Nearly 250 Coast Guard members who were unlawfully forced into retirement under the guise of a force reduction could be entitled to millions of dollars in backpay and benefits, according to a federal court decision. The U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in March upheld a lower court’s 2021 decision that the Coast Guard’s use of what it called performance-based panels to thin the upper enlisted ranks violated federal law and the due-process afforded troops when separated from the service. The Coast Guard had until Thursday to appeal to the Supreme Court but did not, said Nathan Mammen, the attorney who filed the suit in 2018. “We’re supposed to trust our leadership to do the right thing, and if they don’t do the right thing, they need to be held accountable,” said Mike Bumgardner, a retired master chief named in the lawsuit.
Now the Coast Guard must provide backpay and benefits to Bumgardner and five other retired service members named in the suit. Mammen said he plans to ask the court to ensure the other 237 members who signed onto the lawsuit receive the same. Most of them were serving on enlistment contracts with no end date, so it’s unclear exactly how the Coast Guard will determine what each individual is owed, he said.
The Coast Guard referred comment on the lawsuit to the Justice Department, which provided attorneys for the case. The Justice Department also declined to comment. The lawsuit stemmed from a Coast Guard decision in 2010 to rebalanc.
