The Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (M-VETS) successfully argued a matter before the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) seeking a fully Honorable conditions discharge for an Army veteran. M-VETS has been working with the veteran since 2019 and recently secured a fully Honorable conditions discharge. The successful application will make the veteran eligible for post-9/11 educational benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA).
The veteran served on active duty as an Infantryman (11B) in the Army from 2017 through 2018. During service, the veteran suffered invisible injuries due to military sexual trauma, which led to self-medication to soothe the symptoms of post-traumatic stress. As a result, the veteran was discharged from the Army under less-than-fully Honorable conditions. This discharge characterization prevented the veteran from accessing DVA educational benefits.
M-VETS student advisors worked with the veteran to collect and analyze military service and DVA treatment records. They teamed up with the George Mason University Center for Community Health (GMU CCMH) to prepare a full-scope psychosocial and emotional evaluation. M-VETS then used the GMU CCMH report to file an application with the ADRB, along with a supporting brief and exhibits, on behalf of the veteran in 2023.
M-VETS Director Timothy M. MacArthur stated, “I’m glad the veteran reached out to M-VETS, and we were able to assist with this issue. Since 2018, the veteran has not been eligible for DVA educational benefits due to the discharge characterization and has carried the stigma of a discharge with less-than-fully honorable conditions. The stigma has been removed, and the veteran can use those hard-earned educational benefits due to the fully Honorable conditions discharge.”
“Thank you so much for all of your help through this long, difficult process!” said the veteran.
MacArthur continued: “GMU CCMH did a remarkable job assessing the situation and preparing a comprehensive evaluation that assisted our veteran in securing a fully Honorable conditions discharge. The completed report showed that the veteran suffered from invisible wounds due to military sexual trauma, which was directly related to military service. Throughout M-VETS’s representation, several M-VETS student advisors assisted with the client’s matter. They truly believed in this veteran’s cause, and I appreciate the time and effort they put into this case,” MacArthur said. “The student advisors did an incredible job, and their hard work paid off.”
M-VETS enables Scalia Law students to assist active-duty members of the armed forces, their families, and veterans in a wide variety of administrative, litigation, and non-litigation matters, including appeals of denials of Department of Veterans Affairs disability compensation and educational claims, representation before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals and Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, applications for discharge upgrades and military records correction before the Boards for Correction of Military Records and Discharge Review Boards.