IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 19 February 2009
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20080017362
THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE:
1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any).
2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any).
THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:
1. The applicant requests, in effect, that Item 1 (Last Name, First Name, Middle Name) of his Enlisted Record and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge
(WD AGO 53-55) be corrected to show his last name with the letter "z" vice the letter "x" in the fourth character.
2. The applicant provides his WD AGO Form 53-55, Honorable Discharge Certificate and Social Security Card in support of his application.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. 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 also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicants failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. While it appears the applicant did not file within the time frame provided in the statute of limitations, the ABCMR has elected to conduct a substantive review of this case and, only to the extent relief, if any, is granted, has determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicants failure to timely file. In all other respects, there are insufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing.
2. The applicants military records are not available to the Board for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members records at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in 1973. It is believed that the applicants records were lost or destroyed in that fire. However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case. This case is being considered using reconstructed records that primarily consist of the documents provided by the applicant and his WD AGO Form 53-55.
3. The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he was inducted into the Army of the United States (AUS) on 1 February 1943, and that he entered active duty on
8 February 1943, and that he was honorably separated on 18 December 1945. Item 1 of the WD AGO 53-55 lists his last name using the letter "x" as the fourth character. Item 56 (Signature of Person Being Separated) contains the applicant's signature, in which he used the letter "z" as the fourth character of his last name, which is the spelling he now claims is correct.
4. The applicant provides a copy of his Honorable Discharge Certificate, dated 18 December 1945, which lists his last name using the letter "z" as the fourth character. He also provides a copy of his Social Security Card which also shows his last name spelled with the letter "z" as the fourth character.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
The available evidence clearly shows the correct spelling of the applicant's last name during the time he served contained the letter "z" as the fourth character, as evidenced by his signature on his WD AGO Form 53-55 and the spelling contained on his honorable discharge certificate. Further, the proper spelling of his last name is confirmed in the social security card he now provides. Therefore, it appears the spelling of his last name in Item 1 of his WD AGO Form 53-55, which used the letter "x" as the fourth character, was the result of an administrative error and should be corrected at this time. As a result, it would be appropriate to correct Item 1 of his WD AGO Form 53-55 accordingly.
BOARD VOTE:
____x___ ___x____ ____x___ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by
amending Item 1 of his 18 December 1945 WD AGO 53-55 by deleting the fourth character of his last name and replacing it with the letter "z"; and by providing him a correction to his separation document that reflects this change.
_______ _x _______ ___
CHAIRPERSON
I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case.
ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20080017362
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ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20080017362
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ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
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