RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        27 July 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050016737


      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. G. E. Vandenberg              |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. John T. Meixell               |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Jeffrey C. Redmann            |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Edward E. Montgomery          |     |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 her late husband's records be corrected to
show he served two tours of duty in Vietnam with the 5th Group, Special
Forces, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam - Studies and Observation
Group (MACV-SOG).

2.  The applicant states that the former service member's (FSM) records
have been changed and his service in Vietnam erased.  She indicates that
the FSM was wounded during the TET Offensive.

3.  The applicant provides copies of the FSM's death certificate, a 31 May
1967 DD Form 214 (Report of Transfer or Discharge), 9 page printout from an
Internet web site.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error or injustice
which occurred on 12 October 1970, the date of the FSM's discharge from the
United States Army Reserve (USAR).  The application submitted in this case
is dated 15 November 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.  The records show that the FSM enlisted in the United States Army
Reserve (USAR) on 1 September 1966.  He was assigned to the USAR Ready
Reserve with the 322nd Civil Affairs Group, Fort DeRussy, Hawaii in
military occupational specialty (MOS) 81A10 (Draftsman).

4.  A DD Form 214, issued 31 May 1967, indicates the FSM was ordered to
active duty for training (ACDUTRA), served on active duty for 4 months and
5 days with 4 months and 25 days of other prior service.  He was released
from ACDUTRA and transferred to the USAR, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.

5.  US Army Personnel Center, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii Special Orders
Number 107, dated 31 May 1967, reassigned the applicant to the 322nd Civil
Affairs Group, Fort DeRussy, Hawaii.

6.  Headquarters 411th Engineer Battalion Special Orders Number 25 awarded
the applicant the Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar
on 19 July 1968.

7.  The DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) covering the period
1 September 1966 through 12 October 1970 shows:

      a.  the FSM was ordered to ACDUTRA on 9 January 1967 with a reporting
date of 26 January 1967;

      b.  the FSM completed basic combat training (BCT) and advanced
individual training (AIT), in MOS 71H (Personnel Specialist), at Fort Ord,
California;

      c.  he was released from ACDUTRA on 1 June 1967 and assigned to the
322nd Civil Affairs Group, Fort DeRussy, Hawaii;

      d.  transfer to Company A, 411th Engineer Battalion (Construction),
Fort DeRussy in the duty MOS of 51B (Heavy Construction Equipment Operator)
on 1 December 1967;

      e.  service on ACDUTRA at Fort DeRussy for the periods of 29 July
1967 through 12 August 1967, 3 - 17 August 1968, and 2 – 18 August 1969;
and

      f.  he was discharged from the USAR by reason of medical unfitness on
12 October 1970.

8.  The record contains copies of the FSM's medical records that include,
but are not limited to, a 14 August 1968 Standard Form 600 (Chronological
Record of Medical Care) showing treatment for back strain as a USAR member
of Company A, 411th Engineer Battalion.

9.  A copy of a 13 February 1970 Standard Form 89 (Report of Medical
History), completed for the purpose of retention in the USAR, indicates the
FSM had a persistent inguinal hernia that was first diagnosed in 1962 and
required immediate surgery.

10.  The FSM also underwent a neuropsychiatric examination on 3 August
1970. The attending physician rendered the opinion that the FSM had a
severe passive-dependent passive-aggressive personality disorder that
rendered him unfit for continued military service.  The physician
recommended that the FSM be separated at that time.

11.  The FSM was discharged from the USAR on 12 October 1970 due to medical
unfitness.

12.  The records contain no indication that the applicant attended or
completed any Special Forces training or served at any time in Vietnam.

13.  The death certificate provided indicates the FSM died on 3 November
2003.

14.  The Internet information provided by the applicant is not from an
official military source.  The photographs included have no identifying
information as to where or when they were taken.

15.  A review of the Vietnam Casualty List does not include any reference
to the FSM receiving any wounds.

16.  The applicant provided a 9 page internet printout that appears to have
been assembled by the applicant.  It contains two photographs that are
allegedly of the applicant, one alleged to have been taken in Vietnam.

17.  Army Regulation 15–185 (Boards, Commissions, and Committees Army Board
for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR)) governs operation of the ABCMR.
 It states that the ABCMR begins its consideration of each case with the
presumption of administrative regularity.  The applicant has the burden of
proving an error or injustice by a preponderance of the evidence.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant has provided insufficient evidence to show that the FSM
served on active duty for any period other than his periods of active duty
for training.

2.  The photographs provided by the applicant do not have any identifying
information that would identify when or where the photographs were taken.

3.  There is no documentation to support the applicant's contention that
the FSM received any wounds as a result of enemy action or that he served
in Vietnam.

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

5.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or
injustice now under consideration on 12 October 1970; therefore, the time
for the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or
injustice expired on 11 October 1973.  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

__ EEM__  __JCR__  _EEM___  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.


                                  __     John T. Meixell______
                                            CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050016737                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20060727                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |100                                     |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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