October 23, 2007 - A wounded Iraq War veteran plans to file a lawsuit in federal court Wednesday because he said the U.S. Army discriminated against him while he worked at a civilian job at the Tank Automotive Command in Warren.

Former U.S. Army Sgt. James McKelvy was forced out of his job in part because he used a handicapped parking space in front of the Tank Automotive Command (TACOM) building and because his employers would not otherwise accommodate his handicap, his attorneys said.

TACOM officials could not be reached Tuesday for comment.

McKelvey lost his right hand and suffered a mangled left hand and burns on his body while trying to disarm a homemade bomb near Baghdad in Feb. 2004. He was flown to Walter Reed Hospital in Washington D.C., where President George W. Bush personally awarded him with the Purple Heart, his attorney Joe Golden said.

McKelvey of Sterling Heights was discharged from the Army in December, 2005. He took a civilian administrative job at TACOM in February, 2006, and, according to Golden, he was harassed by his employers.

"This is an individual who served his country, came back to work for the Army as civilian employee, and then got harassed as a result of his disability," Golden said. "They didn't think he should have been allowed to park in a handicapped parking spot, or accommodated because of his disability. They told him if he didn't like the way he was being treated, he could get another job."

Golden is working with Attorney Geoffrey Fieger on the case. Fieger has scheduled a press conference about the case outside his Southfield office at 10 a.m. Wednesday.

"The Army treated this wounded war veteran almost to the point of disdain," Golden said. "Instead of treating him with any semblance of respect, they didn't like him being there, and they treated him accordingly."

McKelvey quit his job at TACOM in March, 2007. "No reasonable person would have tolerated what he had to go through, so he quit," Golden said.

McKelvey first tried to settle the matter through the Army's grievance process, but when he did not get satisfaction through those channels, he hired an attorney, Golden said.

You can reach George Hunter at (586) 468-7396 or ghunter@detnews.com.