IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  6 September 2012

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20120005219 


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 request to have his undesirable discharge upgraded to an honorable discharge and he requests that the narrative reason be changed to reflect that he was discharged due to hardship.

2.  The applicant states he filled out the paperwork for a hardship discharge at the Red Cross; however, he was discharged for unfitness and never heard anything of his request.  He states he should have been discharged for hardship because he had to help his mother on the farm after his father died.  Accordingly, his discharge should be upgraded and his benefits should be restored.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his administrative discharge proceedings.

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 AR20110010702 on 8 December 2011.

2.  The applicant's military records are not available to the ABCMR for review.  An exhaustive search was undertaken to locate his military records and unfortunately they could not be located.  However, the applicant has provided sufficient copies of his records for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of his case.

3.  The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army in Montgomery, Alabama, on 4 March 1966.  He completed training as a field wireman and was transferred to Germany.

4.  On 2 May 1967, he was convicted of being absent without leave (AWOL) from 29 December 1966 to 12 April 1967 by a special court-martial at Fort Gordon, Georgia.

5.  On 23 October 1967, he was convicted of being AWOL from 15 May to 3 October 1967 by a special court-martial at Fort Gordon.

6.  On 3 November 1967, the applicant's commander notified him that he was initiating action to discharge him from the service for unfitness under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-212 (Personnel Separations – Discharge – Unfitness and Unsuitability) due to his frequent involvement in incidents of a discreditable nature with military authorities.

7.  On 8 November 1967 after consulting with defense counsel, the applicant waived all of his rights and elected not to submit a statement in his own behalf.

8.  On 27 November 1967, the appropriate authority (a major general) approved the recommendation for discharge and directed issuance of an Undesirable Discharge Certificate.

9.  Accordingly, he was discharged under other than honorable conditions on 5 December 1967 under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-212 for unfitness due to his frequent involvement in incidents of a discreditable nature with military authorities.  He completed 10 months and 9 days of active service.

10.  There is no available evidence to show he applied to the Army Discharge Review Board for an upgrade of his discharge within that board's 15-year statute of limitations.

11.  Additionally, there is no available evidence to show he applied for a hardship discharge or that he offered extenuating circumstances at the time.

12.  Army Regulation 635-212, in effect at the time, set forth the authority for the separation of enlisted personnel for unfitness and unsuitability.  It provided that members involved in frequent incidents of a discreditable nature with civil or military authorities were subject to separation for unfitness.  An undesirable discharge was normally considered appropriate.

13.  Army Regulation 635-200 (Active Duty Enlisted Administrative Separations) sets forth the basic policy for the separation of enlisted personnel.  Paragraph 
3-7a provides that an honorable discharge is a separation with honor and entitles the recipient to benefits provided by law.  The honorable characterization is appropriate when the quality of the member's service generally has met the standards of acceptable conduct and performance of duty for Army personnel or is otherwise so meritorious that any other characterization would be clearly inappropriate.

14.  Army Regulation 635-200, paragraph 3-7b, provides that a general discharge is a separation from the Army under honorable conditions.  When authorized, it is issued to a Soldier whose military record is satisfactory but not sufficiently meritorious to warrant an honorable discharge.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant's administrative discharge under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-212 was accomplished in accordance with applicable regulations with no indication of any violations of the applicant's rights.

2.  Accordingly, the type of discharge directed and the reasons appear to be appropriate considering all of the facts of the case.

3.  The applicant's contentions and supporting documents have been considered by the Board; however, they are not sufficiently mitigating when compared to his overall undistinguished record of service and the lack of mitigating circumstances at the time.

4.  In actuality, he had more lost time than good time and his service did not rise to the level of even a general discharge.  Accordingly, there is no basis to grant his request.

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 the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20110010702, dated 8 December 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)                                         AR20120005219



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20120005219



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