Jackson v. United States, 259-76.

• Decision Date: 23 March 1977
• Docket Number: No. 259-76.,259-76.
• Citation: 551 F.2d 282
• Parties: Allen Aaron JACKSON v. The UNITED STATES.
• Court: U.S. Claims Court

551 F.2d 282

Allen Aaron JACKSON v. The UNITED STATES.

No. 259-76.

United States Court of Claims.

March 23, 1977.

James M. Garlock, San Francisco, Cal., atty. of record for plaintiff. Belli & Choulos and Melvin M. Belli, San Francisco, Cal., of counsel.

LeRoy Southmayd, Jr., Washington, D.C., with whom was Acting Asst. Atty. Gen. Irving Jaffe, New York City, for defendant.

Before SKELTON, KUNZIG and BENNETT, Judges.

ON DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO DISMISS

SKELTON, Judge:

The plaintiff enlisted in the United States Army on February 25, 1974, for a term of three years by signing written documents of enlistment, which are discussed below. He alleges that the recruiting officer agreed with him that plaintiff would be allowed to attend an automotive mechanical maintenance school of the 1st Inf. Div. (M) at Fort Riley, Kansas, and that plaintiff would not be assigned to any dangerous-combative-type military maneuvers or functions. He reported for duty at Fort Riley, Kansas, on May 11, 1974, and was assigned to a tank division. On May 20, 1974, he was required to engage in dangerous combatant type maneuvers with his tank unit and during the maneuvers one of the tanks ran over the plaintiff, causing him to have the lower half of his body, from the navel down, amputated. Plaintiff argues that because of the foregoing, the Army breached the enlistment contract, and he sues here to recover $5,000,000 for such breach. The plaintiff is totally disabled and has been receiving total disability benefits in Grade PV2 since May 29, 1974.

The case is before us on defendant's motion to dismiss the plaintiff's petition. The defendant says that although plaintiff has couched his suit in terms of a contract action, his claim sounds in tort over which this court has no jurisdiction. Also, the defendant alleges that the enlistment documents signed by the plaintiff, copies of which are attached to defendant's reply brief, nowhere contain any provision that the plaintiff would not be assigned to any dangerous-combative-type military maneuvers or functions, and that if any such agreement was made orally by the recruiting officer, it was done without authority and contradicts the written enlistment documents and was and is null and void.

The Department of the Army records disclose that on February 25, 1974, plaintiff began his active duty service at the Chicago Armed Forces Entrance and Examination Station (AFEES). While at the station, plaintiff executed (1) Department of Defense Form 4 (DD 4), Enlistment Contract-Armed Forces of the United States; (2) Department of the Army Form 3286 (DA 3286), Statements for Enlistment, Parts I through V; and (3) Department of the Army Form 3286-47-R, Statements for Enlistment, Part VI.

In executing DA Form 3286, plaintiff acknowledged in Part 1, General Statement of Understanding, that "All promises made to me are contained in Items 3 (Rate/Grade), 37 (Rate/Grade Appointed/Reappointed), 48 (Untitled Item) of the DD Form 4, my Enlistment Contract." In the DD 4 executed by plaintiff, Items 3, 37 and 48 state in sequential order: "PVIE-1," "NA," "ENL FOR SUE ENL OPT (TABLE 5-41) 1ST INF DIV, FT RILEY, KS AND MOS 63A10 MECH MAINT." There were no promises made in the documents pertaining to service with any dangerous-combative-type military maneuvers or functions of the U.S. Army.

Also, DA Form 3286 contained the following provision:

f. My choice of initial enlistment option shown in Item 48 of my DD Form 4 does not constitute any guarantee that a substantial part of my enlistment will be served in this option, and the needs of the service may result in my transfer at any time (other than as may be provided by the specific option selected) to any other assignment within the continental United States or to an oversea command.

Part VI of DA Form 3286-47-R specified:

b. Unless I have previously completed basic or basic combat training (BCT) and served in the Army or Marine Corps in the past 3 years, I must complete BCT prior to undergoing advanced individual training (AIT).

c. Upon completion of BCT, I will undergo AIT in military occupational specialty MOS (OJT) 63A10 MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE (Enter the MOS for which enlisted)

In executing DA Form 3286-47-R, plaintiff acknowledged that no other promises, representations, or commitments had been made to him other than as to the statements set forth in this document, by writing in the word "None," as shown as follows:

2. UNDERSTANDING: I have read and understand each of the statements above and the statements contained in other parts of DA Form 3286, signed by me, and understand that they are intended to constitute all promises whatsoever concerning my enlistment. Any other promise, representation, or commitment made to me in connection with my enlistment is written below in my own handwriting, or is hereby waived. (If none, write "None.")

