Sole Survivor Policy
The Sole Survivor Policy is a set of different sets of rules of the United States Armed Forces that were developed around the life of a military man who already family members in combat operations or the like. has lost and is thus the last survivor of a family, to be protected by removing that person from areas where fighting is taking place.
trigger
The trigger for the development and implementation of the "Sole Survivor Policy" was the fate of the five Sullivan brothers who were killed during the Second World War as a result of the sinking of the light cruiser USS Juneau on November 13, 1942 in the sea battle of Guadalcanal .
But there was a similar event almost a year earlier, on December 7, 1941, when three brothers stationed on the USS Arizona were killed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor .
precursor
The units of the American army were grouped together territorially. They then also led these designations in the regimental name such as B. the 20th Maine Regiment . So it happened again and again , especially during the Civil War , that all fighting family members were killed. As a result, all family members were no longer allowed to serve in the same unit in order to avoid such incidents as much as possible. With the brothers on the "Arizona" and the "Juneau" this regulation showed its weaknesses. They served in different departments - and thus, from a military point of view, not in the same unit - but all on the same ship. After that, the separation rules were tightened so that family members were sometimes no longer allowed to serve in the same theater of war.
scope
Until 2008, the “Sole Survivor Policy” was not a law, but internal military regulations, so that there was no legal right to have one's own person in the “policy”. It was originally only valid for sons, since no women were used in combat units during the Second World War, but has since been expanded to include daughters.
Since August 2008, the Hubbard Act has been a law that refers directly to the "Sole Survivor Policy" . It affects those members of the military who, due to the policy , left the military with honor - but before the end of their obligation. You are left with benefits such as the commitment bonus and, on a transitional basis, health care and benefits such as training grants under the GI Bill of Rights . The reason for the legal regulation was the case of Jason Hubbard, whose two younger brothers were killed in the second Iraq war (2004 and 2007). In 2008, when he was left with no health insurance and was due to repay the Army, he turned to Congressman Devin Nunes . In April 2008 he and other colleagues introduced the law that was passed by Congress and signed by President Bush on August 29, 2008 .
requirements
The "Policy" applies to the only surviving descendants of a family under the following conditions:
If a family has a father or mother or one or more sons or daughters who served in the U.S. Forces,
- died as a result of injuries, accidents or illnesses,
- are in captivity or are missing,
- have a 100% professional disability (including 100% intellectual disability) determined by the Veterans' Administration or any of the military services and unable to work due to that disability.
Application of the policy
One of the best-known examples of the application of the “Sole Survivor Policy” is the case of the Niland brothers during World War II: Assuming that three of the four brothers had already died, the supposedly last survivor, Frederick Niland, was born in 1944 took part in Operation Overlord , the Allied landing in Normandy, withdrew from the front and sent back to the United States. This case formed the basis of the film Saving Private Ryan .
During the legislative process to Hubbard Act of 2008, the number of 55 military personnel was called that since 2001 through interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq war were affected by the regulation. If the Afghanistan and Iraq operations continue, an additional 20 people will join each year.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ A b The Sullivan Brothers: US Navy Policy Regarding Family Members Serving Together at the Sea Department of the Navy, Frequently Asked Questions
- ↑ Hubbard Act Ensures Benefits and Bonuses For Sole Surviving Soldiers Military Hub, published 23 May 2011
- ↑ Law mended for veteran who lost brothers in Iraq Los Angeles Times, August 30, 2008
- ^ Michael Doyle: Sole survivor law in place, but not quite ready for vets. In: McClatchy Newspapers. October 28, 2010, accessed June 16, 2011 .