IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  8 November 2012

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20120005730 


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 correction of his records to show a May 2010 date commissioned and date of rank instead of May 2011. 

2.  He states he was commissioned as a second lieutenant from the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) in May 2010, but his records maintained in the interactive Personnel Electronic Records Management System (iPERMS) show he was commissioned in May 2011.  He states the New Jersey Army National Guard (NJARNG) gave him an ultimatum stating that if he wished to stay in the NJARNG, he would have to take a commission in a branch other than military intelligence.  Since he lived in New York, he requested an interstate transfer to New York so he could join a signal unit closer to home.  Upon finishing his transfer paperwork, he was extended Federal recognition as a second lieutenant in the Signal Corps.

3.  He provides:

* DA Form 71 (Oath of Office)
* Appointment Memorandum
* Discharge Memorandum
* Memorandum for Record - Height, Weight, and Army Physical Fitness Test 


CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  His military records show he initially enlisted in the ARNG on 18 May 2006.

2.  On 18 September 2008, he signed a DA Form 597-3 (Army Senior ROTC Scholarship Cadet Contract) for a 2 academic year period.

3.  He enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve as a cadet on 21 September 2008.

4.  He signed a Cadet Command Form 203-R (Guaranteed Reserve Forces Duty Scholarship Cadet Contract Endorsement) on 25 September 2008.  This document shows he agreed to participate in the Simultaneous Membership Program. 

5.  His data in the Integrated Web Services (IWS) database shows the effective date of his initial appointment as a second lieutenant as 14 May 2010 with a date of rank and date commissioned of 22 May 2011.

6.  Orders 146-035, dated 26 May 2011, discharged him from the NJARNG and as a Reserve of the Army effective 21 May 2010.

7.  A National Guard Bureau (NGB) Form 22 (NGB Report of Separation and Record of Service) shows he was separated from the NJARNG effective 21 May 2010 and transferred to the Individual Ready Reserve.

8.  Department of the Army Fordham University, Department of Military Science, Orders 04-018, dated 15 April 2010, relieved the applicant from the U.S. Army Reserve Control Group as an ROTC cadet effective 21 May 2010, to accept a commission in the Armed Forces.

9.  He submits a DA Form 71 showing he executed an oath of office as a Reserve commissioned officer in the rank of second lieutenant on 22 May 2010.

10.  A Fordham University memorandum, dated 22 May 2010, shows he accepted an appointment as a Reserve commissioned officer assigned to the Military Intelligence Corps effective 22 May 2010.

11.  College transcripts show he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree on 27 May 2010.

12.  An NGB Form 62E (Application for Federal Recognition as an ARNG Officer or Warrant Officer and Appointment as a Reserve Commissioned Officer or Warrant Officer of the Army in the ARNG of the United States) shows on 11 May 2011, he applied for Federal recognition and an appointment in the New York (NY) ARNG as a Signal Corps officer.

13.  An NGB Form 22 shows he enlisted in the NYARNG in the rank of specialist/E-4 effective 10 September 2010 and that he was discharged from the NYARNG in the rank of specialist/E-4 effective 21 May 2011.

14.  His NGB Form 337 (Oaths of Office) shows he was granted temporary recognition as a second lieutenant in the NYARNG effective 20 May 2011.

15.  Orders 157-1017, dated 6 June 2011, published by the Office of the Adjutant General, State of New York, discharged him from the NYARNG effective 21 May 2011.  This order terminated his enlistment the day prior to his appointment as a commissioned officer.

16.  Orders 157-1018, dated 6 June 2011, published by the Office of the Adjutant General, State of New York, announced his appointment in the ARNG in the Signal Corps effective 22 May 2011, based on his temporary Federal recognition, with an assignment to a unit in the NYARNG as an operations officer.  These orders show his date of rank as 22 May 2011.

17.  NGB Special Order Number 279 AR, dated 1 November 2011, shows he was extended Federal recognition with an initial appointment to second lieutenant effective 22 May 2011.

18.  A U.S. Army Human Resources Command memorandum, dated 30 January 2012, shows he was appointed as a Reserve commissioned officer in the Signal Corps, effective 22 May 2011.

19.  National Guard Regulation 600-100, chapter 2, paragraph 2-2, states that the effective date of Federal recognition for original appointment is the date on which a commissioned officer executes the Oaths of Office in the State.  Paragraph 2-7 states, in pertinent part, that individuals applying for initial appointment (or reappointment following a break in service) as ARNG of the United States commissioned officers must apply for assignment to an authorized position in a federally recognized unit.  

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant was initially appointed by Fordham University as a Reserve commissioned officer in the military intelligence branch in the rank of second lieutenant on 22 May 2010.  However, his records show he enlisted and served in an enlisted status in the NYARNG from 10 September 2010 until 21 May 2011 at which time he was discharged as an enlisted Soldier in order to be appointed as a commissioned officer in the ARNG.

2.  Regulatory policy states that individuals applying for initial appointment in the ARNG of the United States as commissioned officers must apply for assignment to an authorized position in a federally recognized unit.  He stated the NJARNG gave him an ultimatum stating that if he wished to stay in the NJARNG he would have to take a commission in a branch other than military intelligence.  Therefore, based on that statement and the date he applied for appointment in the NYARNG it would be reasonable to presume the ARNG had no position vacancy available for him at an earlier time or that he voluntarily chose to delay applying for an ARNG appointment nearly 1 year later than his initial appointment in May 2010.

3.  His records show he did not apply for appointment and Federal recognition in the NYARNG until 11 May 2011.  Federal recognition for the ARNG was extended to him in a timely manner effective 22 May 2011.  As such, it appears there is no error or injustice in his date of rank and or the date of commission as shown in iPERMS and the IWS database.

4.  In view of the foregoing, there is an insufficient basis for granting the applicant's 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 that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned.



      _______ _   __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)                                         AR20120005730



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20120005730



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