Veteran ordered to pay back thousands in VA benefits
WEAR 3 ABC News by Auriette Lindsey September 3rd 2019
PENSACOLA, Fla. (WEAR-TV) — A veteran from Santa Rosa County has been sentenced to three years probation and must pay thousands of dollars in restitution.
The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, Lawrence Keefe, announced the sentence on Tuesday.
46-year-old Bryan S. Gaines of Milton pleaded guilty to theft of government money and making false statements.
Between 2011 and 2018, he falsely reported to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that he was not working and unable to work.
He received disability benefits based on those claims.
A federal judge ordered Bryan Gaines of Milton to repay $243,243.05 in restitution after he pleaded guilty to making false statements. (Image: MGN)
Keefe said, "Stealing from the VA is tantamount to stealing from each of the brave men and women who have served our nation in times of war and times of peace."
Gaines was ordered to pay $243,243.05 in restitution. read it here
Discovery of WWII diary revives a Sarasota widow’s trauma
Herald Tribune Billy Cox September 6, 2019
Lorraine Glixon recently discovered her late husband’s World War II diary. Harry Glixon was a POW who was part of a historic prisoner exchange with Nazi Germany in 1944.
SARASOTA — Struggling through Parkinson’s disease, dementia and a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, Harry Glixon spent the last decade of his life racing the undertaker, pecking away at the keyboards with the two-fingered intensity that characterized his typing skills.
His widow, Lorraine, describes him as “obsessed” as the old warrior demanded more and more of her time to edit the manuscript he would call “My Story.” Over the years, she would sometimes hear him coming to terms with what he’d done and seen, raising his voice in his study, “I can’t do this! I can’t do this!” And Lorraine discovered she couldn’t do it, either.
After Lorraine gave up, Harry relied on three outside editors/writers to advance his memoir to an abrupt ending in 1962. That’s how far he’d gotten when, in 2006, 11 years into “My Story,” Harry took a spill in his motorized wheelchair and never recovered. He died a year later, at age 86.
The unfinished work that Harry Glixon left behind was so raw — and in so many ways, unflattering — that he requested in the preface that “the contents of my book be kept from the children until at least their 25th birthday.”
He had hoped, according to that preface, that his accounting would “demonstrate that I was a good person and not selfish.” But he also feared his journey through the past would “regenerate old demons and impact and diminish my current happiness.” And that, according to Lorraine, is exactly what happened.
Of the unfinished memoir’s 304 pages, roughly 80 are devoted to World War II, during which Harry Glixon earned two Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star with V for Valor and a recommendation for the Distinguished Service Cross. He also made history in such unprecedented fashion, it played on newsreels that cheered audiences in both the U.S. and Germany. read it here
How can you know something existed but never heard about it? There have already been three since he became President, and this is the forth.
Thus Mar-a-Lago went on the market. Three potential sales collapsed before Donald Trump bought it in 1985, paying a reported $8 million for the estate and its furnishings—a small fraction of the original cost, no matter how you calculate it. And after three decades and the most confounding presidential election in living memory, Marjorie Merriweather Post’s wish for her mansion came true.
The highest classification in the scale, Category 5, consists of storms with sustained winds over 156 mph (70 m/s; 136 kn; 251 km/h).
What about all the others? Hurricane Katrina 2005, which he mentioned when talking about Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
"Every death is a horror," Trump said. "But if you look at a real catastrophe like Katrina, and you look at the tremendous, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people that died, and you look at what happened here with, really, a storm that was just totally overpowering, nobody's ever seen anything like this."
Since Donald Trump has owned Mar-a-Lago, there were more President Trump should have heard about.
Hurricane Andrew was a powerful and destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in August 1992. ... With a barometric pressure of 922 mbar (27.23 inHg) at the time of landfall in Florida, Andrew is the sixth most-intense hurricane to strike the United States.
Hurricane Dorian shifts toward Carolinas, with Florida forecast to avoid direct hit
NBC News By Max Burman and Linda Givetash Aug. 31, 2019
"There's been a notable change overnight to the forecast of Dorian after Tuesday," the National Hurricane Center said on Twitter.
