RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:            30 MARCH 2004
      DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2003093895


      I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record
of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in
the case of the above-named individual.

|     |Mr. Carl W. S. Chun               |     |Director             |
|     |Ms. Deborah L. Brantley           |     |Senior Analyst       |


  The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Melvin H. Meyer               |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Allen L. Raub                 |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Larry C. Bergquist            |     |Member               |

      The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests that his Reentry (RE) Code be changed to permit
him to reenlist.

2.  The applicant states that he suffered an injury prior to reporting for
duty and although he made his chain of command aware of the injury he was
“forced to continue service.”  He states that as a result he was forced to
make a statement.

3.  The applicant provides no evidence in support of his request.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Records available to the Board indicate that the applicant entered
active duty on 17 July 2000.  Medical documents, included with the
applicant’s petition to the Army Discharge Review Board to have his service
characterized as honorable, indicates that he was seen by medical personnel
in April 2000 for a sprained ankle and on 13 June 2000 for lower back pain
after going mountain biking.  The doctor prescribed rest and two kinds of
medication.

2.  There was no evidence in available records that he sought treatment for
his pain after entering active duty, or that he reported the problem to
members of his chain of command.

3.  On 15 August 2000 the applicant was administratively discharged under
the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, paragraph 15-3b (homosexual
admission).  Documents associated with his separation processing were no in
records available to the Board.  However, in the applicant’s petition to
the Army Discharge Review Board he indicated that he made that statement
solely to get out of the military.  At the time of his discharge he had
less than 30 days of active Federal service.  Because he was in an entry-
level status (less than 180 days) his service was uncharacterized.  He
received an SPD (Separation Program Designator) Code of “JRB” and an RE
Code of “4.”

4.  In July 2003 the Army Discharge Review Board unanimously denied the
applicant’s request to characterize his service and to change the reason
and authority for his separation.

5.  Army Regulation 635-200, paragraph 15-3b states that an individual will
be discharged when he/she has made a statement that he/she is a homosexual
or bisexual, or words to that effect.  A statement by the soldier that
he/she is a homosexual or bisexual, or words to that effect, creates a
rebuttable presumption that the soldier engages in, attempts to engage in,
has a propensity to engage in, or intends to engage in homosexual acts.

6.  Pertinent Army Regulations also provide that prior to discharge or
release from active duty, individuals will be assigned RE Codes, based on
their service records or the reason for discharge.  Army Regulation 601-210
covers eligibility criteria, policies, and procedures for enlistment and
processing into the Regular Army (RA) and the United States Army Reserve.
Chapter 3 of that regulation prescribed basic eligibility for prior service
applicants for enlistment.  That chapter includes a list of armed forces RE
Codes, including Regular Army RE Codes.  RE-4 applies to individuals who
were separated from their last period of service with a non-waivable
disqualification.  Soldiers who were discharged as a result of acceptance
of a discharge as a homosexual or discharge for homosexual tendencies are
ineligible for reenlistment and receive an RE-4.

7.  Army Regulation 635-5-1 states that SPD Codes are three-character
alphabetic combinations, which identify reasons for, and types of
separation from active duty.  The primary purpose of SPD Codes is to
provide statistical accounting of reasons for separation.  They are
intended exclusively for the internal use of Department of Defense and the
military services to assist in the collection and analysis of separation
data.  This analysis may, in turn, influence changes in separation policy.
SPD Codes are not intended to stigmatize an individual in any manner.  SPD
Code JRB applies to individuals separated as a result of homosexual
admission.  A “cross-reference” chart, provided by officials from the
separations branch at the United States Army Human Resources Command-
Alexandria, notes that RE-4 is the appropriate RE Code for individuals who
receive an SPD Code of JRB.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The fact that the applicant may have sought medical treatment for
injuries sustained prior to his entry on active duty is not evidence that
his separation was inappropriate.  There is no evidence that those injuries
contributed in any part to his separation from active duty as a result of
admitting that he was a homosexual.  He has submitted no evidence to
overcome the rebuttable presumption that he engages in, attempts to engage
in, has a propensity to engage in, or intends to engage in homosexual acts
resulting from the statement which served as the basis for his discharge.

2.  The applicant was separated from active duty because he admitted to
being a homosexual and accepted an administrative separation as a result.
Because he was not eligible to reenlist, he received an RE Code of 4.  The
RE Code was proper, based on the circumstances of his separation.  There is
no error or injustice in the applicant's RE Code and the fact that he
cannot return to military service does not serve as a basis to change his
correctly assigned RE Code.

3.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must
show, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in
error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would
satisfy that requirement.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__MHM__  __ALR __  __LCB __  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable
error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board determined that the overall
merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the
records of the individual concerned.





            ____Melvin H. Meyer______
                    CHAIRPERSON




                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR2003093895                            |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20040330                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |110.00                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |