Citation Nr: 22017381
Decision Date: 03/24/22	Archive Date: 03/24/22

DOCKET NO. 17-01 628
DATE: March 24, 2022

REMANDED

Whether the character of the Appellant's discharge from service constitutes a bar to the receipt of Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Appellant served on active duty with the United States Coast Guard from August 2006 to December 2007; the character of this service is the subject of this appeal.  

This matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2014 administrative decision issued by a VA Regional Office (RO) that determined the Appellant's military service does not entitle him to VA benefits.  The Appellant testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) at a hearing in November 2021.

The undersigned grants the Appellant's August 2019 motion to advance his appeal on the Board's docket based on severe financial hardship pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.800(c).

 

Whether the character of the Appellant's discharge from service constitutes a bar to the receipt of VA benefits is remanded.

The service personnel records associated with the claims file are incomplete, as only records pertaining to the facts and circumstances of the Appellant's discharge and separation documents were requested.  A remand is necessary to obtain the entire personnel file, as the Appellant's discharge was premised on a pattern of misconduct, and records documenting the misconduct are not present in the claims file for the Board's review.

As the Appellant's discharge involves medical issues, the RO should also ensure that the service treatment records are complete.

The matter is REMANDED for the following action:

Attempt to obtain any service personnel and treatment records that are not already of record from the appropriate repositories, and associate those documents with the claims file.  

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All such attempts should be documented in the claims file.  If the above described records are unavailable, the Appellant's file must be documented clearly to that effect and the Appellant notified in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(e).

 

 

M. SORISIO

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	K. Josey, Counsel

The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.