Hurricane Dorian strengthened and shifted slightly early Saturday, setting it on course to potentially miss a direct hit with Florida and make landfall in the Carolinas.
"There's been a notable change overnight to the forecast of Dorian after Tuesday," the National Hurricane Center said on Twitter Saturday morning, stressing that this shift does not rule out the possibility of the storm making landfall on the Florida coast.
Dorian became a potentially devastating Category 4 storm Friday evening as it continued to churn in the Atlantic Ocean on its course to the southeastern United States early next week.
"It’s important to stress that this doesn’t paint Florida as out of the woods yet," said Kathryn Prociv, a meteorologist for NBC News.
"Florida is still very much in the red zone," she added. read it here
Majority of veterans in Florida are pre-9 11 but not helped by new charities!
There are 1.5 million veterans in Florida. The majority of those veterans are over the age of 50. Yet no one seems bothered by the fact that all the groups popping up in Florida will not even acknowledge how they need just as much help, but have waited much longer for it. They also happen to be the majority of the known veterans committing suicide.
Cohen Veterans Network opening first Florida clinic for post 9/11 veterans in Tampa
WFTS News Aug 25, 2019
TAMPA, Fla. — The Cohen Veterans Network is opening their first clinic in Florida to serve post 9/11 veterans on Monday.
More than 230,000 veterans in the state will be able to get customized life-saving mental health care at no, or low cost through the Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Aspire Health Partners.
The Cohen Veterans Network is a 501(c)(3) national not for profit philanthropic network of mental health clinics for post 9/11 veterans and their families.
The expected wait between first contact and a first appointment at the new Cohen Clinic is less than one week. For anyone in crisis, the Cohen Clinic will schedule same day appointments.
“After closely examining the post-9/11 veteran population throughout Florida it was very clear that Tampa was the ideal location to set up our first location in a state with a demonstrated need for mental health care,” said Dr. Anthony Hassan, President and CEO of the Cohen Veterans Network. “Soon we will be able to serve veterans and their families across the state via our confidential, online video platform. Our clients will be able to receive tailored, high-quality care from the new clinic or from home in most circumstances.” read it here
Unable to sue the Army for medical malpractice, this retired soldier is now fighting the VA for benefits
Military Times By: Meghann Myers August 26, 2019
For now, the hope is that a bill in Congress will allow Ospina, a mother of a young son, and veterans like her to seek compensation for alleged medical mistakes that they claim have altered their lives forever.
Retired Sgt. 1st Class Barbara Ospina Fitzsimmons said she was partially paralyzed after a spinal surgery in 2014. (Courtesy Barbara Ospina Fitzsimmons)
Retired Sgt. 1st Class Barbara Ospina is partially paralyzed, in debilitating pain and confined to a wheelchair for almost all of her day. Her condition is the result of malpractice at the hands of hands of military medicine, according to claims she made to the Department of Veterans Affairs, but she is paying out of pocket for a caregiver to help her bathe, dress and prepare meals, because the VA has denied her request for caregiver assistance.
What began as a treatable birth defect turned into a dislocated neck and a stroke that went undetected for days, according to records provided to Military Times. Had that initial surgery taken place at a civilian hospital, Ospina, 29, would be able to seek damages. But the Feres Doctrine, a 1950 Supreme Court decision, prevents her from suing the Defense Department for service-connected illness or injury.
“Her story represents the egregious conduct, consistent lack of care and malpractice at the hands of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base,” her attorney, Natalie Khawam of the Tampa, Florida- and D.C.-based Whistleblower Law Firm, told Military Times on Tuesday. read it here
Did VA hospital leaders ignore recalls on faulty medical equipment?
Military Times By: Leo Shane III
August 26, 2019
Dennis McLain, head of the facility’s National Nurses United chapter, said the manufacturer of the IV tubing (BD, headquartered in New Jersey) issued an urgent recall of the equipment two weeks earlier, instructing hospitals to “destroy all products” found in their inventory.
Chemotherapy is administered to a cancer patient via intravenous drip at a North Carolina hospital in 2013. (Gerry Broome/AP)
Staffers at a Florida-based Veterans Affairs hospital say leadership ignored a medical equipment recall for weeks — even after a patient’s life was endangered — despite repeated warnings their inaction violated health and safety norms.
