South Carolina Legal Assistance to Military Personnel (LAMP)

The South Carolina Bar has a Legal Assistance for Military Personnel Program whose webpage reads (in part):

"South Carolina attorneys have volunteered to provide free or reduced fee legal services to active military personnel in the following practice areas:

• Consumer Law
• Criminal Law
• Family Law
• Personal Injury Law
• Probate Law
• Real Estate Law

To request assistance through the LAMP Program please submit the following:

• Name
• A brief summary of the issue with which you need assistance (including the South Carolina county)
• Your contact information

Please note that this program serves active military personnel and in some circumstances their immediate family members. If you are not active duty military, please review our pro bono and Find a Lawyer resources. Your request will be reviewed, and you will be matched with an appropriate program volunteer. You may submit your request via e-mail to lamp@scbar.org or contact [a phone number at this link]"

More Info

In addition, the South Carolina State Bar has a number of other resource available to the general public, which may be useful to servicemembers, veterans and their families. These include:

• Its Lawyer Referral Service may help you find a lawyer
• Its web page of useful Self-Help Resources has detailed directions for pro se divorce -- a simple divorce you do yourself
• Ask-a-Lawyer - an innovative, televised phone-bank! For air times and call-in numbers, see http://www.scbar.org/public_services/ask-a-lawyer/
• A volunteer Pro Bono Program for people with very low incomes.

Active duty service members may wish to go first to Armed Forces Legal Assistance's nice online database to "locate active duty legal activities offering general legal services within the continental United States". A query for the state of South Carolina is here

Findlaw has a city-by-city list of lawyers interested in representing active-duty military personnel, military reservists, and former military personnel with “veteran” status here.

For Attorneys

In addition to the above, the South Carolina State Bar has a Military Law Section which

"... maintains an interest in the fields of law controlling or affecting the military community and seeks to improve communication between the military and civilian communities. The Section hosts periodic meetings and social events to communicate and improve relations with active component military lawyers and annually contributes to the JAG CLE On-Site Program. Other projects include: cosponsoring a CLE seminar with the Attorney General's office and Shaw Air Force Base; continuing to provide speakers to ROTC college classes; and publication of a newsletter.

Attorneys who are not members of the SC Bar but may have an interest (e.g. reservists or others stationed in SC) may become a section "Affiliate"; learn more about the benefits of being an Affiliate in its "Pen and Sword" newsletter.

For section contact information and much more, see the Section Web Page.

You can find more information about doing pro bono in general at South Carolina Access to Justice and the SC Access to Justice Weblog.

If you have more information on the above, or on other efforts to provide legal help to our warrior community, please leave a comment below. The purpose is service!

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See also

• ABA Military Pro Bono Project
• State-by-state list of LAMP programs

Specialist Amy Brian and the Harm of DADT

The matter of Amy Brian, formerly of the Kansas National Guard, raises serious questions about the impact of Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT) on retention of qualified personnel, as well as basic human fairness and American Fair Play.

As reported in the Kansas City Star

"She joined the Guard in 1991 as a high school senior and served until 1994, when she married. She had a son and eventually divorced. She re-enlisted in 2003. The following year, just as she was preparing for a deployment in Iraq, she told her parents she was gay.

“I just found myself,” Brian said. “My mom and dad were supportive. They knew their grandson was being taken care of and that the woman I was with was good for me. They just didn’t want me to flaunt it.”

She then drove in a convoy from Kuwait to Camp Anaconda in Balad, Iraq.

Brian soon became accustomed to daily mortar fire that might last from 20 minutes to a few hours. The soldiers jokingly referred to the base as “Mortaritaville” during the bombardments.

Brian worked 12-hour shifts on a vehicle maintenance crew. Later, she was assigned to narrate award ceremonies, write evaluations and perform office work. She did not see combat, but she did see Iraqi children in the camp hospital being treated for injuries that included missing limbs from roadside bombs.

In October 2005, Brian left Iraq and returned to her full-time job at the U.S. Property and Fiscal Office, which is part of the Kansas Guard’s Topeka headquarters.

She worked as a secretary and then moved up to purchasing and contracting. She completed college and enrolled in Friends University to earn a master’s degree in business administration.

