Three Disabled Berkeley Veterans Get $500K VA Settlement

NEWARK, N.J. — Three disabled Berkeley veterans will receive a combined $500,000 settlement in retroactive Department of Veterans Affairs benefits, officials said. A federal judge ruled in the last month that they hadn't received their full share of VA benefits.

The veterans were also reclassified as 100-percent disabled vets. The Ocean County Veterans Service Bureau helped land the ruling.

“Just the reaction from these guys makes all of the effort worth it,” OCVSB Director John Dorrity said in a statement. “These are men who gave their all for their country. It really is a privilege to work for them and help them get the assistance they have earned.”

In the past six months, Dorrity has handled 246 appeals hearings before a VA judge at Newark's federal building, the county said. The Veterans Service Bureau is located at 1027 Hooper Ave., Toms River. They recently began manning a satellite office Monday through Friday at the Southern Service Center on Route 9 in Manahawkin.

The second office now serves veterans in the southern half of Ocean County and helps older and disabled veterans avoid the long drive to Toms River. The new office is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Dorrity said anyone wanting to visit should make an appointment first.

Appointments can be made by calling Denise from Wednesday to Friday at 732-929-2096.

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