But officials at the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital in Tampa said their week they have removed all of the faulty items without any harm to patients, dismissing concerns that proper procedures were not followed.
It’s unclear whether the dispute is isolated to the single VA medical center or indicative of larger problems with recall alerts throughout the nation’s veterans hospital system. Department of Veterans Affairs officials in Washington, D.C. referred all questions to local hospital officials.
At issue is a July 31 incident where a patient at the Tampa medical center received too much prescribed medication because of what nurses described as malfunctioning IV equipment. Tubing designed to slowly drip out fluids into the patient’s bloodstream instead allowed a rush of medication all at once. In a grievance filed with facility leadership, staff said a medical disaster was avoided only because nurses on duty quickly diagnosed and responded to the problem. read it here
Eglin Curtails Run Portion of PT Test After Captain's Death
Military.com By Oriana Pawlyk 22 Aug 2019
"I am deeply saddened over Tranay's death," said Lt. Col. Timothy Stevens, AFOTEC commander, in the release. "The pain of her absence has touched each and every one of us. Our thoughts and prayers are with Tranay's family, her friends and our fellow airmen during this difficult time."
Physical fitness tests were briefly suspended earlier this week and outdoor cardio testing will be curtailed for the remainder of the summer at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, after an airman died Saturday. She had completed her PT test on Friday.
Capt. Tranay Lashawn Tanner, 29, was transported to the Eglin Hospital on Saturday morning with health complications, according to a base news release. Tanner, assigned to the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC), Detachment 2, was later moved to the Fort Walton Medical Center due to the "serious nature of her condition." She died Saturday afternoon. read it here
Army Posthumously Promotes Two Green Berets Killed in Afghanistan
Military.com By Hope Hodge Seck 22 Aug 2019
Both men belonged to 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) out of Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
Two Special Forces soldiers killed Wednesday in Afghanistan during combat operations have been posthumously promoted, officials announced Thursday.
Master Sgts. Luis F. Deleon-Figueroa, 31, and Jose J. Gonzalez, 35, died in Faryab province, Afghanistan, at the country's northern border with Turkmenistan, according to a release from U.S. Special Operations Command. They died of wounded sustained from small arms fire due to combat operations, according to a Pentagon release. The incident is under investigation. read it here
Petal Power: Recycled flowers bring smiles to veterans' faces in Florida
Connecting Vets JULIA LEDOUX AUGUST 21, 2019
Random Acts of Flowers began because of a near-fatal accident suffered by its founder, Larsen Jay, who fell off a ladder two stories tall and broke every bone in his body in 2007. “He got overwhelming support,” said Donoghue. “His whole hospital room was full of flowers.”
We’ve all heard of recycling plastic, glass and paper.
But what about recycling flowers for veterans?
That’s exactly what Random Acts of Flowers does.
The non-profit recycles and repurposes day-old flowers and delivers them to patients at the Bay Pines Veterans Hospital and other hospitals, hospices and nursing facilities throughout the greater Tampa Bay, Fla. area.
The volunteers who deliver the flowers to the VA medical center are all veterans themselves, said Janette Donoghue, executive director of Random Acts of Flowers Tampa Bay.
“It’s near and dear to their hearts,” she said. “That’s something they want to do, it’s a veteran giving to a veteran.” read it here
Although Brian McCluney has not been seen since Friday, his mother and the rest of his family are as optimistic as ever.
There's no reason yet to give up on the lifetime fisherman and Navy veteran who was born in Health First Cape Canaveral Hospital and grew up in Cocoa, Carla said.
Since the extensive manhunt was undertaken to find Brian, 38, a firefighter in Jacksonville, and his friend Justin Walker over the weekend, tens of thousands of square miles of Atlantic Ocean have been covered by the U.S. Coast Guard and civilian volunteers. read it here
Florida firefighter's widow wins $9 million verdict in pizza delivery death
Domino's Pizza plans to appeal Florida Today By Rick Neale August 07, 2019 BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - In January 2011, retired Brevard County Fire Rescue District Chief Richard Wiederhold swerved to avoid a collision when a Domino's Pizza delivery driver turned in front of him on State Road 50 in Christmas.