Then in August 2008, a lieutenant told her she was being investigated for homosexual conduct. A civilian co-worker claimed to have seen Brian kissing a woman at a Wal-Mart.

Someone else began sending anonymous e-mails to as many as 12 officers in Brian’s chain of command, saying Brian was gay. The e-mails gave the address of a Web site — not her MySpace page — showing her photograph and revealing her sexual orientation.

The accusations led the Guard to begin an investigation. Brian chose not to request a hearing before a board of three officers. To do so risked a dishonorable discharge if they found her guilty.

Instead, she resigned from the property office in September. She continued her military affiliation until Jan. 13, when she received a general discharge under honorable conditions.

“Each (accusation) alone may not have been enough,” said Brian’s appointed counsel, Maj. Jared Maag, senior defense counsel for Trial Defense Services for the Kansas National Guard. “But combine them, the command obviously thought they had enough to go forward.”

Maag said he has requested a low re-entry code for Brian, which would make it easier for her to re-enlist should the policy change.

But Brian said she doesn’t know if she would re-enlist. Losing her $22-an-hour job was bad enough, but she also lost her education benefits, which prevented her from completing her master’s degree."

The full article by Malcom Garcia is here.

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Let us summarize:

• The soldier served honorably and well in a combat zone
• The specialist's sexual orientation did not affect her service or that of her unit
• She didn't out herself; a nosy person decided to complain about something that had nothing to do with them, one or more cowards launched an anonymous email campaign, and command (in a time of war) declined to use its prerogative of Nelson's blind eye
• The soldier lost a job and educational benefits
• Our nation lost a soldier.

Was this really wise?

Was this really American?

South Dakota Legal Assistance to Military Personnel (LAMP),

Servicemembers, veterans and families in South Dakota can use a variety of legal help resources available to the general public.


The State Bar of South Dakota describes its useful South Dakota Lawyer Referral Service:

"You can review the Lawyer Referral list online or may call 1-800-952-2333 toll free for lawyer referral services.

This directory is published by the South Dakota Lawyer Referral Service, which is a public service of The State Bar of South Dakota. It is designed to help you locate a private attorney. If you would like assistance in using the directory, call the South Dakota Lawyer Referral Service toll-free ..."

For the toll-free number, please see:
http://www.sdbar.org/lawyereferral/lawyereferral.shtm

South Dakota Department of Military and Veterans Affairs maintains a useful
Resource Center ( Motto: Wellness is Readiness) featuring a toll-free number and more information on its webpage.

Then there is the Dakota Plains Legal Services

"Dakota Plains Legal Services is a private, non-profit organization funded by Congress through the National Legal Services Corporation to provide free legal assistance to eligible persons, Native American and non-Native American, residing in our service area."
http://www.dpls.org/

DPLS has Branch offices

• Mission
• Fort Thompson
• Fort Yates
• Eagle Butte
• Pine Ridge
• Sisseton
• Rapid City

Branch office Contact Information

Active duty service members may wish to go first to Armed Forces Legal Assistance's nice online database to "locate active duty legal activities offering general legal services within the continental United States". A query for the state of South Dakota is here

The Findlaw website has a city-by-city list of lawyers interested in representing active-duty military personnel, military reservists, and veterans here.If you have more information on the above, or on other efforts to provide legal help to our warrior community, please leave a comment below. The purpose is service!

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See also

• ABA Military Pro Bono Project
• State-by-state list of LAMP programs

PTSD and Rulemaking, per Veterans for Common Sense

Here's a letter from the group Veterans for Common Sense suggesting how existing law could improve the PTSD situation, without additional legislative action (except, most likely, appropriations of money:

"On January 26, VCS sent a letter to our new VA Secretary, Erik Shinseki, urging him to use his rule-making authority to promulgate a regulation establishing a presumption of service connection for deployed veterans diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) based on the recent Institute of Medicine report linking PTSD with deployment to a war zone. http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/articleid/12186

VA reports more than 105,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are already diagnosed with PTSD. http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/articleid/12148. Many of the bureaucratic hurdles veterans face for treatment and benefits start in the military. That's why VCS developed four priority items for the military to improve how the military handles PTSD during 2009:

1. VCS urges DoD to implement the 1997 Force Health Protection law, PL 105-85, Section 761-771, that requires the military to provide pre- and post-deployment medical exams to all service members. The Government Accounting Office and the Institute of Medicine found the current system of asking soldiers to self-report mental illness was woefully inadequate. We believe mandatory exams by physicians will reduce stigma against PTSD by normalizing the exam process. When a civilian police officer is involved in a shooting, he or she receives a mandatory exam before returning to duty. This same standard of required exams should apply to all our troops when they return home from combat.