X None

It is clear from the above enlistment documents the plaintiff signed that:

(1) Before the plaintiff could take the mechanical maintenance course he had to complete basic combat training. It is apparent that plaintiff had not complied with this requirement, as he had only been at Ft. Riley nine days when he was injured and obviously was engaged in basic combat training at the time of his injury. The plaintiff agrees that this is true.

(2) The plaintiff could be placed in any assignment at any time according to the needs of the service.

(3) The plaintiff stated in his own handwriting that no promises had been made to him in connection with his enlistment other than those contained in the enlistment documents he had signed, which are discussed in detail above.

(4) No promise, representation, commitment, agreement, or contract was made between the Army and the plaintiff in the enlistment documents in connection with his enlistment that provided that he would not be assigned to any dangerous-combative-type military maneuvers or functions during his service in the Army. It is clear that the documents, supra, executed by plaintiff upon entering active duty service in the Army, imposed no obligation on the United States to refrain from having plaintiff participate in a field training exercise, nor was there any prohibition from utilizing plaintiff in field training exercises.

Notwithstanding plaintiff's positive statement in the enlistment documents that no promises or representations were made to him other than those in the written documents, he now claims that he was promised by the recruiting officer that he would not be assigned to dangerous or combat-type military duties. He does not state whether such promises were oral or written, but since they are not in the written enlistment papers, he evidently contends that the representations and promises were made orally by the recruiting officer. If this is true, such oral promises and representations, if they were made by the recruiting officer, are not binding on the government. In Goldstein v. Clifford, 290 F.Supp. 275 (D.N.J.1968), it was held:

The enlistment instrument and the statutory law in effect when it was signed constitute the enlistment contract. * * * Id. at 279.

See also United States ex rel. Norris v. Norman, 296 F.Supp. 1270 (N.D.Ill.1969) and Pfile v. Corcoran, 287 F.Supp. 554 (D.Colo.1968). In our opinion, 10 U.S.C. § 505 requires written instruments for an enlistment. Otherwise, there would be no way the government could determine which branch of the service was involved nor the term or conditions of the enlistment.

Even if the Army recruiter made the alleged oral promises to the plaintiff, which defendant denies, plaintiff cannot recover on his contract theory unless he shows that the recruiter had the actual authority to make the statements on which plaintiff says he relied. Housing Corp. of America v. United States, 468 F.2d 922, 199 Ct.Cl. 705 (1972); Operational Manuals, Inc. v. United States, 506 F.2d 1406, 205 Ct.Cl. 854 (1974). One who purports to contract with the United States assumes the risk that the official with whom he deals is clothed with the actual authority to enter the contract alleged. Federal Crop. Ins. Corp. v. Merrill, 332 U.S. 380, 384, 68 S.Ct. 1, 92 L.Ed. 10 (1947); Haight v. United States, 538 F.2d 346, 209 Ct.Cl. 698 (1976), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 841, 97 S.Ct. 116, 50 L.Ed.2d 110 (1976). Moreover, the United States is not estopped to deny the authority of its agents. California-Pacific Util. Co. v. United States, 194 Ct.Cl. 703, 720 (1971); Putnam Mills Corp. v. United States, 479 F.2d 1334, 202 Ct.Cl. 1 (1973). The plaintiff has not proven that the recruiter had actual authority to make the alleged oral promises or representations, if he did in fact make them. It is well settled that the United States is not bound by its agents acting beyond their authority and contrary to regulation. Federal Crop. Ins. Corp. v. Merrill, supra; Porter v. United States, 204 Ct.Cl. 355, 496 F.2d 583 (1974), cert. denied, 420 U.S. 1004, 95 S.Ct. 1446, 43 L.Ed.2d 761 (1975); Operational Manuals, Inc. v. United States, supra. In the present state of the record, the court is required to conclude that the recruiter did not make the alleged promises and representations, or, if he did...