IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 31 July 2014
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20130020995
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 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to show award of the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and to reflect his deployment to Kuwait in support of Operation Desert Spring.
2. The applicant states he was discharged very soon after his return from Kuwait and this award was never transferred to his DD Form 214. Until recently, he had no idea how to get his record updated or that it would prevent him from accessing benefits for which he is eligible.
3. The applicant provides his Leave and Earnings Statements (LESs) for the period of his deployment.
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 Regular Army on 29 July 1997.
3. He was honorably released from active duty on 28 July 2000. Item 13 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized (All periods of service)) of his DD Form 214 does not show award of the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal. Item 12f (Foreign Service) does not show that he had any foreign service. Item 18 (Remarks) does not show that he deployed overseas.
4. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service confirmed that the applicant received hostile fire/imminent danger pay (HF/IDP) and combat zone tax exclusion (CZTE) for deployment to Kuwait from 16 December 1999 to 20 April 2000, a period of 4 month and 5 days. The applicant provides LESs for the period of 1 December 1999 through 31 May 2000 which further corroborates this information.
5. Operation Desert Spring was part of an ongoing operation in Kuwait by the United States that was established on 31 December 1998, following Operation Desert Storm and Operation Desert Shield. The mission objective was to maintain a forward presence and provide control and force protection over the military in Kuwait. Operation Desert Spring ended with the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom on 18 March 2003.
6. Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) prescribes Army policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual and unit military awards. The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal is authorized for participants in military operations within a specific geographic area during a specified time period. An individual who was not engaged in actual combat or equally-hazardous activity must have been a bona fide member of a unit participating in or be engaged in the direct support of the operation for 30 consecutive or 60 nonconsecutive days, provided this support involved entering the area of operations. Qualifying service for Southwest Asia operations includes participation in Operation Desert Spring (31 December 1998 to 18 March 2003). The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal will be awarded only for operations for which no other U.S. campaign medal is approved.
7. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), in effect at the time, prescribed the separation documents prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active military service or control of the Army. Chapter 2 contained item-by-item instructions for preparation of the DD Form 214 and specified to:
a. in item 12c, enter the total amount of foreign service completed during the period covered;
b. in item 13, list awards and decorations for all periods of service in the priority sequence specified in Army Regulation 600-8-22. Each entry will be verified by the Soldier's records. Do not use abbreviations; and
c. in item 18, for an active duty Soldier deployed with his or her unit during their continuous period of active service, enter the statement "SERVICE IN (name of country deployed) FROM (inclusive dates for example, YYYYMMDD-YYYYMMDD)" in the remarks block.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The evidence shows the applicant was deployed to Kuwait from 16 December 1999 to 20 April 2000, a period of 4 month and 5 days. Therefore, he is entitled to correction of his DD Form 214 to show his foreign service.
2. The evidence shows the applicant served a qualifying period of service in Kuwait for award of the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal. Therefore, he is authorized award of the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and correction of his DD Form 214 to show this medal.
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:
a. deleting the current entry from item 12f of his DD Form 214 and adding the entry "0000 04 05";
b. adding the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal to item 13 of his DD Form 214; and
c. adding to item 18 of his DD Form 214 the entry "SERVICE IN KUWAIT FROM 19991216-20000420."
_______ _ __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) AR20130020995
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