Did you or a loved one serve at U.S. Marine Corps Base and Training Facility, Camp Lejeune, between 1953 and 1987? If so, it’s possible that you or your loved one were exposed to contaminated water and deserve compensation for the resulting injuries. The experienced trail attorneys at the law offices of Maloney & Campolo in San Antonio may be able to help get the compensation and justice you deserve. If you believe you have suffered from a disease or illness, miscarriage, or birth defect caused by water contamination at Camp Lejeune, our attorneys can help. 

Medical research teams found the water used for drinking, washing, and cooking at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina contained both volatile organic compounds and over 70 toxic substances during the years between 1953 and 1987.  The research links these contaminants with a variety of illnesses, including cancers and Parkinson’s disease. Now, due to the newly signed expansion of VA benefits known as the PACT Act, exposed veterans and their survivors may finally receive justice.

What is the PACT Act?

The PACT Act expands and extends eligibility for VA benefits for veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during the Vietnam War, Gulf War, and the post 9-11 era. If you live in Texas and you or a family member were once stationed at Camp Lejeune and now suffer from one of many recognized medical conditions with presumptive connection to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune you may be eligible for compensation, including health care benefits. 

In 1981, researchers determined that the water used for drinking, cooking, and bathing at the U.S. Marine Corp Base at North Carolina’s Camp Lejeune contained dangerous volatile organic compounds from area water treatment plants. The VOCs included unacceptable amounts of perchloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), vinyl chloride, and Benzene. Research now links exposure to these compounds for more than 30 days to later onset of specific diseases including those on the following list:

  • Adult leukemia
  • Aplastic Anemia and other myelodysplastic disorders 
  • Multiple myeloma
  • Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
  • Cardiac defects
  • Systemic Sclerosis and scleroderma
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • A variety of cancers including bladder, liver, kidney, esophageal, pancreatic, prostate, breast, brain, and rectal cancers

Now, thanks to the Camp Lejeune Justice Act as part of the newly signed PACT act, the above medical conditions are presumptive conditions for those who served at Camp Lejeune for 30 days or more during the years between 1953 and 1987. This means veterans no longer have to prove that toxic exposure caused their conditions and instead, the illnesses are now automatically presumed as caused by the exposure during military service.

Water Contamination at Camp Lejeune

Though the most contaminated wells at camp Lejeune were shut down in 1985, service members continue to experience devastating illnesses connected to their time at the Marine Corp Training Facility before 1987. The main source of contamination at the Tarawa Terrace Water Treatment Facility was the waste disposal method of a dry cleaning solvent from the off-base dry cleaners, ABC One-Hour Cleaners. The solvent leaked into the wells providing the base, barracks, Tarawa Terrace Family Housing, and Knox Trailer Park with water for drinking, bathing, cleaning, and cooking.

Further contamination came from the Hadnot Point water treatment facility due to exposure to nearby underground storage tanks leaking toxic chemicals into the groundwater supplying the Mainside Barracks as well as Hospital Point, Berkley Manor, Midway Park, and Paradice Point housing facilities.

What is the Camp Lejeune Justice Act?

In 2016, hundreds of veterans found their cases against Camp Lejeune dismissed due to North Carolina’s Statute of Repose which effectively cuts off legal rights if cases aren’t filed within 6 years of exposure. Unfortunately, many cancers and other illnesses develop many years after exposure to toxins, leaving thousands of families harmed by exposure to contaminated water during military service at Camp Lejeune without compensation. The Camp Lejeune Justice Act now gives victims the right to file complaints and receive the justice and compensation they deserve. Texans who were victims of toxic exposure at Camp Lejeune may finally file complaints despite being outside the 6-year Statute of Repose. Victims and their families may be able to receive long-deserved compensation without having to go to court. 

The skilled lawyers at the Law Offices of Maloney and Campolo have over 75 years of experience in fighting for justice for personal injury victims in the San Antonio area with the team goal of ensuring all victims suffering personal injuries receive the maximum in compensation due them through dedicated, conscientious personal attention to each case.

Do You Have A Case Covered by the Camp Lejeune Justice Act?

The 2022 PACT Act adds 20 new conditions to the list of presumptive exposures, including many of the conditions now determined as linked to toxic water exposure at North Carolina’s U.S. Marine Corp Base and Training Facility, Camp Lejeune. In order to receive a VA disability rating, your disability must be linked to your military service. Because illnesses now labeled as presumptive conditions automatically qualify certain past and present service members for VA benefits and compensation under the PACT Act, the Camp Lejeune Justice Act covers injury victims meeting the service requirements.

Service requirements for eligibility under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act include: 

  • Being a veteran, reservist, or guardsman.
  • Serving or training for at least 30 cumulative days at Camp Lejeune or at nearby Marine Corp Air Station Base New River at any time from August 1953 through December 1987.
  • NOT receiving a dishonorable discharge at the time of separation from the military.
  • Having a diagnosis of a presumptive condition.

Filing a Claim

The dedicated attorneys at the Law Offices of Maloney and Campolo can help Texas victims of the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune through the complex process of filing a claim for compensation and disability benefits. Texas residents have the right to file claims against at-fault parties in order to receive compensatory justice for their injuries. The Texas Camp Lejeune Water Contamination lawyers at Maloney and Campolo have over 75 years of experience helping injured victims get the justice and compensation they deserve.

If you or your loved one meet the above criteria for eligibility under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, contact the experienced attorneys at San Antonio’s Law Offices of Maloney and Campolo for representation.