Disabled vet killed in Riviera wreck couldn’t ‘come out of nowhere,’ family says
The Palm Beach Post By Olivia Hitchcock Posted Aug 16, 2019
Edward Alvin, who served in the U.S. Army, used a walker after injuries sustained in a crash years prior. He died in a wreck Aug. 9 on Silver Beach Road.
RIVIERA BEACH — Edward Alvin couldn’t “come out of nowhere” if he tried, his wife said.
The disabled veteran used a walker due to injuries sustained in a crash years prior. He needed multiple surgeries to his hips, knee and abdomen for him even to be able to do that, Sharell Alvin said.
Edward Michael Alvin, 40, was hit and killed Friday night while walking along Silver Beach Road. The woman accused of hitting him told a passerby that Alvin “came out of nowhere.”
Then the woman drove off. read it here
New details emerge after homeless man allegedly kills Vietnam Veteran
WEAR ABC 13 News by Amy Russo August 15th 2019
ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. (WEAR) — New details are being released after a homeless man was charged with homicide.
The arrest report from the Escambia County Sheriff's Office says on Wednesday morning deputies were called out to a death investigation on Beverly Parkway.
Upon arrival, Jason Woodell told deputies he was working on a house at the 100 block of Beverly Parkway when Henry Vasquez told him there was a body under a white sheet at a property nearby, the report says.
Vasquez told deputies he was picking up trash when he noticed what appeared to be a human body under a sheet covered in blood, the report reveals.
It adds the body had been wrapped in a white sheet, blue furniture moving quilt, and dumped in a gravel parking lot.
The report says the victim is a disabled Vietnam Veteran. He was described as a man who could "barely get around without a cane." read it here
Officials at Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, are calling it “a perceived deteriorating of good order and discipline during non-operational periods."
U.S. Navy Sea, Air, and Land team members conduct military field operations during exercise Trident 18-4 at Hurlburt Field, Florida, on July 11th, 2018. (Staff Sgt. Corban Lundborg/Air Force)
The commander of the Special Operations Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve has booted a SEAL Team 7 platoon from Iraq due to a booze-fueled July 4th party, Navy Times has learned.
Officials at Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, are calling it “a perceived deteriorating of good order and discipline during non-operational periods."
In a prepared statement released Wednesday evening, SOCOM said that the joint task force commander lost confidence in the team’s ability to accomplish the mission and the SEALs are now on a “deliberate redeployment” to Naval Amphibious Base Coronado near San Diego.
“All Department of Defense personnel are expected to uphold proven standards and to comply with laws and regulations,” the statement read. “Alleged violations are thoroughly investigated.” read it here
'Mass Arrest' of US Marines on Camp Pendleton
NBC 7 News San Diego By Bridget Naso and R. Stickney July 25, 2019
The Marines were arrested based on information gained from a previous human smuggling investigation, military officials said
Sixteen Marines were arrested during battalion formation at Camp Pendleton Thursday, accused of illegal activities ranging from drug-related offenses to human smuggling, officials said.
Officials with the 1st Marine Division of the U.S. Marine Corps said representatives with Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) were also involved in what they called the “mass arrests.”
The Marines - all E-2 to E-4 in rank - were arrested based on information gained from a previous human smuggling investigation, military officials said.
NBC 7 first reported the news that two Camp Pendleton-based Marines were arrested earlier this month and accused of transporting undocumented immigrants along the U.S.-Mexico border near Tecate. read it here
South Florida is a top home buyer’s market for millennial veterans, study finds
SOUTH FLORIDA SUN SENTINEL By JOHNNY DIAZ JUL 24, 2019
"South Florida has a lot to offer veterans and military families, from cultural and lifestyle amenities to a strong economy with relatively low unemployment,'' said Chris Birk, director of education at Veterans United Home Loans.
FILE - In this July 22, 2015 file photo, a "sold" sign is posted outside a Harbor Beach neighborhood home in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Standard & Poor’s releases its 20-city home price index for August on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File) (The Associated Press)
Millennial veterans and service members looking to put down some roots are keen on South Florida.