2. VCS urges DoD to implement a strong anti-stigma program as required by the National Defense Authorization Act for 2009. We believe that attitudes toward veterans with PTSD will change with education about the causes, symptoms, and treatments. Education should describe the devastating consequences of untreated PTSD like broken families, unemployment, crime, drug and alcohol abuse, homelessness, and suicide. We believe that reducing stigma will encourage more veterans to seek treatment and provide a smoother readjustment for our veterans into colleges, jobs, and communities without fear of discrimination.

3. VCS urges DoD to hire additional mental health professionals to meet the increasing demand for examinations and treatment. In February 2007, the American Psychological Association reported a 40 percent vacancy rate for mental health professionals within the Department of Defense. If DoD plans to perform the mandatory exams in a timely manner, then the military must have a sufficient supply of mental health practitioners to meet the ever-increasing demand. More than 717,000 troops have deployed two or more times to the war zones, and these veterans are now at greater risk for developing PTSD than those who deploy only once. Identification and early treatment for PTSD will save taxpayers' money and help stem the growing suicide epidemic.

4. VCS urges VA to work more closely with DoD implementing the Force Health Protection law so VA has sufficient records to provide medical care and process disability claims. We believe that many of the problems VA faces when dealing with PTSD arise due to inadequate military policies that flow unchecked downstream toward VA. We are concerned that there are 105,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans diagnosed by VA with PTSD, yet only 42,000 veterans receive VA disability compensation for PTSD - an unacceptable 40 percent approval rate that may be caused by a lack of military medical records. VCS also urges VA to grant automatic disability benefits to Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans diagnosed with PTSD by VA.

We know these are ambitious goals, but we here at VCS believe they are necessary to reduce the rising tide of PTSD-related violence and suicides among our veterans. Your contribution to VCS will help make this ambitious agenda for 2009 attainable.

Thank you,

Paul Sullivan
Executive Director
Veterans for Common Sense"

District of Columbia Legal Assistance to Military Personnel (LAMP)

The District of Columbia is physically small enough that a many legal services for matters essentially federal in nature may be better addressed by resources in the neighboring states. None-the-less, there are some useful resources specific to the District of Columbia.

For Servicemembers, Veterans and Families

For the public, the District of Columbia Bar Association maintains some useful Programs and Services such as a Free Child Custody Clinic, a Divorce Clinic, a Landlord Tenant Resource Center and more: See the List here.

For active services members, a recent positive development was recently announced:

2/4/2009 - BOLLING AFB, D.C. -- The Air Force and Army recently opened the Pentagon Army and Air Force Legal Assistance Office. An official ribbon cutting ceremony will be held Feb. 25 at 2 p.m.

"It's a shared office with people working toward a common vision of providing superior customer service to Soldiers and Airmen," said Lt. Col. Dawn M. Zoldi, 11th Wing Staff Judge Advocate.

PAAFLAO, located in room 5B1058A, is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Legal assistance will be provided on an appointment basis to eligible Army and Air Force clients only.

"This convenient location provides 'in the building" support and saves clients the trip to Bolling," said Colonel Zoldi. "And it's only two doors down from the new military personnel flight."

Eligible clients include active-duty servicemembers and their dependents, retirees and their dependents, and certain National Guard and Reserve members. Powers of attorney and notary services will be provided on a walk-in basis. The PAAFLAO also offers limited tax services this year.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (703) 571-3114. Directions to the office from the Pentagon Metro Station are available upon request."

Active duty service members may also wish to check the Armed Forces Legal Assistance's nice online database to "locate active duty legal activities offering general legal services within the continental United States". A query for the District of Columbia is here

DC is home to a high concentration of law schools, many of which host community legal clinics, such as The district is also home to a large number of legal clinics hosted by law schools such as Georgetown Legal Clinics, David A. Clarke School of Law's Housing Clinic, the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law's Columbus Community Legal Services, George Washington University's Jacob Burns Community Legal Clinics. These are all volunteer programs that may vary greatly in availability due to the academic calendar and the huge volume of unmet legal needs, but they may be worth checking out and are definitely worth supporting.

