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Lay Statement

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scooter318

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Hello Everyone

I wanted to give an update on my appeal process,I'e contacted a lawyer to help me in my appeals and the law firm contacted me today and told me that I would need to send them a copy of my C&P exam and I need to get several lay statements to back up my claim. I wanted to know how effective are lay statements and is there a template that I can use, and do these statements have to be notarized because everyone that I contacted said that they would do it but they were just going to put the statement in an email and send it to me. And i would like to say again thank you to everyone on this forum for all of your help I really appreciate it.

Eric

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I am a little surprised that the lawyer suggested getting “lay” statements instead of Buddy statements.Maybe he meant the same thing.

If this is for proof of an inservice event, stressor,or accident, or injury or other types of trauma, you will need what we call Buddy Statements.

We have many posts here on buddy statements.

They are an eyewitness account of the event,injury,etc , that is written by someone who was in your same unit and present at the same time and place of the occurence.

Details ,details, details are everything in buddy statements.

It is basically a Who,what,when,where, and how buddy statement, such as,

To VARO etc

Buddy statement for Billy Swenson

“I remember this incident well. I was in 3rd MarDiv Amphibious Tracter battalion ,and in Vietnam from March 66 to March 67 and I knew Corporal Billy Swenson ,as he was in the same unit I was in. We had maneuvered into Quang Tri and were suddenly ambushed by the enemy at about 2 clicks north of the Song Hao river.

Corporal Swenson's jeep was damaged severely by a land mine explosion as the enemy had covered the road with fresh US jeep tracks to fool us and the road had not been mine swept but appeared to be safe.

Colonel Swenson was bolted out of the jeep, hitting his head on the grid of the deuce and a half behind him, that I was driving. We both had the same MOS. The driver of the vehicle ahead of him was killed in the blast and his name is on the Wall. I get VA PTSD compensation because I had to retrieve the body and I knew the dead marine very well. Joseph Booker ,from Castledale NY.

This all happened in early Nov 66, when Hanoi Hannah ,on the radio, was wishing us all a very “Happy Veterans Day” if we were lucky enough to ever even get back to the world and become veterans .

After about 20 minutes Swenson came to and had 3 bloody cuts on his head that the Corpsman treated in the field.Once he came to and then learned that Booker had been killed he became very upset .We wanted to kill them all at that point.”

Dave Johnson USMC Vietnam Mar 66-Mar 67

You can reach me at (phone number) if needed (and complete address.)

(sorry for being graphic but this is an adaption of an actual buddy statement I have from a Vietnam vet and I changed the names and places on here ) The veteran claimant was awarded for PTSD. He didnt claim the scars and in those days no one thought about possible TBIs.

The VA may contact the buddy. The statement should be notarized.

A Lay statement from a family member or friend can be used often to verify symptomatology.

Can you tell us what the claim is for? It would help us determine what the lawyer needs?

Edited by Berta
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Hello Everyone

I wanted to give an update on my appeal process,I'e contacted a lawyer to help me in my appeals and the law firm contacted me today and told me that I would need to send them a copy of my C&P exam and I need to get several lay statements to back up my claim. I wanted to know how effective are lay statements and is there a template that I can use, and do these statements have to be notarized because everyone that I contacted said that they would do it but they were just going to put the statement in an email and send it to me. And i would like to say again thank you to everyone on this forum for all of your help I really appreciate it.

Eric

This could be just to satisfy part of VCAA.

Here's a link for you to research lay statements and how they may or may not

help advance an issue:

Personally I would read thru many of them.

http://www.index.va.gov/search/va/bva_search.jsp?QT=lay+statements&EW=&AT=&ET=&RPP=10&DB=2013&DB=2012&DB=2011&DB=2010&DB=2009&DB=2008

Also, can you post the Reasons and Bases of your decision.

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Berta

Thanks for replying and the appeal is for my lower back, I had a car accident when I was stationed in 29 Palms back in 200l.I do have one buddy that I'm going to get a statement from and then I'm going to have my wife and my daughter write me a statement as well. I noticed you said I have to get the buddy statement notarized, that's no problem should I do the same thing with my wife and daughters statement?

Eric

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Carlie

Thanks for the link that's a lot of good information and the reason they denied me was because they said that it wasn't service connected but I know it was so at this point I just have to move forward with these buddy statements and letters from my wife and daughter.

Eric

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Good point Carlie......I searched for this vet at hadit but this is apparently his first post and with no SC now, I think the lawyer meant buddy statements, not lay statements, but not sure.

We can advise better when we see the decision he is appealing.

I kind of feel bad for posting such a graphic Buddy letter.

Then again this is sure the stuff the VA required for many many Vietnam vets years ago and probabvly still do,if they dont fit into the new PTSD regs..

When I was a vet center volunteer many years ago in the Vietnam vet combat PTSD rap group, we had no internet nor often any idea at all how buddies could be found.

It was often a very detailed buddy statement that was the only thing that could overcome a denial in those days.

Unfortunately a Wall tracing was often the best evidence tat the vet experienced a stressor.

You cant find a name on the Wall unless you have the exact unit, a good idea of the month and year, and also the Hometown of the vet.

I was always surprised when I went to the Wall how most vets could rattle that stuff off in a heartbeat and then be directed to the right panel on the Wall. Then again one never forgets the death of a war buddy.

I don't think we even knew how to get stuff from NARA then.

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"I had a car accident when I was stationed in 29 Palms back in 200l"

If you were treated for injuries, have you looked carefully through your SMRs?

Wouldn't there be a police report?

Does your 201 (Personnel) file show you had some time off to recover?

I sure dont think the family lay statements have to be notarized. Actually buddy statements don't have to be either.

But a notarized signature tells VA the person who wrote the statement is who they say they are.

Honorable men and women serve our country ,but to the VA, they have to prove everything. :sad:

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