BOARD DATE: 18 April 2013
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20120018052
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 DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) for the period ending 10 August 1962 to show his character of service as "honorable."
2. The applicant states, in effect, that his DD Form 214 should be corrected to show his character of service as "honorable" because he was ordered to active duty during the Berlin Crisis and he desires to use his veterans' benefits.
3. The applicant provides copies of his DD Form 214 and National Guard Bureau Form 22 (Report of Separation and Record of Service).
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 applicant's 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 applicant's failure to timely file. In all other respects, there are insufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing.
2. The applicant enlisted in the Wisconsin Army National Guard (WIARNG) on 25 February 1956. He was ordered to active duty for training (ADT) on 6 October 1956. He completed basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, and advanced individual training as a light weapons infantryman at Fort Dix, New Jersey, before being released from ADT on 5 April 1957.
3. On 15 October 1961, his WIARNG unit, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3d Battalion, 127th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division, was mobilized in response to the Berlin Crisis under Executive Order 10957, dated 10 August 1961. The unit was sent to Fort Lewis, Washington, to prepare for possible deployment.
4. On 10 August 1962, 9 months and 26 days later, he was released from active duty (REFRAD) and was returned to State control as a member of the WIARNG. He was issued a DD Form 214 at the time of his REFRAD; however, item 13a (Character of Service) was left blank and the word "None" appears in item 13b (Type of Certificate Issued).
5. On 24 February 1964, the applicant was honorably discharged from the WIARNG and as a Reserve of the Army.
6. A review of his official records failed to reveal any derogatory information or any types of indiscipline.
7. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents) established the standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214. It provides that a DD Form 214 will be prepared for each member of the Army National Guard released after completion of 90 or more days of active duty. It also provides that an entry will made to describe the character of service and it will be entered in all capital letters. An entry of "NONE" was mandated for personnel being returned to their Army National Guard units.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicant was serving in the WIARNG when he was mobilized with his unit in response to the Berlin Crisis on 15 October 1961. He completed 9 months and 26 days of active duty and was REFRAD on 10 August 1962. However, the character of his service was left blank on his DD Form 214.
2. A review of his official records failed to reveal any derogatory information during his service. Therefore, it is reasonable to believe that the applicant's service was honorable throughout the period under review.
3. It is also logical to presume that the omission of the character of his service was an administrative oversight that occurred during the preparation of the DD Form 214.
4. Accordingly, his DD Form 214 should be corrected to show the character of his service as "honorable."
BOARD VOTE:
_x____ ___x_____ ____x____ GRANT FULL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
The Board determined the evidence presented is 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 his DD Form 214 for the period ending 10 August 1962 to show the character of his service as "honorable."
_________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) AR20120018052
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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20120018052
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