Skip to content
Press Release
Valley Voters Organized Toward Empowerment
14622 Ventura Blvd. #424, Sherman Oaks, CA. 91403
August 18, 2011 valleyvote.org
The Valley VOTE Board of Directors has overwhelmingly approved the following Motion:
Valley VOTE supports Veterans Lawsuit
Motion
Valley VOTE supports the Class Action Lawsuit filed on June 7,2011 on behalf of four plaintiffs. The first is Carolina Winston Barrie, a great granddaughter of one of the land donors in 1888 that bequeathed the property, in perpetuity, in West Los Angeles exclusively for America’s Military Veterans. The other three are veterans plaintiffs; one from the Iraq war, one from the Afghanistan conflict, and one a sexually abused woman veteran. The ACLU foundation of Southern California and six law firms; Harvard Law School, UCLA Law School Inner City Law Center, Munger,Tolles &Olsen LLP, Arnold &Porter LLP and additional counsel (7) are in support of this suit. It was filed vs. Erick Shinseki in his official capacity, Department of Veterans Affairs; and Donna M. Beiter, in her official capacity, Director, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System.
Discussion
The 5 causes of action included in the lawsuit are:
1) Intentional discrimination, all plaintiffs and Vietnam Veterans of America.
2) Meaningful Access Denied, all plaintiffs and Vietnam Veterans of America
3) Breach of Fiduciary Duty as Trustee of Charitable Trust, all plaintiffs against all defendants
4) Accounting for all profits, all plaintiffs against all defendants
5) Breach of Fiduciary Duty of charitable trust (Mandamus Relief) all plaintiffs against all defendants
The breaches of the Charitable Trust by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs include the failure by the West Los Angeles VA to provide US Veterans housing as specified under the 1888 Deed Originally Donating Land to the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. The “Veterans Declaration of Enforcement ” introduction reads as follows:
“We, the Veterans of the United States Armed Forces, in order to form a more perfect National home, establish justice, ensure tranquility, provide for the necessary shelter and healthcare, promote the general well being of our fellow Veterans, and secure the blessings of respect for ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this “Declaration of Enforcement” for protecting and preserving the Land Grant Deed of 1888 and the Los Angeles National Veterans Home.
In Accordance with the Congressional Act dated March 2,1887, and the guiding principles and patriotic spirit of the legal Land Grant Deed dated March 3,1888, which was unselfishly bequeathed and faithfully entrusted to the United States Government on Behalf of America’s Military Veterans, this “Declaration of Enforcement” shall protect and preserve in perpetuity, their exclusive and inviolable proprietary rights to the Los Angeles National Veterans Home.and said Declaration reconfirms and reestablishes the following: ”
The “Declaration if Enforcement” then details Thirteen Articles of Enforcement.
Breaches of the Trust
A number of breaches of the trust that have occurred at the West Los Angeles Veterans facility, including the following: Locking out veterans from the V.A. grounds from a planned veterans event two years ago; Celebrity Carnival on the V.A. property- no veterans were invited or allowed to participate; PGA parking on the V.A. site; Bicycle fund raisers for Aids on site; A dog run on the site; leasing 16 acres of land for a public park; U.S. Post office built- on site; Tennis courts, Oil wells, movie filming, T.V. show productions-on site; Laundry facility leased -laundry from the Marriot Hotels is done on the site; Enterprise rental car facility on site; Brentwood High School is on V.A. property; Research buildings, on site, are leased to UCLA; 2 theaters, on site, are leased out to commercial enterprises.