Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a holiday for honoring and mourning all military personnel who have died while serving in the U.S. Military.  The Law Office of Matthew Barry salutes all those honored on this day, their families, and those who have fought along side of them.

Our Country is very good at supporting and celebrating Soldiers on days like this.  However,  our military is often not good at supporting Soldiers, and Veterans, who are suffering because of their service in combat.  Those who have deployed and been in combat are often diagnosed with PTSD. In recent years, PTSD has become more understood and known.  Yet, Soldiers frequently are punished with severe punishments that are a direct result of their time spent in combat.

Soldiers and Veterans need an advocate in their corner when they are facing misconduct allegations related to mental health struggles like PTSD.  For Veterans, often times they did not realize when they were in the service that they had PTSD and that was causing them to act differently.  If this is the case, they can present new evidence (i.e. medical records, letters from friends/family) to attempt to get their discharge upgraded or to support a claim to the VA.

For Soldiers, it is very important that they present information about their PTSD or other mental health condition to the decider of their punishment (i.e. Court-Martial, Article 15, Separation Board).   This type of information can result in significantly less punishment for the Soldier in question.

Happy Memorial Day