The Board found that the Veteran's multiple claimed disabilities were not the proximate result of active duty and were, in fact, due to his own misconduct.
The deciding factor: The evidence demonstrated that the Veteran was intoxicated at a blood alcohol level of 0.24 which made him an unfit driver, driving at a speed far in excess of the legal speed limit, and that this misconduct was the proximate cause of his injuries.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of a left clavicle fracture, residuals of a left radius and ulna fracture with scar on the forearm/elbow and degenerative joint disease of the left elbow, history of cellulitis of the left hand and wrist with polyarthritis of the left wrist, residuals of a left hand fracture with deformity, scars, and degenerative joint disease, residuals of fractured ribs, residuals of a splenectomy, residuals of liver and kidney lacerations with scars of the abdomen and lower back, bilateral ankle scars
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 17, 2009
- Citation
- 0905652
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0905652.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of proper notice and an inadequate medical opinion, which may affect eligibility for PCAFC benefits. The Veteran's service-connected conditions are noted but no rating or effective date is provided.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal was dismissed because the Notice of Disagreement (NOD) did not identify a specific decision or issue with which he disagreed. The NOD was filed in October 2021, but there is no January 2021 rating decision that the Veteran could have appealed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded two issues for further development: service connection for left achilles tendonitis and service connection for residuals of a left clavicle fracture as secondary to service-connected Parkinson's disease. The Veteran is seeking service connection for these conditions, which the Board finds requires additional medical opinions due to insufficient evidence in the record.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to the need for a medical opinion regarding the date of onset of pain from the Veteran's bilateral ankle scars associated with his surgeries in 1988 and/or prior to February 22, 2018.
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