RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


	IN THE CASE OF:	  Nieves-Corchado, Noemi


	BOARD DATE:	  
	DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20060012466 


	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.



	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 the first name recorded in his military records be changed from Nxxxi to Nxxxxxi.   

2.  The applicant essentially states that the first name recorded in his military records does not match his birth certificate. 

3.  The applicant provides his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) and his birth certificate in support of this application. 

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which occurred on 
30 August 1972, the date of his release from active duty.  The application submitted in this case is dated 17 August 2006.

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 records show that he was inducted into the Army of the United States on 24 November 1970, and served on active duty until he was released from active duty on 30 August 1972.  The applicant’s induction record, the personnel records prepared on him upon his entry on active duty, and all orders and documents on file in his military records all contain the same first name, Nxxxi, which is the first name under which he performed all his military service.  

4.  The DD Form 214 issued to and authenticated by the applicant with his signature on his release from active duty on 30 August 1972 shows that the first name recorded on this document is the same one recorded in his induction 



documents, enlistment documents, complete personnel record, and under which he served throughout his active duty tenure.  The applicant authenticated this document with his signature, and his signature contained the first name Nxxxi, which is consistent with all his other military records and with the signature he used throughout his military service tenure.  

5.  The applicant provided a birth certificate which lists his birth first name as Nxxxxxi.  However, he provides no explanation as to why he chose to use the first name Nxxxi during his military service.  

6.  Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents) prescribes the separation documents that must be prepared for soldiers on retirement, discharge, release from active duty service, or control of the active Army.  Chapter 2 contains guidance on the preparation and distribution of the DD Form 214.  Paragraph 2-4 contains item by item instructions for completion of the DD Form 214 and it states, in pertinent part, that Item 1 will contain the name taken from the soldier’s personnel record.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that the first name recorded in his military records should be changed from Nxxxi to Nxxxxxi.   

2.  The Board notes and understands the applicant’s desire to have the first name recorded in his military records changed to the name shown on his birth certificate.  However, there is no evidence of record or independent evidence that suggests the first name recorded in his military records exhibits a material error or injustice.

3.  The applicant was inducted, served, and was honorably separated from the Army under the preferred first name he used in his military records.  The Board finds the fact that he now, more than 33 years after his separation, desires to have the first name recorded in his military records changed to the name shown on his birth certificate is not a sufficiently mitigating factor that warrants granting this requested relief. 

4.  The Board finds no evidence that suggests that the applicant has or would suffer any injury or injustice as a result of the Army maintaining its records with the first name under which he served.  The Army has an interest in maintaining the accuracy of its records.  The data and information contained in those records 


should reflect the conditions and circumstances that existed at the time the records were created.  While the Board understands the applicant’s desire to now record his birth first name in his military records, it does not find that this is a sufficiently compelling reason for compromising the integrity of the Army’s records at this late date.  

5.  The Board wishes to advise the applicant that a copy of this decisional document along with his application and the supporting evidence he provided, which confirms his birth first name, will be filed in his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF).  This should serve to clarify any questions or confusion in regard to the difference in the name recorded in his military record and satisfy his desire to have his birth name documented in his OMPF. 

6.  In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.

7.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the alleged error or injustice now under consideration on 30 August 1972; therefore, the time for the applicant to file a request for correction of any error or injustice expired on 
29 August 1975.  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

___JI ___  ___SP___  ___QS __  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 Infante_______
          CHAIRPERSON




INDEX

CASE ID
AR20060012466
SUFFIX

RECON
YYYYMMDD
DATE BOARDED
20070403
TYPE OF DISCHARGE
(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)
DATE OF DISCHARGE
YYYYMMDD
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY
AR . . . . .  
DISCHARGE REASON

BOARD DECISION
DENY
REVIEW AUTHORITY
AR 15-185
ISSUES         1.
100.0100.0000
2.

3.

4.

5.

6.