Gordon v. United States

162 Ct. Cl. 740, 1963 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 129, 1963 WL 8525
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedJuly 12, 1963
DocketNo. 220-58
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 162 Ct. Cl. 740 (Gordon v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gordon v. United States, 162 Ct. Cl. 740, 1963 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 129, 1963 WL 8525 (cc 1963).

Opinion

Per Curiam :

Plaintiff, a Reserve officer, was released from extended active duty, not for physical disability, on July 1, 1946. He claims he was then unfit for military duty and should have been retired for physical disability and be entitled to retired pay. He bases this action on the alleged arbitrary and capricious action of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in not correcting his record to show entitlement to retired pay.

Fitness for duty is relative to the duties to be performed. See Patten v. United States, 161 Ct. Cl. 131 (1963). The facts as found by a Commissioner of this court show that at the time plaintiff was released from active military duty he was physically capable of performing any duties of an administrative nature that might be assigned to an Army officer, and was physically incapable only of strenuous physical exertion. Accordingly, this plaintiff has failed in his burden to show that he was incapacitated at the time he was released. Consequently, the action of the Correction Board cannot be said to be arbitrary or capricious. Nor was there error shown on the part of the Army in effecting plaintiff’s release for reasons not physical. Plaintiff is not entitled to recover in this action, and his petition is dismissed.

The defendant has raised an issue of the 6-year statute of limitations, 28 U.S.C. § 2501, which, in the light of the above, is not reached or discussed in this opinion.

FINDINGS OF FACT

The court, having considered the evidence, the report of Trial Commissioner Mastin G. White, and the briefs and argument of counsel, makes findings of fact as follows:

1. The plaintiff is a citizen of the United States and is now a resident of Glencoe, Illinois.

2. The plaintiff enlisted in the Army of the United States on September 10,1942.1 He served on active duty as an en[742]*742listed man. from March. 12, 1943, to January 26, 1945. On the latter date, the plaintiff was commissioned a second lieutenant, Infantry, A.U.S. He was promoted to first lieutenant on October 3,1945.

3. When the plaintiff enlisted in the Army, when he went on active duty as an enlisted man, and when he became an officer, and throughout the period up to October 1945, the plaintiff was found to be, and was, fit for general service. He was on active general service from March 12,1943, until October 1945, when he became ill, as indicated in subsequent findings.

4. At the time when the plaintiff became ill in October 1945, he had been detailed to perform administrative duties with the Army in Berlin, Germany. He was the administrative officer in the Visitors Bureau, Office of Military Government.

5. In October 1945, the plaintiff contracted bulbar and spinal poliomyelitis in line of duty. He was hospitalized for the illness on October 19,1945.

6. (a) In bulbar poliomyelitis, there is an involvement of the poliomyelitic virus with the functional centers within the brain stem. This disease is often fatal. However, if the patient recovers, the recovery is usually complete, with no permanent residuals or after effects from the disease.

(b) In spinal poliomyelitis, there is an involvement of the poliomyelitic virus with the motor fibers of anterior horn cells of the spinal cord. A patient may recover from spinal poliomyelitis but have permanent residuals from the disease in the form of permanent damage to affected nerve fibers, with resulting atrophy of and weakness in the muscles controlled by the particular nerve cells.

(c) The treatment of poliomyelitis is part of the medical specialty known as orthopedics.

7. The plaintiff’s attack of poliomyelitis was critical. For a time, he was near death and sustained almost complete paralysis.

8. Because of the poliomyelitis, the plaintiff was hospitalized in the European Theater of Operations from October 19, 1945, to February 28, 1946, when he was returned to the United States. Thereafter, he was hospitalized in Army [743]*743hospitals within the United States until May 16,1946. The last of these hospitals was the Camp Upton Convalescent Hospital at Camp Upton, New York, where the plaintiff was a patient from March 5 to May 16, 1946.

9. During the course of the hospitalization mentioned in finding 8, the plaintiff recovered from both the bulbar and the spinal poliomyelitis, and regained his freedom of motion and movement. However, the plaintiff sustained permanent residual nerve and muscle damage as the effects of the spinal poliomyelitis. There was permanent damage to the motor fibers of the anterior horn cells of the spinal cord that controlled the use of the left infraspinatus muscle (which covers the back of the lower two-thirds of the scapula or shoulder blade), the posterior half of the left deltoid muscle (which covers the shoulder and forms the rounded cap over the shoulder), and the right quadriceps femoris muscle (which is the large muscle mass in the front of the thigh). As a consequence, the muscles mentioned in the preceding sentence began to atrophy from lack of use. The result was a weakness of the left arm and shoulder, which adversely affected the ability of the plaintiff to lift heavy objects, and a weakness of the right leg, which adversely affected the ability of the plaintiff to stand on that leg for long periods of time or to use it for strenuous work or exercise.

10. While a patient in the Camp Upton Convalescent Hospital, the plaintiff was started on a program of physiotherapy. This included exercises designed to develop other muscles in order to compensate as fully as possible for the loss of the use of the muscles mentioned in finding 9.

11. On May 2, 1946, the plaintiff was examined for orthopedic clearance by an orthopedic surgeon of the Army Medical Corps at the Camp Upton Convalescent Hospital, prior to the consideration of the plaintiff’s case by a disposition board at that hospital. In his report, the orthopedic surgeon expressed the opinion that the plaintiff did not need further hospital treatment, and he made the following recommendation:

Becommended disposition: Temp[orary] lim[ited] duty

[744]*74412. (a) The plaintiff’s case was considered by a disposition 'board at the Camp Upton Convalescent Hospital on May 10,1946. The plaintiff appeared before the board.

(b) The disposition board made the following diagnosis of the plaintiff’s condition:

Poliomyelitis, anterior, sequelae of, manifested by weakness and atrophy of the muscles of the left shoulder girdle and right thigh. LOD Yes Improved.

The board recommended that the plaintiff “be returned to full military duty.”

(c) The report of the disposition board was approved by the commanding officer of the hospital on May 18,1946.

13. The plaintiff did not wish to remain on active military duty. Instead, he was anxious to return to civilian life in order that he might attend a graduate school or obtain employment. The plaintiff, who was eligible for separation from the active military service under the then current demobilization regulations, indicated his preference to the military authorities.

14. (a) On May 16, 1946, the plaintiff was ordered to the Separation Center at Port Dix, New Jersey.

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Related

Jacobs v. United States
181 Ct. Cl. 1141 (Court of Claims, 1967)
Snell v. United States
168 Ct. Cl. 219 (Court of Claims, 1964)
Hoppock v. United States
163 Ct. Cl. 87 (Court of Claims, 1963)

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Bluebook (online)
162 Ct. Cl. 740, 1963 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 129, 1963 WL 8525, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gordon-v-united-states-cc-1963.