The Board determined that the veteran's injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident on January 1, 1966 were due to his own willful misconduct and therefore not incurred in the line of duty. As a result, service connection for residuals of left ear injury and right ring finger injury was denied.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the veteran's intoxication at the time of the accident proximately caused the injuries and thus ruled out any service connection due to willful misconduct.
- Claimed conditions
- Left ear laceration, Right ring finger injury
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- July 25, 2002
- Citation
- 0208402
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0208402.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied a compensable evaluation for the Veteran's right ring finger injury residuals, finding that the disability is rated as noncompensable under Diagnostic Code 5230.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, but remanded the issues of service connection for gout, a right ring finger injury, and a low back disorder due to insufficient medical opinions.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran is entitled to a compensable rating of 10 percent for his service-connected right ring finger disability, which impacts his ability to perform prolonged gripping and grasping activities due to pain. The Veteran's forehead scar is rated as noncompensable.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for payment of or reimbursement for private medical expenses incurred on February 23, 2012, as there was no prior authorization from VA and the treatment did not meet the criteria for emergency services.
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