ABC News: Soldier Says He Was Charged for Armor

ABC News: Soldier Says He Was Charged for Armor:

"CHARLESTON, W.Va. Feb 8, 2006 (AP)— A former U.S. soldier injured in Iraq says he was forced to pay $700 for a blood-soaked Kevlar vest that was destroyed after medics removed it to treat shrapnel wounds to his right arm.

First Lt. William 'Eddie' Rebrook IV, 25, of Charleston had to leave the Army because of his injuries. But before he could be discharged last week, he had to scrounge up cash from his buddies to pay for the body armor or face not being discharged for months all because a supply officer failed to document that the vest had been destroyed more than a year ago as a biohazard.

'I last saw the (body armor) when it was pulled off my bleeding body while I was being evacuated in a helicopter,' Rebrook told The Charleston Gazette for Tuesday's edition. 'They took it off me and burned it.'

Rebrook's story spurred action Tuesday from U.S. Sens. Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller, both D-W.Va. 'I've been in touch with his family, and I've already written (Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld) to request that they immediately refund his money and review this horrendous policy,' said Rockefeller, who is a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. 'I'm shocked that he has been treated this way by our military.'

Byrd questioned Gen. Peter Schoomaker, chief of staff of the Army, on Tuesday during a Senate Armed Services Committee budget hearing in Washington.
'How can it be that the Defense Department, which is requesting $439 billion in this budget, has to resort to dunning a wounded soldier for $700 to replace a piece of body armor?' Byrd asked.

Schoomaker called Rebrook's story unusual and promised Byrd to "correct it if there's any truth to it."
Rockefeller said he first met Rebrook when he was an ROTC cadet at George Washington High School in Charleston and later nominated him to the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., where he graduated with honors. Rebrook then spent four years on active duty, including six months in Iraq.
Rebrook's mother, Beckie Drumheler, said she was angry when she learned about the $700 bill.
Soldiers who serve their country, those who put their lives on the line, deserve better, she said. BU*SH*IT

Continued1. 2. 3. NEXT»