The Board denied the Appellant's petition to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for residuals of a punctured lung, finding that it was not incurred in line of duty and resulting from willful misconduct. The Veteran had consumed alcohol and driven while intoxicated, leading to an accident where he suffered injuries including a punctured lung.
The deciding factor: The Board found the Veteran's act of driving under the influence of alcohol constituted willful misconduct, which was the proximate cause of his car accident resulting in the residuals of a punctured lung.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of a punctured lung
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 20, 2020
- Citation
- 20055212
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20055212.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for residuals of a punctured lung to ensure that complete records from Yale Medicine are associated with the claims folder.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claim due to additional evidence being added to the file since the July 2020 Supplemental Statement of the Case.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have residuals of a punctured lung other than blunt trauma to the left chest with healed left rib fractures and left 8th rib deformity, nor is there evidence linking his current shortness of breath to service. Therefore, service connection for this condition is denied.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination.
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