Findlaw has a list of DC lawyers interested in representing active-duty military personnel, military reservists, and former military personnel with “veteran” status here.

For Attorneys

The Bar Association of the District of Columbia has a Military Law Committee, about which I've not learned much; see contact information here (scroll down the page a bit). Otherwise, neither BADC, District of Columbia Bar Association, nor the Washington Bar Association (this DC organization is to be distinguished from the Washington State Bar Association) does not seem to have a Legal Assistance to Military Personnel (LAMP) Section. However, there is little doubt that DCBA's Pro Bono programs would be happy to hear from you; attorneys looking to provide pro bono help should see DCBA's Directory of Legal Service Providers. Entrepreneurs will swiftly note that there is, at this writing, nothing on that page listed under the subject matter "veterans"; this is an opportunity for a active attorney to get something started! And surely, in these times, wouldn't you want your firm to have an honorable place on its Pro Bono Partnership (PART) webpage?

If you have more information on the above, or on other efforts to provide legal help to our warrior community, please leave a comment below. The purpose is service!

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See also

• ABA Military Pro Bono Project
• State-by-state list of LAMP programs

Tennessee Legal Assistance to Military Personnel (LAMP)

The Tennessee legal community provies legal assistance to military personnel in a variety of ways. Active duty service members may wish to go first to Armed Forces Legal Assistance's nice online database to "locate active duty legal activities offering general legal services within the continental United States". A query for the state of Tennessee is here.

While Tennessee Bar Association does not seem to have a Legal Assistance to Military Personnel (LAMP) Section at present, its However, its Young Lawyer Division (YLD) participates in the ABA’s "Operation Enduring LAMP" program through runs Operation Volunteer, in which service members and their families seeking pro bono legal assistance contact the Tennessee Bar Association (221 4th Avenue N #400 Nashville, TN 37219 615/383-7421) and are referred to the YLD Disaster Relief Committee. Operation Volunteer has identified attorneys who are willing to reservists and National Guard personnel and their families in the areas of real estate, business & commercial law, landlord/tenant, domestic relations, non-taxable wills, estates and estate planning, employment, SSCRA, banking, and disability law.

Tennessee attorneys also participate in Lawyers Serving Warriors, a nationwide program providing free legal services to U.S. military personnel and veterans who have served in OIF or OEF in the following situations:

• Referred to the physical disability evaluation system.
• Facing an involuntary administrative separation.
• Received an inappropriate discharge, discharge characterization, or disability rating.
• Pursuing a claim with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for disability compensation.
• Claim under the Traumatic Injury Insurance Under the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance (TSGLI).

According to this press release, the Boult Cummings law firm in Nashville hosts the "Lawyers Serving Warriors: Launch Project"; training was recently offered at the offices of Vowell & Jennings Court Reporters. If you're seeking participation (either as a lawyer or as a clint) see the online form.

Tennessee servicemembers and veterans (along with everyone else) may use the state's new OnlineTNJustice website to access volunteer lawyers online! Some restrictions apply - see OnlineTNJustice for details.

Survey for Female Veterans

Female veterans may be interested in the following message:

Attn: Military Women in Combat Past and Present, Exploration of Traumatic Events

"Hi! I am Diane Delauter, a Masters in Social Work student at Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts. I am conducting a brief - 10 - 15 minute research study for military women - either active duty or veterans. I am exploring potential traumatic experiences of military women who have deployed to Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and/or Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or earlier conflicts. Much research has been conducted on the male experience of war and combat. This study will focus on the female perspective and experiences in hopes of further validating women's roles and sacrifices in the Armed Services.

Survey Link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=OS90GMympNl_2b9LEstcsPww_3d_3d
Your participation would be completely anonymous, greatly appreciated, and may help health and wellness professionals better serve the women like you who have done so much for their country.

Thank you for your time and your service!"

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There is a lot more information, especially concerning anonymity and confidentiality, at the survey page. If you qualify for the survey, please check it out!