RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        15 NOVEMBER 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050002892


      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. Stanley Kelley                |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. John Meixell                  |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Robert Duecaster              |     |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 that his 1971 separation document be corrected
to reflect that he was discharged in the rank of sergeant (SGT) vice
specialist 5 (SP5).  He also asks that his records be corrected to show
that he qualified as an expert with the 45 caliber pistol and that he was
awarded the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the Cold War
Medal, and any other decorations he may be entitled to.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he held the rank of SGT but
cannot locate the orders he received for this promotion.  He states that he
sat for the SGT E-5 promotion board while in Germany and that he placed
first in the battalion.  However, because he had already been wearing three
stripes since February 1971 his commander simply announced that he had been
promoted to SGT E-5 from SP5.  He states that failure of the paperwork to
make it to his permanent file was beyond his control.

3.  The applicant notes that several documents, including his request for
early separation, award orders, training certificate, and separation orders
from the United States Army Reserve in 1974 and 1975 show his rank as SGT.

4.  The applicant provides copies of documents noted above.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 2 October 1971.  The application submitted in this case
is dated
14 February 2005.

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.  On 9 January 1970 the applicant enlisted and entered active duty for a
period of 3 years in order to attend OCS (officer candidate school).

4.  In March 1970, while undergoing basic combat training at Fort Leonard
Wood, Missouri, the applicant qualified as a sharpshooter with the hand
grenade.  He was awarded the associated badge and component bar.  Orders
confirming the badge were issued at Fort Leonard Wood, but the information
was omitted from his separation document.  There is no evidence confirming
qualification as an expert with the 45 caliber pistol.

5.  In May 1970, after having completed basic and advanced individual
training, the applicant signed a statement agreeing to withdraw from the
OCS Program with the understanding that his enlistment contract would be
amended from
3 years to 2 years and that he would be permitted to be assigned to a unit
in Germany.

6.  In July 1970 the applicant arrived in Germany where he was assigned to
an artillery battalion in his primary specialty (13E-cannon fire direction
specialist).

7.  Orders contained in the applicant's file show that he was promoted to
pay grade E-5 as a specialist in MOS (military occupational specialty)
13E20 effective 9 June 1971.  The orders promoting the applicant to SP5 do
not show he was serving as an acting sergeant in pay grade E-4 and item 33
(appointments and reductions) on his Department of the Army Form 2-1
(Enlisted Qualification Record) does not indicate the applicant was ever
laterally appointed to the rank of SGT.  However, item 2 (grade) on that
same form does contain a pencil entry showing "SGT E5" with a date of rank
of 9 June 1971.

8.  In August 1971, while still assigned overseas in Germany, the applicant
requested that he be allowed to separate early from active duty in order to
attend school.  He is identified as SGT throughout the separation request.

9.  The applicant's request was approved and on 11 September 1971 orders
were issued reassigning the applicant from the artillery battalion in
Germany to the transfer station at Fort Dix, New Jersey.

10.  On 2 October 1971 the applicant was released from active duty, in the
rank of SP5, with an honorable characterization of service.  In November
1971, after the applicant's separation from active duty, orders were issued
awarding him the Army Commendation Medal.  Those orders and the award
citation also identify the applicant as a SGT. The award, along with an
Army Good Conduct Medal, were added to the applicant's separation document
by a Department of Defense Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214 Certificate
of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) in 2003.

11.  Army Regulation 611-201, which identified the standard of grade
authorizations for various military specialties, noted, as late as 1979,
that MOS 13E was authorized a rank of specialist and not sergeant upon
promotion to pay grade E-5.

12.  Army Regulation 600-200, in effect at the time, established the
policies and provisions for the appointment of acting noncommissioned
officers and for lateral appointments.

13.  The regulation stated that unit commanders could appoint qualified
individuals as acting corporals (E-4) and acting sergeants (E-5) to serve
in position vacancies existing in their units, including those resulting
from temporary absences of assigned noncommissioned officers.  Appointment
of acting noncommissioned officers and termination of such status was to be
announced in orders issued by the appointing authority.  An acting
noncommissioned officer's status terminated upon reassignment to another
unit, at the discretion of the unit commander who made the appointment, and
upon assignment of a regularly promoted noncommissioned officer to the
position.

14.  Lateral appointments from specialist to noncommissioned officer grades
were authorized when the standards of grade authorization changed to delete
provisions for specialist in that pay grade and MOS.

15.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 notes that the Army Service Ribbon and
Overseas Service Ribbon were two service decorations established in 1981
and awarded only to individuals who had an Active Army status on or after 1
August 1981.

16.  Although there have been several attempts to authorize a Cold War
Medal, such a decoration does not currently exist in the Army's inventory.
However, the Department of Defense designated the Department of the Army as
the executive agent for the Cold War recognition certificate program.  The
Army has established a home page at http://coldwar.army.mil that explains
the correct procedures to request a Cold War certificate.  Individuals who
request the certificate must certify that they served both faithfully and
honorably, whether as a member of the U.S. armed forces or as a federal
civilian employee, during the Cold War era (1945-1991).  Each mailed or
faxed request must be accompanied by official documentation verifying
government service during the Cold War era. Acceptable documentation
includes any government form that includes the applicant's name and social
security number or military service number or foreign service number, and
the date of service.  Applicants should not send original documents to
verify federal service because the documents will not be returned to the
sender.  The mailing address for requests for the certificate is:
CDR, AHRC, Cold War Recognition, Hoffman II, Attn: AHRC-CWRS, 3N45, 200
Stovall Street, Alexandria, VA 22332-0473.  Receipt of the Cold War
recognition certificate is not annotated on separation document.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  While there is no evidence confirming the applicant qualified with the
45 caliber pistol, there is evidence confirming that he qualified as a
sharpshooter with the hand grenade and was awarded the associated badge and
component bar.  That badge should be added to his separation document.

2.  The applicant did not have an active duty status on or after 1981 and
as such, is not entitled to the either the Army Service Ribbon or the
Overseas Service Ribbon.

3.  Although the applicant is entitled to apply for the Cold War
recognition certificate there is no Cold War Medal in the Army's inventory
and as such, no basis to added such a decoration to his separation
document.

4.  The evidence available suggests that it was very likely the applicant
was appointed as an acting sergeant while he was in Germany.  Because the
standard of grade documentation limited individuals in MOS 13E to the rank
of SP5 upon promotion to pay grade E-5 the applicant could not have been
laterally appointed to that rank, further supporting the conclusion that he
was only appointed as an acting sergeant.  His acting appointment would
have terminated upon his reassignment to the transfer station at Fort Dix,
New Jersey.  The acting appointment, which was intended to fill a specific
need while in his overseas assignment, would not have followed him as part
of his separation processing.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

__SK ___  __JM ___  __RD ___  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION




BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to
warrant a recommendation for partial relief and to excuse failure to timely
file.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army
records of the individual concerned be corrected by showing that he
qualified as a sharpshooter with the hand grenade and was awarded the
associated badge and component bar.

2.  The Board further determined that the evidence presented is
insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief.  As a result,
the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to
qualification as an expert with the 45 caliber pistol, award of the Army
Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, and Cold War Medal, and
identification as a SGT vice SP5 upon separation.



                            ______Stanley Kelley_________
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050002892                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20051115                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |PARTIAL GRANT                           |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.00                                  |
|2.                      |110.00                                  |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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