Helton v. United States

• Decision Date: 19 February 1982
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. CV180-206.
• Citation: 532 F. Supp. 813
• Parties: Dwight A. HELTON, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, the United States Department of the Army, and Major General Clarence E. McKnight, Jr., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Georgia

532 F. Supp. 813

Dwight A. HELTON, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, the United States Department of the Army, and Major General Clarence E. McKnight, Jr., Defendants.

Civ. A. No. CV180-206.

United States District Court, S. D. Georgia, Augusta Division.

February 19, 1982.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Daniel J. Craig, of Harrison, Jolles & Craig, APC, Augusta, Ga., for plaintiff.

Edmund A. Booth, Jr., Asst. U. S. Atty., Augusta, Ga., for defendants.

ORDER

BOWEN, District Judge.

In this action, the Court is once again presented with a challenge by a member of the armed forces to certain military regulations and actions. Before reaching the merits of the case, the Court, by this order, resolves certain threshold issues raised by defendants. Following a recitation of undisputed facts as gathered from the record, in the first part of the order, consideration is then given to subject matter jurisdiction in the context of the sovereign immunity doctrine. Having established jurisdiction over some of plaintiff's claims, the Court next determines the justiciability of the claims. Finally, after reviewing plaintiff's action in the context of a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the Court delineates the specific issues for ultimate determination following an evidentiary hearing.

Plaintiff, Dwight A. Helton, attended the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, from 1970 to 1974. Upon graduation, plaintiff accepted a commission as a Second Lieutenant, Regular Army, and incurred a five-year active duty obligation. At the present time, plaintiff is a Captain in the United States Army assigned to Fort Gordon, Georgia.

Prior to his graduation from West Point in 1974, Captain Helton competed for a National Science Foundation Scholarship and was awarded a fellowship for postgraduate study, under the provisions of Army Regulation 621-7. On July 24, 1974, plaintiff was granted permission to accept his scholarship immediately as an exception to the normal practice that required three years of active duty before further education. Yet, Captain Helton was unable to take advantage of this exception and apply for post-graduate study commencing in the fall semester of 1974. In lieu thereof, plaintiff requested reinstatement of his fellowship for the 1975-1976 school year and sought a waiver of the normal stabilization policy. Subsequently, the requested waiver was granted, and plaintiff was informed to fulfill the other requirements for acceptance of a fellowship outlined in AR 621-7 in order to attend graduate school in September, 1975.

Thereafter, by letter dated January 1, 1975, plaintiff advised the Army that he would comply with the requirements of AR 621-7 ¶ 7e and also inquired about the possible graduate schools he could attend. Among other things, AR 621-7 ¶ 7e requires a signed statement by the applicant to the effect that he will remain on active duty for a period at least three times longer than the period of training. By response letter dated January 27, 1975, the Army informed Captain Helton that he could attend any accredited university in the United States, with the specific exception of some thirteen major universities. Subsequently, by letter on March 24, 1979, plaintiff informed the Army of his acceptance for graduate study at the Georgia Institute of Technology. In accordance with AR 621-7 ¶ 7e, he enclosed a photocopy of his letter of acceptance together with the following signed statement: "I Dwight A. Helton understand that acceptance of a National Science Foundation Fellowship under the provision of AR 621-7, means that I will be required to remain on active duty for a period at least three times longer than the period of graduate schooling."

Upon receipt of this last letter, the Army wrote back to Captain Helton requesting the other items required by AR 621-7 ¶ 7e, specifically an approved application to compete, documentary evidence of the award, the inclusive dates of attendance at graduate school and an initial financial statement. In response to this letter and in reference to a telephone conversation with a Major Neal J. Senkus on May 22, 1975, plaintiff, on May 27, 1975, wrote in part as follows:

First of all, I would like to thank you very much for giving me a clearer understanding of what I had to do in order to comply with acceptance procedure for my fellowship. I am sending the remaining requirements for acceptance of my fellowship, as specified by AR 621-7.

On July 14, 1975, orders were issued reassigning plaintiff to the Student Detachment, Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana, stationed at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, to pursue a MS degree in economics. The special instructions provided that plaintiff was to attend school in a duty status with full pay allowance and that plaintiff could not accept both a stipend under the fellowship and military allowances.

