In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 action claiming that defendant unlawfully took a portion of plaintiff-committed inmate's Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits each month and applied the money to partially defray the cost of plaintiff's care at a state hospital, summary judgment for defendant is affirmed where 38 U.S.C. section 5301(a)(1), when read in combination with pertinent regulations such as 38 C.F.R. section 13.71, does not prohibit direct payments of VA benefits to a state hospital for ongoing veteran patient care.
Read Gossett v. Czech, No. 06-16973
Appellate Information
Argued and Submitted June 4, 2009
Filed September 9, 2009
Judges
Opinion by Judge Smith
Counsel
For Appellant:
Paul Gossett, pro se
Charles C. Lifland, O'Melveny & Myers LLP, Los Angeles, CA
For Appellee:
Harry T. Gower, Deputy Attorney General, San Francisco, CA
