IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 30 August 2012
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20120003404
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 reconsideration of his earlier request to upgrade his discharge.
2. The applicant states that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently found that he did have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following his second tour in Vietnam
3. The applicant provides a 1 February 2012 VA Rating Decision.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20100021071, on 16 February 2011.
2. On 7 December 1965, the applicant enlisted in the Regular Army. He completed his initial training and he was awarded military occupational specialty 76Q (Repair Parts Specialist).
3. He was advanced to specialist four (SP4)/E-4 in August 1967, reenlisted in October 1967 for a period of 6 years, and was promoted to specialist five (SP5)/E-5 in March 1968.
4. The applicant was briefly assigned to Germany in early 1970, then he served in Vietnam from July 1970 to June 1971, when he returned to Germany.
5. He was absent without leave (AWOL) from 20 September 1971 to 8 December 1971 and from 15 December 1971 to 27 April 1972.
6. Court-martial charges were preferred and the applicant requested and received a discharge under chapter 10 of Army Regulation 635-200 for the good of the service in lieu of trial by court-martial. He had completed 6 years, 3 months, and 6 days of total active service with 212 days of time lost due to AWOL.
7. The VA rating decision submitted by the applicant shows that the VA is willing to "concede" the PTSD stressors are related to an incident during the applicant's first enlistment that the applicant described in which he witnessed a Buddhist monk setting himself afire. The VA did not "concede" PTSD stressors from the applicant's second tour of duty because that period of service was characterized as having been under other than honorable conditions.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. There is no available evidence that the applicant was suffering from any psychiatric, mental, or psychological problem when he commenced the AWOLs that led to his discharge.
2. The VA decision did not cite evidence of any such condition nor did it even describe any. Furthermore, what the VA decided some 40 years after the fact is irrelevant. There is no evidence to support the conclusion that the applicant was so hampered by mental or psychological problems that he could not both tell right from wrong and adhere to the right.
3. There is no documentation to support the applicant's contention and no rationale to support the implied conclusion that those alleged circumstances would warrant the requested relief.
4. In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's requested relief.
BOARD VOTE:
________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
___X ___ ___X____ ___X ___ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
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 to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20100021071, dated 16 February 2011
__________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) AR20120003404
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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20120003404
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