Certainly, the Social Security Disability application process is a complicated and frustrating one. From filling out the tedious paperwork, to providing detailed proof of your disability and its effects on your life, and then to sitting through the year-long (or greater) waiting period, the experience can be maddening. Going through an SSD appeal is not much better – again, there is a frustrating process and a long waiting period, with no guarantee of success on the other end.
Any California resident who has been through a Social Security Disability or appeal can likely sympathize with this story – or, at least, understand it. Recently, a Michigan man who had been repeatedly denied for Social Security Disability decided he had had enough, and drove his van into the front entrance of his local Social Security office.
Media reports did not give specific information about the man’s disability or the details of his applications and denials. However, it was reported that he has been dealing with SSD denials for over six years. His frustration over the repeat denials and the process in general caused him to snap, accelerating his minivan backwards into the building’s front entrance until the van came to rest halfway through the door.
He was not injured in the accident, and he was not believed to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of the crash. However, he was arrested by local police. Now, he faces charges of malicious destruction of property, which is a felony. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to five years in prison.
Source: The Effingham Daily News, “Disgruntled claimant slams van into Social Security office,” 8 July 2011