Pursuant to the above-described "agreement" with the Army, Captain Helton attended the Georgia Institute of Technology from August 9, 1975, until September 15, 1977. Following graduation, plaintiff served approximately two years in Italy and was reassigned to Fort Gordon, Georgia, beginning October 9, 1979. Shortly after returning to Fort Gordon, plaintiff attended a four-month long Signal Officer Advanced Course, completing the course on April 3, 1980. According to the Army, Captain Helton, by attending the Signal Officer Advanced Course and by completing graduate studies at Georgia Tech, incurred a combined service obligation extending until May 3, 1985.

In May, 1980, plaintiff, through his attorney, petitioned the Army Board for the Correction of Military Records ABCMR for a reduction of his service obligation. Captain Helton stated his complaint with his present service obligation as follows:

Prior to acceptance of a National Science Foundation Scholarship in 1975, the Army, through its Education Training Officer, Major Senkus, represented that, though the scholarship was governed by the provisions of AR 621-7, requiring active duty for three times longer than the period of training, I would only be required to serve under the requirements of AR 621-1, limiting the active duty requirement to a maximum of four years.

Upon review of plaintiff's application as well as the pertinent statutes and regulations, the ABCMR denied the request without a formal hearing, finding insufficient "relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice to warrant a formal hearing." In its memorandum of decision, the Board commented that the payback obligation under AR 621-7 is statutorily mandated and that "there appears to be no basis for reducing the ... obligation period of service by two years because of the difference in the requirements of AR 621-1 and AR 621-7."

After notice of the ABCMR decision, plaintiff brought this action alleging inter alia: (1) defendants made certain representations concerning the active duty obligation incurred by accepting a fellowship for the National Science Foundation; specifically, it was represented that the payback obligation would not exceed the AR 621-1 obligation; (2) plaintiff relied upon these representations when he accepted the National Science Foundation Scholarship for attendance at graduate school; and (3) upon graduation, the Army failed and refused to assign plaintiff for duty in operations research in accordance with his fellowship training and agreement with the Army. As a result of the foregoing, plaintiff avers that the "enlistment agreement" between the parties has been breached and that plaintiff has been denied due process of law under the fifth amendment to the Constitution.

Plaintiff seeks relief in four counts. Count I demands a writ of mandamus ordering defendants to assign plaintiff to duty in accordance with his special training and to provide plaintiff with a computation of his active duty obligation. Count II petitions for a writ of habeas corpus ordering plaintiff's release from the Department of the Army. Count III seeks injunctive relief preventing the enforcement of the disputed "additional active duty obligation," or, in the alternative, preventing the enforcement of the service agreement for any period. Finally, Count IV seeks rescission of the "reenlistment contract."

The case is presently before the Court on defendants' motion to dismiss, or, in the alternative, for summary judgment. The motion is premised on three grounds: (1) the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction; (2) the claim for a particular duty assignment is neither justiciable nor reviewable; and (3) the complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted.

I JURISDICTION

For purposes of analyzing defendants' assault on the Court's jurisdiction, it is useful to first separate plaintiff's claims for relief into three categories: (1) writ of mandamus; (2) equitable relief in the nature of a permanent injunction and rescission; and (3) writ of habeas corpus. With respect to the first and second category, defendants raise the shield of sovereign immunity and contend that no statutory waiver of the immunity bar is apposite. With respect to the petition for a writ of habeas corpus, defendants argue that there is no basis for the Court's assumption of jurisdiction within the purview of 28 U.S.C. § 2241(c).

The framework for the Court's review of these two issues is contingent upon the nature of the jurisdictional attack. Ordinarily, a Rule 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss for want of subject matter jurisdiction may take two forms: (1) a facial attack on the complaint, in which the court must consider the allegations as true and determine whether a sufficient basis for subject matter jurisdiction has been alleged; and (2) a factual attack on the subject matter jurisdiction of the court, in which the presumption of truthfulness ends, matters beyond the pleadings are considered, and factual determinations are made pertaining to jurisdiction....