The Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) has determined that the deceased service member's discharge in August 1989 was under other than honorable conditions due to willful and persistent misconduct, including drug abuse. The Board found no evidence to upgrade this discharge or establish insanity as a defense. Therefore, the character of the deceased service member's discharge is considered a bar to the appellant's basic eligibility for VA benefits.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the deceased service member's in-service offenses were consistent with those previously reported and concluded that there was no indication of PTSD or inability to adhere to right conduct, thus upholding his under other than honorable conditions discharge.
- Claimed conditions
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Depression, Alcoholism, Neurological Disorders
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 19, 2013
- Citation
- 1342177
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 1342177.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD is granted as the evidence shows a current diagnosis of PTSD, an in-service stressor, and a medical link between the two.
- Denied
The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 50% since March 23, 2004. The Board found that a higher rating is not warranted prior to February 15, 2005 due to the severity of his symptoms and their impact on his social and occupational functioning.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and any acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD resulted in occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity, warranting a 70% disability rating. The Veteran also met the criteria for a TDIU due to his service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
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