The veteran's death was caused by suicide, which the Board found to be due to service-connected disabilities and personal legal problems.,The veteran had a combined 100% disability rating for his service-connected conditions from April 1989 until his death in April 1998.
The deciding factor: The veteran's suicide was determined to have been caused by mental unsoundness due to service-connected disabilities and personal legal problems.
- Claimed conditions
- squamous cell carcinoma metastatic to the thyroid, left true vocal cord paralysis with severe hoarseness, scarring from left modified radical neck dissection, lateral epicondylitis of the left elbow, sacroiliac arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- May 2, 2000
- Citation
- 0011545
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0011545.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
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- Remanded (sent back)
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- Denied
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