Webb v. United States

OPINION

FUTEY, Judge.

This military pay case is before the court on defendant’s motion for judgment on the pleadings. Plaintiff claims $44,189.39 for back pay and allowances for the period December 1, 1950 through February 1, 1954, while he was held first as a prisoner of war by the Korean government and then by the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission. Defendant asserts that 33 years after the cause of action accrued, the equitable doctrine of laches bars plaintiff’s claim.

Factual Background

In 1949, at age 18, plaintiff enlisted in the United States Army. His unit was ordered to Korea where…