IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  25 September 2014

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20140001507 


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, in effect, correction of his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to show in:

* Item 1 (Name (Last, First, Middle)) his first name as "Orlando" instead of "Luis" and his middle name as "Luis" instead of "Orlando"
* Item 5 (Date of Birth (DOB)) as 6 vice 5 January 19XX

2.  The applicant states he never had any problems, but he now wants to request benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs and they requested that he have the error corrected.  

3.  The applicant provides copies of his DD Form 214 and birth certificate.

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 provide in the statute of limitations, the ABCMR has elected to conduct a substantive review of the cases 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 sufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations.

2.  The applicant enlisted in the Puerto Rico Army National Guard (PRARNG) on 12 November 1972.  His records contain the following:

* DD Form 4 (Enlistment Record – Armed Forces of the United States), dated 12 November 1972, which lists his first and middle names as "Luis" and "Orlando" and his DOB as 5 January 19XX
* DA Form 2-1 (Personnel Qualification Record – Part II), prepared on 1 November 1984, which lists his first name as "Luis" and does not list his middle name and DOB

3.  He was ordered to active duty in support of Operation Desert Shield/Storm and entered active duty on 21 November 1990.  He was released from active duty on 17 May 1991.  His DD Form 214 lists in:

* Item 1 - his first and middle names as "Luis" and "Orlando"
* Item 6 - his DOB as 5 January 19XX

4.  He reenlisted in the PRARNG on 18 September 1993.  His records also contain the following:

* DA Form 4836 (Oath of Extension of Enlistment or Reenlistment), dated 16 October 1993, which lists his first name as "Luis," the initial "O" for his middle name, and does not list his DOB
* Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Certificate of Birth, issued on 13 February 1996, which lists his first and middle names as "Orlando" and "Luis" and his DOB as 6 January 19XX
* DD Form 93 (Record of Emergency Data), dated 2 November 1996, which lists his first and middle names as "Luis" and "Orlando" and does not list his DOB
* Notification of Eligibility for Retired Pay at Age 60 memorandum (undated) which lists his first name as "Luis," the initial "O" for his middle name, and does not list his DOB
* Orders Number 95-6, issued by the PRARNG, on 23 May 1997, discharging him from the PRARNG effective 4 July 1997; these orders list his first and middle names as "Luis" and "Orlando" and does not list his DOB

5.  He was honorably discharged from the PRARNG on 4 July 1997.  His National Guard Bureau Form 22 (Report of Separation and Record of Service) lists in:
* Item 1 (Last Name – First Names – Middle Name) - his first and middle names as "Luis" and "Orlando"
* Item 7 (DOB) - 6 January 19XX

6.  He provided a copy of a Government of Puerto Rico Certificate of Birth, issued on 21 September 2010, which identifies an individual with the same last name as the applicant and the first and middle names of "Orlando" and "Luis"; the DOB is listed as 6 January 19XX.

7.  Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), in effect at the time, governed the preparation of the DD Form 214.  It stated the DD Form 214 would be prepared for all personnel at the time of their retirement, discharge, or release from active duty.  The regulation stated:

* Item 1 would list the last name, first name, and full middle name or names, if any
* Item 9 would list the DOB verified in the Soldier's record

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  With regard to correction of item 6 of the applicant's DD Form 214, the evidence shows his DOB was corrected in the PRARNG from 5 to 6 January 19XX.  Therefore, he is entitled to correction of this DD Form 214 to show his DOB as 6 January 19XX.

2.  With regard to correction of item 1 of this DD Form 214, the evidence shows he enlisted in the PRARNG under the first and middle names of "Luis" and "Orlando."  He served on active duty and continuously in the PRARNG with the order of his first and middles names as "Luis" and "Orlando."  

3.  Notwithstanding the birth certificate contained in his military records, there is no evidence he attempted to have the order of his first and middle names corrected during his period of service.  There is also no evidence of record and he did not provide sufficient evidence to show the first and middle names listed on his DD Form 214 were not the order of his first and middle names used at the time.  Absent convincing independent and verifiable evidence to the contrary, it is presumed that his DD Form 214 was correct at the time it was prepared. Therefore, there is an insufficient evidentiary basis to grant him relief.

4.  For historical purpose, the Army has an interest in maintaining the integrity of its records.  The data and information contained in those records should reflect the conditions and circumstances that existed at the time the records were created.  In the absence of showing a material error or injustice, there is a reluctance to recommend that those records be changed.  While it is understandable that he now desires to record his first and middle names as he currently uses them, there is not a sufficiently compelling reason for compromising the integrity of the Army's records at this late date.

5.  A copy of this decisional document will be filed in his records to clarity the difference between the order of his first and middle names used during his periods of service and the order in which he currently uses them.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

____x___  ____x___  ___x____  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for partial relief.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by correcting item 6 of the applicant's DD Form 214 to list his DOB as 6 January 19XX as shown on his birth certificate.

2.  The Board further determined that the evidence presented is insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief.  As a result, the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to correction of item 1 of his 
DD Form 214 to list his first and middles names as "Orlando" and "Luis." 



      _______ _   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)                                         AR20140001507



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20140001507



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