Dale NYMAN, Plaintiff/Appellant, v. Margaret M. HECKLER, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Defendant/Appellee

Nyman was born on December 2, 1946, and at the time he appeared before the administrative law judge (AU), he was thirty-six years old. He is five feet six and one-half inches tall and has weighed approximately 230 pounds since 1976. On March 5, 1976, Nyman was injured in an automobile accident which left him unconscious for 98 hours and hospitalized for two weeks.

Nyman’s past work experience includes six months as a tire repairman, which ended in 1976 when his employer went bankrupt. He subsequently worked part-time doing yard and garden maintenance. He has a high school education, is married and has children.

Nyman applied for Social Security Disability benefits on September 20, 1979. By disability determination of the Social Security Administration dated December 19, 1979, Nyman was informed that he was not eligible for benefits. He reapplied and was again determined to be not eligible on April 20, 1982. He requested a hearing to dispute the denial and was granted a hearing before AU W.C. Lynch on February 24, 1983.

Testimony at the hearing revealed that Nyman has not worked since approximately the summer of 1976 due to a variety of alleged physical and mental impairments…