Wounded Soldier Billed for Bloodied Body Armor
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 By ALLISON BARKER, AP

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (Feb. 8) - A former U.S. soldier injured in Iraq says he
was forced to pay $700 for a blood-soaked body armor vest that was destroyed
after medics removed it to treat shrapnel wounds to his arm.


Jim MacMillan, AP First Lt. Rebrook, seen here during a 2004 gun battle in
Najaf, had to pay $700 for his Kevlar vest destroyed by medics when he was
injured.

First Lt. William "Eddie" Rebrook IV, 25, had to leave the Army because of
his injuries. But before he could be discharged last week, he had to
scrounge up cash from his buddies to pay for the body armor or face not
being discharged for months. Rebrook was billed because a supply officer
failed to document that the vest had been destroyed more than a year ago as
a biohazard.

"I last saw the (body armor) when it was pulled off my bleeding body while I
was being evacuated in a helicopter," Rebrook told his hometown newspaper,
The Charleston Gazette. "They took it off me and burned it."

Rebrook's story spurred action Tuesday from U.S. Sens. Robert C. Byrd and
Jay Rockefeller, both West Virginia Democrats.

"I've been in touch with his family, and I've already written (Defense
Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld) to request that they immediately refund his
money and review this horrendous policy," said Rockefeller, a member of the
Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. "I'm shocked that he has been treated
this way by our military."

Byrd questioned Gen. Peter Schoomaker, chief of staff of the Army, on
Tuesday during a Senate Armed Services Committee budget hearing.



AP"How can it be that the Defense Department, which is requesting $439
billion in this budget, has to resort to dunning a wounded soldier for $700
to replace a piece of body armor?" - Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.V.

"I last saw the (body armor) when it was pulled off my bleeding body while I
was being evacuated in a helicopter. They took it off me and burned it." -
Eddie Rebrook, Army First Lt.

"My son loved the Army and was proud of serving his country. For any soldier
to be treated like this is outrageous." - Beckie Drumheler, Rebrook's mother


Getty"We certainly have procedures that account for battle loss, and I just
find it a highly unusual story. But we'll certainly follow up and correct it
if there's any truth to it." - Gen. Peter Schoomaker, Army chief of staff

"How can it be that the Defense Department, which is requesting $439 billion
in this budget, has to resort to dunning a wounded soldier for $700 to
replace a piece of body armor?" Byrd asked.

Schoomaker called Rebrook's story unusual and promised Byrd to "correct it
if there's any truth to it."

Rockefeller said he first met Rebrook when he was an ROTC cadet at a
Charleston high school and later nominated him to the U.S. Military Academy
in West Point, N.Y., where he graduated with honors. Rebrook then spent four
years on active duty, including six months in Iraq.

Rebrook's mother, Beckie Drumheler, said soldiers who serve their country
and put their lives on the line deserve better. "My son loved the Army and
was proud of serving his country. For any soldier to be treated like this is
outrageous," she said.

Rebrook was standing in the turret of a Bradley Fighting Vehicle when a
roadside bomb exploded Jan. 11, 2005. The explosion fractured his arm and
severed an artery. His arm never completely recovered despite seven
operations. He still has range-of- motion problems and pain.

Rebrook said he tried to get a battalion commander to sign a waiver for the
Kevlar vest, but the officer declined. He was told he would have to supply
statements from witnesses to verify the body armor was taken from him and
burned.

His story has prompted donations from residents. A local radio station
raised $700 within 90 minutes Tuesday, and one woman dropped off a $200
check by his mother's home.

"I thought that was pretty nice that people care," said Rebrook's
stepfather, Charles Drumheler.

Rebrook's father, Ed Rebrook, a Charleston lawyer, said while the donations
were appreciated, his son did not plan to accept them.

©2006 The Associated Press