Midwest
New VA rule could prevent veterans from being buried with spouses
A new Department of Veterans Affairs plan has sparked concerns that some veterans could be barred from being buried with their spouses.
The proposed rule change recently published by the VA would begin allowing family members of deceased veterans the option to receive a commemorative plaque and an urn in place of being interred at a national cemetery, according to a report from Military.com
The plan, which would go into effect this year, is now open for public comment and has faced backlash from multiple groups, who have voiced concerns that families offered the benefit could be caught off guard after accepting the urn or plaque only to later find out they will be unable to be buried together with their loved one, according to the report.
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A new VA plan is raising concerns that some veterans could be barred from being buried with their spouses. (U.S. Army photo by Elizabeth Fraser/Arlington National Cemetery)
Groups opposing the new rule included the National Funeral Directors Association and the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs, who argued that the rule would present families with a “false choice” and force them to feel like they have to give up one benefit in favor of another. Instead, the National Funeral Directors Association suggested in its public comment that the VA open cemetery plots for cremated veterans regardless of whether their families choose to receive an urn and plaque, thus giving their spouses the option to be buried at a national cemetery along with the remains at a later date.
“We understand that double-dipping benefits (receiving the urn benefit and then the burial plot benefit) is prohibited,” the association said, according to the report. “However, a veteran and his/her spouse are both entitled to distinct burial benefits. So, while a veteran who receives an urn is no longer eligible for additional benefits like burial, the spouse still has several final disposition benefits to choose from, including ground burial.”
The group noted that the current language of the rule change would result in non-veteran spouses being buried in veterans’ cemeteries where their veteran spouse is not allowed after receiving the urn and plaque.
A group has raised concerns that the rule change could result in non-veteran spouses being buried in veterans’ cemeteries where their veteran spouse is not allowed after receiving the urn and plaque. (Karen Pulfer Focht for Fox News Digital)
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The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs said in its comment that a “relatively low cost” item such as an urn should not lead to a denial of “significant” burial benefits. The organization also expressed concerns that a state or tribe “might inadvertently violate the terms of federal grant funding” by burying veterans in a government cemetery whose family had already accepted the other benefit, resulting in cuts to vital grant funding.
Meanwhile, the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs argued that denying interment of a veteran’s remains based on the choice to receive the plaque or urn would be “counter to the larger purpose of ‘honoring’ veterans… wherein interment is an eligibility and services are done with compassion and dignity and the commitment of perpetual care.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs building in Washington, D.C., features a quote by Abraham Lincoln. (Robert Alexander/Getty Images)
Reached for comment by Fox News Digital, VA Press Secretary Terrence Hayes said that a 2020 law requires the agency to “provide commemorative plaques and urns to families who do not wish to inter their loved ones.”
“Under this law, veterans who receive a commemorative plaque or urn are prohibited from being interred in a VA national cemetery or provided a government headstone, marker or medallion in any cemetery,” Hayes continued. “VA’s proposed regulation is following the law as enacted.”
Hayes said the VA proposal for enacting the new rule was laid out in November, adding that the agency “cannot comment on the rulemaking process.”
“VA values the opinion and feedback we receive from our partners and always reviews and analyzes comments on proposed rules before publishing a final rule,” Hayes said. “As always, we will do everything in our power to make sure that veterans and their families have a clear and full understanding of their burial and memorial options at VA — without confusion or surprises — so we can provide them with honors that they deserve.”
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A Detroit teenager charged in connection with a shooting involving a 14-year-old boy was back in court on Monday for a preliminary exam.
Ramon Smith, 17, is charged with assault with intent to murder, assault with intent to do great bodily harm, felonious assault, carrying a concealed weapon, and three counts of felony firearm.
Smith, who will be tried as an adult, is accused of shooting 14-year-old Tabaun Clark in the chest during a teen takeover in Detroit on May 17 near Farmer Street.
On Monday, Clark testified in court.
“How many shots did you hear?” an attorney asked Clark.
“Two before I felt something,” Clark said.
“Where did you feel something?”
“In my chest.”
Officials allege Smith got into a fight with a group, took out a gun and fired multiple shots, striking Clark, who was in the crowd, before running off.
“Were you bleeding?” an attorney asked Clark.
“Yes,” Clark replied.
“Did you realize you had been shot?”
“Yes,” Clark said.
“What was going through your mind at that point?” the attorney asked.
“Try to keep breathin(g),” said Clark.
Detective Serena DeJonge with the Detroit Police Department also took the stand, reading written responses from the defendant once in custody, who describes what he says played out the night of the shooting.
According to DeJonge, the defendant said “a gun fell, so I grabbed it and put it in my book bag.” After the fight, DeJonge said the defendant claimed that as he was walking away, the group followed him. DeJonge said the defendant reported seeing “one of them reaching,” and he pulled his gun out of his bag and fired shots at the group.
Evidence revealed in court alleges the defendant fired six shots instead of three.
Judge Patricia Jefferson said there’s enough probable cause to go to trial. The case is now bound over to Wayne County Circuit Court.
Smith is due back in court on June 15. He remains at the juvenile detention facility.
MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Police Department says it will do monthly reviews of call data to identify nuisance properties.
It follows efforts by a local group that says thousands of properties should have been cited under the city’s nuisance ordinance.
Chronic nuisance property ordinance
What we know:
The ordinance was created in 2001 to address nuisance properties in the city, and the impact they can have on quality of life.
But in recent years, the ordinance has been used less and less.
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It was one of the issues before the steering and rules committee on Monday, June 8, after a push by local group Common Ground.
Milwaukee Common Council Steering and Rules Committee
It was already working on crunching the numbers when federal prosecutors charged one of the largest landlords on the city’s south side, and others, with allegedly running a drug trafficking enterprise through rental properties.
Ultimately, Common Ground says thousands of properties across the city should have been declared a nuisance, but weren’t.
A nuisance premises can be cited if it reaches certain thresholds of calls for service within a period of time and the calls are substantiated.
Milwaukee Common Council Steering and Rules Committee
And if the problem isn’t addressed, it could result in fines.
On Monday, Milwaukee police said it’s a process that takes time, but says it’s changing its procedures and reviewing calls for service each month.
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What they’re saying:
“We’re also doing a deeper dive into that data analysis, requiring all of our district captains to address any, to review those properties and if they choose not to ‘nuisance’ the property that is eligible to be ‘nuisanced,’ why not,” said Milwaukee Police Department Chief of Staff Heather Hough.
It’s important to note that Milwaukee alders urged the importance of residents calling police about nuisance properties, so there is a record to look back on for if or when a property falls under that nuisance ordinance.
The Source: FOX6 attended the Milwaukee Common Council’s Steering and Rules Committee to produce this story.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN — A Minneapolis woman who was paralyzed weeks before her wedding is rebuilding her life after receiving a second heart transplant.
Tannhauser later received a successful heart transplant April 3, according to People.
It was her second heart transplant.
Tannhauser’s heart problems began when she was a child. According to a profile by Abbott, she was diagnosed with an irregular heart rhythm at age 8 and underwent more than 10 surgeries over the next five years.
She received her first heart transplant on Sept. 7, 2011, when she was 17, Abbott said.
After that transplant, Tannhauser earned a biomedical engineering degree and went on to work with Abbott’s vascular team as a field clinical specialist, helping with cardiovascular clinical trials, according to the company.
Now, the fundraiser is helping Tannhauser and Pfaff pay for medical bills, rehabilitation, accessible housing, and transportation.
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