IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 3 January 2013 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20120009991 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests, in effect, that her discharge from the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) be voided, that she be issued a 20-year letter, and that she be allowed to apply for non-Regular retirement. 2. The applicant states she was granted sanctuary and her mandatory removal date (MRD) was extended so as to allow her to reach retirement eligibility. However, she was discharged from the USAR on 31 May 2012, just 17 days short of completing her 20th year. 3. The applicant provides an email from the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army (VCSA) granting her an extension of her MRD. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant was born on 5 May 1950. She was commissioned as a USAR first lieutenant in the Army Nurse Corps on 18 June 1992 with concurrent call to active duty. She was honorably released from active duty on 15 August 1997 and was transferred to a USAR troop program unit. She was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel on 21 October 2008. 2. On 22 June 2010, the U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) denied the applicant's request for retention beyond her MRD and orders were published by HRC on 3 September 2010 discharging her from the USAR effective 24 August 2010. However, those orders were revoked on 1 October 2010. 3. On 20 September 2010, the VCSA sent an email to the applicant advising her that officials at HRC had determined that she had reached sanctuary and should have been granted an MRD extension. Accordingly, her discharge orders would be revoked and she would be granted an extension to 31 May 2012. 4. On 11 May 2012, orders were published by HRC discharging the applicant from the USAR effective 31 May 2012. However, the applicant had only completed 19 years, 11 months, and 14 days of creditable service. Her chronological statement of retirement points shows she had creditable years for every year except the last one, which was 17 days short of a full year. However, she had sufficient points (84) to qualify for a creditable year. 5. Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1251 states that, as a general rule, each regular commissioned officer serving in a grade below brigadier general shall be retired on the first day of the month following the month in which the officer becomes 62 years of age. In pertinent part, it also states the Secretary of the military department concerned may defer the retirement of an officer in the Army Nurse Corps, but not beyond the first day of the month following the month in which the officer becomes 68 years of age. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The applicant's request to have her discharge voided so as to qualify her for non-Regular retirement has been noted and appears to have merit. 2. It is apparent that when the applicant was notified her MRD was being extended because she had reached sanctuary, it was extended for the express purpose of allowing her to qualify for non-Regular retirement. However, it is also apparent that when her MRD was extended to 31 May 2012 it did not serve the purpose of allowing her to reach retirement eligibility. 3. Her records show that since the date of her commissioning she has continued to serve and has been credited with qualifying years for retirement every year except her last year and then only because of the MRD that was established as 31 May 2012. 4. Although her records do not explain why 31 May 2012 was the established MRD, it did not meet the intent of allowing her to reach retirement eligibility and unjustly caused her to serve an additional 1 year, 8 months, and 27 days with no way of completing a full qualifying year for retirement. 5. Therefore, as a matter of justice and equity, her discharge should be amended to show she was honorably separated on 18 June 2012 and transferred to the Retired Reserve, that she was issued a 20-year letter, allowing her to be apply and be eligible for non-Regular retirement. BOARD VOTE: ____x___ ___x____ ____x___ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by amending her 11 May 2012 discharge orders to show she was separated on 18 June 2012 and transferred to the Retired Reserve and issuing her a 20-year letter, allowing her to apply for non-Regular retirement. ____________x_____________ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20120009991 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20120009991 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1