Navy Refuses to Release McCain Car Crash Records
National News
Journalists say the U.S. Navy refuses to release documents about a 1964auto accident in which then-Lt. John McCain was involved, and injured,along with another man, outside the main gate of the Norfolk Navy Base.The Navy allegedly located the documents but refused to release them tothe National Security News Service, because "the Navy contended thatthe records could only have historical value and could not become abreaking news story."
The news service says it is working ona story about McCain for Vanity Fair magazine, "including anexamination of his conduct in Norfolk and Portsmouth in the 1960s.Despite Senator McCain's prior 23 years of service as a Naval officer,the Navy has only released general summaries of his military career,"the federal FOIA complaint states.
It continues: "Plaintiffsand Vanity Fair have developed from first-hand sources informationindicating that Lt. McCain was involved in an automobile accident onHampton Boulevard outside the main gate of the Naval Base at Norfolk,VA in July 1964. Plaintiffs' investigation has disclosed thatresponding civilian law enforcement officers recall the accident, thatanother person was injured, and that a Naval officer dispatched amessenger to take a change of clothing to Lt. McCain at PortsmouthNaval Hospital. Plaintiffs have also obtained documents showing thatlaw enforcement officers were ordered back to the accident scene toretrieve personal physical effects. The Navy has never publiclyacknowledged this information.
"The fact of assignment toPortsmouth Naval Hospital, as to any Navy hospital, is a public recordnot protected by FOIA law or regulations." Nonetheless, plaintiffs say,the Navy refuses to release the documents, which it has located, on theabsurd claim that they "could only have historical value and could notbecome a breaking news story."
The news service and itsreporter Christopher Law want to see "releasable Navy records listingassignments of Navy personnel to Portsmouth Naval Hospital in 1964."
They are represented by Mark Nagle with Troutman Sanders.
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Does a car or truck accident count as a work injury?
If an employee is injured in a car crash while on the job, they are eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits. “On the job” injuries are not limited to accidents and injuries that happen inside the workplace, they may also include injuries suffered away from an employee’s place of work while performing a job-related task, such as making a delivery or traveling to a client meeting.
Regular commutes to and from work don’t usually count. If you get into an accident on your way in on a regular workday, it’s probably not considered a work injury for the purposes of workers’ compensation.
If you drive around as part of your job, an injury on the road or loading/unloading accident is likely a work injury. If you don’t typically drive around for work but are required to drive for the benefit of your employer, that would be a work injury in many cases.
If you are out of town for work, pretty much any driving would count as work related. For traveling employees, any accidents or injuries that happen on a work trip, even while not technically working, can be considered a work injury. The reason is because you wouldn’t be in that town in the first place, had you not been on a work trip.
Workers’ compensation claims for truck drivers, traveling employees and work-related injuries that occur away from the job site can be challenging and complex. At Krol, Bongiorno & Given, we understand that many families depend on the income of an injured worker, and we are proud of our record protecting the injured and disabled. We have handled well over 30,000 claims for injured workers throughout the state of Illinois.