Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Department of Justice Emails Description An account of the resource The Department of Justice received more than 11,000 e-mails in response to the agency's public solicitation for comments upon its plans to distribute the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 established by Congress to benefit the victims of September 11 and their families. These e-mails have been organized here by date. September 11 Email September 11 Email: Body The basic content, as unstructured text; sometimes containing a signature block at the end. Thursday, November 29, 2001 12:30 PM FW: Victims Compensation Fund Mr. Kenneth L. Zwick, Director Office of Management Programs Civil Division U.S. Department of Justice Main Building, Room 3140 950 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20530 Dear Mr. Zwick, If the September 11th Victims Compensation Fund is to succeed?that is, to avoid extraordinary lawsuits against the airlines and salvage the U.S. air transportation system?we, the surviving family members of the victims and friends, request the following parameters be instituted in consideration of our extraordinary loss: - Provide the formula by which awards will be made prior to demanding an acceptance of the terms. Also firmly establish which defendants this settlement will cover?will it simply cover liability of the airline industry and it?s security subcontractors, or will the City of New York and its Port Authority be named as additional defendants? - As you are seeking to provide a viable alternative to litigation, the formula should resemble that which would normally take place in a suit of this nature and should reflect the individual nature of each claimant, to wit: taking an average of the victim?s past 3-5 years earnings as indicated in past tax return filings, multiplied by actuarial tables of life expectancy, reduced by present value of money. In addition, consideration must also be given to the victim?s future earning potential, as well as to benefits lost, including health insurance. - Establish a standard to determine pain and suffering, which will be the same for each claimant. Each victim was loved equally by all of their family, whether married with children or single. To say that any of us has suffered more or less anguish over this event than others is simply unjust. I am also of the mind that the pain and suffering of each individual victim who perished in the WTC needs to be taken into consideration. Because most of us do not know how much time each of our loved ones had to actually contemplate their fate, this will not be an easy task. Again, I would suggest this determination be made on an equal basis. When determining the pain and suffering award, careful consideration must be given to the amount of punitive damages each claimant would receive if litigation were to occur through normal channels. - Do not reduce the amount of any award by charitable contributions received. Charity is charity. The monies received thus far by most of the surviving families are intended to provide a short-term solution to immediate financial difficulties. For many of them, these charitable contributions have enabled them to barely hold the line on their monthly expenses and have provided a necessary stopgap for the maintenance of our lives. The DOJ has been given a mandate of 120 days to implement the plan for the September 11th Victims Compensation Fund. It has been difficult enough to disseminate and collect the charitable contributions that exist. Do the DOJ and the American public think they all have the financial resources necessary to cover 120 days of expenses? Does the average American have the resources to cover 120 days of expenses with no income? I think not. - Given the fact that economic resources for many of the surviving families are dwindling or non-existent, it is of the utmost importance that a settlement payout date be established and adhered to. - Do not reduce the amount of any award by insurance monies received. My friends paid for outside life insurance with AFTER TAX DOLLARS. To reduce any award by the amount received through private insurance amounts to nothing more than PUNISHMENT for financial planning, and, in effect, DOUBLE TAXATION. I strongly suspect that victims of run-of-the-mill violent crime are not subject to insurance deductions from the awards made to them by various states? Victim?s Crime Boards. - Please do not limit a survivor?s right to appeal through use of an approved or designated mediator. Each claimant should retain the right to abandon process up until the time that a settlement is made and accepted. This right would, of course, be granted to us through normal litigation. - Please do not tax themt outright on any award obtained through this fund. In most cases, proceeds received from this fund will be reinvested in our economy for the long-term maintenance of their families and children. The U.S. government will receive its share on a yearly basis, for sure. Similarly, claimants need to be informed as to how any potential award settlement will affect other government-sponsored benefits such as Social Security and Workman?s Compensation. - I, and all surviving members of the victims of September 11th beseech the DOJ to keep the application and documentation process for this fund SIMPLE and forthright. Many of the surviving members are at the end of their ropes. To ask them to jump through hoops of fire is insulting and demoralizing in light of their strife. Sincerely, Individual Comment Boulder, CO September 11 Email: Date The local time and date when the message was written. 2001-11-29 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource dojA000187.xml 911DA Item Elements describing a September 11 Digital Archive item. Status The process status of this item. approved Consent Whether September 11 Digital Archive has permission to possess this item. full Posting Whether the contributor gave permission to post this item. yes Copyright Whether the contributor holds copyright to this item. yes Source The source of this item. born-digital Media Type The media type of this item. email Created by Author Whether the author created this item. yes Described by Author Whether the description of this item was submitted by the author. no Date Entered The date this item was entered into the archive. 2001-11-29