Family Focus: Improvements to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act

Filed under DoD News by on October 8, 2010 at 1:17 pm {2 comments}

By Maj. Scott Hodges, chief, Air Force Legal Assistance

Have you ever wondered what you were going to do about your expensive cell phone if you deployed for 90 days, or if you got an assignment overseas?  Under the current law, the answer was not crystal clear.  However, on Sept 28 the Senate approved a bill that will make several improvements to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). 

One change is an improvement of the ability for servicemembers to terminate cell phone contracts.  Currently, the member can only request termination or suspension under some limited circumstances, and arguably the carrier doesn’t have to grant the request.
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Family Focus: Identity Theft

Filed under DoD News by on October 1, 2010 at 8:45 am {no comments}

By Maj. Scott Hodges, chief, Air Force Legal Assistance

Last Week the American Forces Press Service released an article discussing the DoD push to protect servicemembers from identity theft.  Researchers and analysts estimate that between 11 and 15 million Americans fell victim to identity theft in the last year. Identity theft is a crime that can have a devastating impact on the victim. In one case a married couple spent $15,000 and more than four years to repair the damage to their credit and reputation.

What can you personally do to protect yourself from identity theft? First, be very cautious about releasing personal information-whether the requester is reaching out to you through e-mail, the telephone, or even in person. Second, remember to check your financial information regularly-obtain your free credit reports from the 3 credit reporting agencies but also scrutinize your credit card statements and bank accounts. Third, beware of the dumpster diver, and try to shred all personal information before you throw it out.
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Family Focus: Are Judge Advocates Real Attorneys?

Filed under DoD News by on September 24, 2010 at 9:59 am {no comments}

By Maj. Scott Hodges, chief, Air Force Legal Assistance

The legal offices at military installations offer legal assistance to active-duty Airmen, retirees, activated reservists, Active Guard Reserve, civilian employees assigned at a military installation outside of the U.S. and the dependents of all of the above.

Legal assistance means that you can meet with an attorney, get legal advice, and have certain legal documents prepared for you.  The attorneys are called judge advocates, or JAGs.  JAGs are limited in what areas they can advise you on and how far they can go with their representation-for example, Air Force JAGs can’t go into court with you.
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Family Focus: The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act

Filed under DoD News by on September 17, 2010 at 9:45 am {no comments}

By Maj. Scott Hodges, chief, Air Force Legal Assistance

Are you a guardsmen or reservist who was recently activated and you have debt?  Did you enlist with high-interest credit card debt?  Your situation is not unusual.

Often, when members are activated, their military pay is less than their civilian pay.  Before you were activated, you may have been able to pay your car note and house note.  However, now, because of military duty, you find yourself unable to make those payments.

Congress recognized the financial hardship that coming on active duty can present when it passed the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. Under this act, you can request that lenders lower your interest rate to 6 percent interest on debts that were incurred prior to military service or activation.
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Family Focus: Where Should You Keep Your Will?

Filed under DoD News by on September 3, 2010 at 10:43 am {one comment}

By Maj. Scott Hodges, chief, Air Force Legal Assistance

It may sound like an odd question at first, but a will is a very unique document that requires special considerations.  Your will is what ensures all of your property is distributed according to your wishes, that a person you trust will be in charge of making that distribution (executor) and the right person has the legal ability to take care of your children (guardian).

Copies of wills are not legally enforceable, so you can’t resolve the problem that way.  If your will can’t be found then the courts may conclude you didn’t have one.

Unlike many items that require safe-keeping, a safe deposit box is probably not a good place to keep your will.  If you keep your will in a safe deposit box, you’ll need to try to arrange for your executor to have access to the box after your death. However, some states put a freeze on safe deposit boxes at death, and they can’t be opened without the court’s permission, even by authorized users.
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    An United States Air Force C-130J Hercules cargo aircraft from the 146th Airlift Wing, California Air National Guard, conducts flare training off the Ventura County coast. The flares are used as tactical infrared countermeasures to confuse and redirect heat-seeking missiles.

    (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Dave Buttner)


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    Famed Yankees pitcher “Lefty Gomez” once remarked “I’d rather be lucky than good,” but for one Tuskegee Airman, luck and good combined to make him one of the most successful combat pilots of World War II.

    During the summer of 1944, 2nd Lt. Clarence D. “Lucky” Lester was flying the P-51 Mustang over the skies of Italy’s Po Valley providing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers with cover support on their way to attack airfields in southern Germany.

    Lester was assigned to the 100th Fighter Squadron, a part of the 332nd Fighter Group, and had earned the nickname “Lucky” “because of all the tight situations from which I had escaped without a scratch or even a bullet hole in my aircraft.”

    Read the story of a flight that helped Lester earn his nickname here.


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    The only African-American ace of World War II, and a former Tuskegee Airman, went on to have a career in the Air Force, as well as success in the business world.

    Lee A. Archer joined the Army in 1941 with high hopes of becoming a pilot, but was initially denied because of his race. When the Army’s policy changed about a year later, Archer was accepted to the training program for black aviators at the Tuskegee Army Airfield in Alabama.

    Archer is best known for a day in late 1944 when he was involved in a series of dogfights over German-occupied Hungary. Flying a P-51 Mustang fighter, Archer shot down three German fighters. He would go on to add two more German fighters to his credit to become the first and only African-American ace of the war.

    As a civilian, Archer enjoyed even greater success, serving as vice president for urban affairs with General Foods, as CEO of North Street Capital Corp. and chairman of Hudson Commercial Corp. He also served on the board of directors of Beatrice International Foods and the Institute for American Business.

    Read the rest of his story here.