharge blocks access to veteran benefits and can have a negative impact on the lives of veterans. Depending on the level of discharge status, these vulnerable veterans are kept from healthcare and support services that they likely need.
Veterans of the post-September 11th era have the highest rate of less-than-honorable discharge in history. Review cases can take years to be decided and keeping relevant information from interest groups and attorneys further complicates the process. The lawsuit claims that the Pentagon stopped allowing access to review board decisions in April and that this is a violation of the law.