Houston police kick out veteran with service dog from restaurant

Disabled vet kicked out of Houston restaurant over service dog

by Drew Karedes / KHOU 11 News

Posted on February 27, 2014 at 9:54 AM

Updated Thursday, Feb 27 at 9:54 AM 

HOUSTON -- A U.S. Army and Navy veteran says he was told he had to leave a west Houston restaurant because of his service dog.
Aryeh Ohayon says it happened Tuesday at the Thai Spice Buffet II restaurant in the 2500 block of South Voss Road.
Ohayon called Houston Police and waited inside the restaurant.
He claims the officer who responded made him feel even worse.
“I told him what my disabilities were. That’s when he said, 'you’re not blind',” recalled Ohayon. “[He said] 'I don’t see why you need the dog.'”
Ohayon served this country for 23 years.
He says the memories from his more than two decades of service have led to depression and PTSD, both of which his service dog Bandit is there for.
“He’s the alert if I start to have a panic attack or start to go into a flashback mode,” said Ohayon.



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Houston police kick out veteran with service dog from restaurant

Published time: February 27, 2014 20:24

Reuters / Richard Carson

A Houston, Texas, police officer allegedly kicked a US Army and Navy veteran out of a local restaurant for bringing in a service dog on the grounds that he wasn’t actually blind.
According to local news outlet KHOU, Aryeh Ohayon served in the US military for 23 years. Ohayon said his service dog, named “Bandit,” helps him deal with the lingering effects of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), especially if he begins to suffer from panic attack or a flashback linked to his prior experiences.
The incident began when Ohayon entered a Thai restaurant for dinner and was denied service by the manager. The veteran called police to clear up the situation, but he said the responding officer only denigrated his condition.
“I told him what my disabilities were,” Ohayon told KHOU. “That’s when he said, you’re not blind. [He said] I don’t see why you need the dog.”
“It feels like your service and experience that you’ve done to defend and uphold the Constitution and protect this country have been belittled,” he added.


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Wisconsin veterans groups object to limit on property tax credit

Proposal was approved by Wisconsin Legislature's budgeting committee

By Meg Jones of the Journal Sentinel

 

June 12, 2013

 

Dale Kooyenga

Related Coverage

Wisconsin veterans groups are sharply criticizing a move by lawmakers to curtail and strip disabled veterans of property tax credit benefits.
The state provides a refundable income tax credit for the property taxes paid on principal dwellings by veterans who are 100% disabled and their surviving spouses. Spouses of veterans killed in Iraq and Afghanistan also receive the credit if they don't remarry.
Last week the Joint Finance Committee voted to limit the amount of property taxes to be reimbursed to $2,500 a year. The committee also created a means test phase-out, so that if the income of 100% disabled veterans exceeds a certain amount, they will be dropped from the property tax credit program. This also would apply to their surviving spouses and spouses of Wisconsin service members killed in action.
Disabled American Veterans state legislative director Al Labelle called the committee's action appalling.
"Apparently some committee members feel the sacrifices made by severely wounded, injured and ill veterans are just another budget item," Labelle said.
Mike "Gunner" Furgal, a Marine who served in Vietnam, doesn't qualify for the benefit, but he knows veterans who do, including an Afghan veteran suffering from a traumatic brain injury. The committee's action will be a big topic at this week's state VFW convention in Green Bay.
"I think it's a shame when we have a budget surplus that they're balancing the budget on the back of veterans," said Furgal, legislative chairman for the Wisconsin VFW. "That's really a slap in the face of veterans."
In the fiscal year that ends June 30, the cost to the state for the property tax credit is $17.7 million. The program began as part of the 2005-'07 state budget.
Rep. Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield) pointed out that there are plenty of veterans programs, ranging from job training to education benefits, in the next biennial state budget. Lawmakers decided to put a $2,500 cap on the disabled veteran property tax credit and limit eligibility based on income, Kooyenga said, to make it more fair.
"Does it make sense to have a credit that could apply to a millionaire? You could have a million-dollar house but 100% of your property taxes would be paid by the state," said Kooyenga, a CPA and Army Reservist who served in Iraq.


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