## Facts

- Kenneth B. Myore, an active-duty Marine on leave, died on May 26, 1990 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
- Before the shooting, he drank alcohol for roughly ten hours at a friend’s house.
- Evidence indicated he loaded a revolver with a single bullet, spun the cylinder, placed the gun to his head, and pulled the trigger; the first attempt did not fire, and the second fired.
- The record did not conclusively establish his level of intoxication at the moment of the shooting or whether he intended suicide versus engaging in reckless conduct.
- The medical examiner classified the death as suicide.
- The veteran’s widow, Martha M. Myore, sought dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) under 38 U.S.C. § 1310.
- The VA regional office and the Board of Veterans’ Appeals denied the claim, finding the death not service-connected because it resulted from the veteran’s willful misconduct.

## Issues

1. Whether the Board adequately supported, with sufficient reasons or bases, its finding that the death resulted from “willful misconduct” under 38 U.S.C. § 1110 and 38 C.F.R. § 3.1(n).
2. Whether the Board adequately addressed evidence bearing on the veteran’s mental state, including intoxication and potential mental unsoundness, in deciding willful misconduct versus accident or suicide associated with mental unsoundness.

## Decision

- The Veterans Court vacated the Board’s decision and remanded for further proceedings.
- The Court held that the Board’s explanation was inadequate because it did not identify the specific “conscious wrongdoing or known prohibited action” supporting willful misconduct under the regulatory definition.
- The Court required the Board to meaningfully address evidence of intoxication and potential mental unsoundness when assessing the veteran’s state of mind and the proper characterization of the death.

## Legal Principles

- A willful-misconduct finding must be tied to 38 C.F.R. § 3.1(n) through explicit, record-based findings identifying the specific “conscious wrongdoing or known prohibited action,” including the requisite knowledge or reckless disregard of probable consequences.
- The Board must provide an adequate statement of reasons or bases under 38 U.S.C. § 7104(d)(1) sufficient to permit judicial review of its factfinding and legal conclusions.
- Evidence of intoxication and potential mental unsoundness is materially relevant to whether the veteran had the state of mind required for willful misconduct and to the characterization of a self-inflicted death under VA law, including suicide-related provisions.
- Where competing characterizations of the event are supported by the record (e.g., accident, reckless conduct, or suicide), the Board must address the evidentiary conflicts and explain its resolution consistent with governing standards.

## Conclusion

The Veterans Court vacated and remanded because the Board did not adequately explain how the evidence satisfied the regulatory elements of willful misconduct and did not sufficiently analyze intoxication and mental-state evidence that could affect whether the death should be treated as willful misconduct, accident, or suicide associated with mental unsoundness.


Myore v. Brown, 9 Vet. App. 498 (1996)