A new study found that the Miami-Fort-Lauderdale-Pompano-Beach metro area ranked No. 6 nationally in the number of millennial veterans purchasing homes. That’s according to an analysis by Veterans United Home Loans, which defined millennial veterans or service members as people who were born between 1981 and 1996. read it here
Florida launches investigation after fake nephew cremates veteran
BY CNN WIRE JULY 16, 2019 CITRUS COUNTY, FL — A U.S. Navy veteran was cremated after a man falsely claiming to be his nephew signed off on his cremation and death certificate, the I-Team uncovered.
Navy veteran Robert Walaconis of Hernando, Florida died June 5, 2018 at 71 years old.
His son and daughter said they found out months later.
They claim items were missing from their father’s home – including a gun collection – and told the I-Team they were shocked when they discovered his death certificate listed a nephew named Todd Smith.
But Walaconis doesn’t have a nephew, according to his son, Michael.
Michael said that fake nephew also made decisions against his father’s wishes.
“He wanted to be buried in Fort Indiantown Gap in Pennsylvania,” said Michael. “I can’t believe this could happen to someone.” read it here
Heroes Among Us: Navy Veteran James Pepe Helped Many Wounded Soldiers During World War II
CBS 4 News By Marybel Rodriguez July 12, 2019
U.S. Navy World War II veteran Jimmy Pepe was awarded the bronze star for his service. He was recently honored at a Florida Panthers game.
SUNRISE (CBSMiami) – Now to a weekly segment you will only see right here on CBS4.
Every Friday, in partnership with the Florida Panthers, we put the spotlight on a hero among us men or women who have gone beyond the call of duty for our country.
This week we’re meeting World War II veteran James Pepe.
James Pepe, who goes by Jimmy, served in the United States Navy as a pharmacist from 1943 to 1945. He enlisted and was part of the new Georgia-Rendova-Vanganu Campaign.
Pepe’s job was to take care of the wounded and although he says they were under very stressful conditions he did whatever he had to do save lives. read it here
FLORIDA OFFICER SHOOTS DEAD MAN HOLDING KNIFE ON VETERAN IN WHEELCHAIR WHO ENDS UP WITH MINOR NOSE INJURY
By FOX 13 News staff Posted Jul 11 2019
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (FOX 30/FOX 13) - Jacksonville police shot and killed a man holding a disabled Army veteran in a wheelchair at knifepoint, they said.
The officer-involved shooting occurred on State Street near the Ritz Theatre around 11:20 p.m. Wednesday, reports FOX 30. Police initially responded out to an “armed aggravated assault” report.
When law enforcement officers arrived, they found a man holding a knife to the victim’s neck. Officers said he refused to drop the knife even after they gave a verbal command, according to FOX 30.
The officer feared for the victim’s life and fatally shot the suspect, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. They said the officer was wearing a body camera.
The man in the wheelchair, who did not want to be identified, told FOX 30 he is an Army veteran who calls Jacksonville his home. He explained that he met the suspect this week and the man appeared to be nice and quiet. However, on Wednesday, the victim said the suspect was acting belligerent while holding the knife and threatening to harm people. read it here
77-year-old Army veteran in motorized scooter hit, killed by minivan in hit-and-run crash
WFTS News By: Michael Paluska Jul 09, 2019
"The driver was going way too fast, and the driver knew that he hit him never got out of his vehicle backed up a little bit to basically get around the body or around the wheelchair or the scooter and proceeded westbound down Moog Road," Zimmerman said.
HOLIDAY, Fla. — The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a deadly hit-and-run crash in Pasco County.
Troopers tell us they located a 90-year-old man who is a person of interest along with the minivan they believe was involved in the fatal hit and run. The person of interest lives five blocks away from where 77-year-old Larry Small was hit and killed.
The Florida Highway Patrol responded to a call of a crash involving a pedestrian on a motorized wheelchair and a Dodge minivan just before 12:30 p.m. on Monday.
The incident happened on Moog Road at Pinehurst Drive.
Troopers say Small, of Holiday, was hit by a 1991 Dodge minivan as he entered the intersection. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the minivan drove away after striking Small.
That vehicle has since been seized as evidence. read it here
