RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20040010434


      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             |
|     |Mr. David S. Griffin              |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Ms. Kathleen A. Newman            |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. William D. Powers             |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Marla J. N. Troup             |     |Member               |

      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, in effect, that his date of birth on his
Enlisted Record and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge be changed
to 8 January 1916 instead of 8 November 1916.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that the date of birth on his Enlisted
Record and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge (not recognized as an
Army form) with a date of separation of 8 November 1945 is incorrect.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of:

      a.  an unnumbered form titled Enlisted Record and Report of
Separation - Honorable Discharge; and

      b.  a Standard Certificate of Birth, certified by the State
department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Lincoln, Nebraska that
shows a date of birth as
8 January 1916.  This copy of the birth certificate was issued on 15
February 1979.  In the item entitled "Name of Child" the first name is
lined out and the applicant's first and middle name written in.  In the
item for the full name of father a middle name has been added.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which
occurred on
8 November 1945, the date of his discharge.  The application submitted in
this case is dated 4 November 2004.

2.  Title 10, U.S. Code, Section 1552(b), provides that applications for
correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery
of the alleged error or injustice.  This provision of law allows the Army
Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse failure to file
within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines that it
would be in the interest of justice to do so.  In this case, the ABCMR will
conduct a review of the merits of the case to determine if it would be in
the interest of justice to excuse the applicant’s failure to timely file.

3.  The applicant’s military personnel records were not available and may
have been lost or destroyed in a fire at the National Personnel Records
Center in 1973.  The only records available to the Board were a record of
final payment



and records provided by the applicant.  The primary military personnel
records available to this Board are the Enlisted Record and Report of
Separation - Honorable Discharge and the Standard Certificate of Birth that
were submitted by the applicant.

4.  The applicant's available military records show that he was inducted
on 5 October 1943.  He served in the European-African-Middle Eastern
Theater during the period from 18 November 1944 through 28 July 1945.  The
applicant was discharged on 8 November 1945 due to demobilization.  He had
served
2 years, 1 month and 3 days of active service characterized as honorable.

5.  Item 10 (Date of Birth) on the applicant's Enlisted Record and Report
of Separation - Honorable Discharge shows date of birth as 8 November 1916.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that his date of birth on the Enlisted Record
and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge he provided is incorrect.

2.  The Board is limited to correcting military records.  Since the
Enlisted Record and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge is not
recognized as an Army form, the Board lacks the authority to correct this
form.

3.  Since the applicant's military records were probably destroyed in the
St. Louis fire in 1973, there is no official separation document for the
Board to consider.

4.  In addition, the birth certificate submitted by the applicant has
clearly been changed or altered.  There is no evidence to show when these
changes were made.  Therefore, this document, without corroborating
evidence, would be insufficient to justify a change to the applicant's
separation document if an official separation document were to be provided.

5.  In view of the above, there is insufficient evidence to grant relief in
this case.

6.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the error or
injustice now under consideration on 8 November 1945, the date of his
separation from active duty.  However, the ABCMR was not established until
2 January 1947.  Therefore, the time for the applicant to file a request
for correction of any error or injustice expired on 1 January 1950.
However, the applicant did not file within the 3-year statute of
limitations and has not provided a compelling explanation or evidence to
show that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse failure to
timely file in this case.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___kan __  ____wdp   ___mt___  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that 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.

2.  As a result, the Board further determined that there is no evidence
provided which shows that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse
the applicant's failure to timely file this application within the 3-year
statute of limitations prescribed by law.  Therefore, there is insufficient
basis to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing or for
correction of the records of the individual concerned.




                            ______Kathleen A. Newman________
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20040010434                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20050823                                |
|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.       |                                        |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


-----------------------
[pic]