IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 9 October 2015
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20140003630
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 that his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation Honorable Discharge) be corrected to show his month of birth as March.
2. The applicant states his WD AGO Form 53-55 incorrectly reflects his month of birth as May instead of March.
3. The applicant provides copies of his WD AGO Form 53-55 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 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's military records are not available for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members' records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973. It is believed the applicant's records were lost or destroyed in that fire. However, the documents contained in a reconstructed record are sufficient to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.
3. The applicant was inducted on 16 February 1943 and entered active duty at Camp Dodge, Iowa on 23 February 1943. He completed his training and departed for Alaska on 29 July 1943. On 4 January 1945 he departed for the Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) on 4 January 1945.
4. On 15 December 1945, he was honorably discharged. His WD AGO Form 53-55 issued at the time of his discharge shows his birth month as May.
6. The birth certificate provided by the applicant shows his month of birth as March.
7. Technical Manual (TM) 12-236 (Preparation of Separation Forms) served as the authority for the preparation of the WD AGO Form 53-55. It provides, in pertinent part, that a WD AGO Form 53-55 would be provided each time there was a discharge under honorable conditions. It also provided, in pertinent part, that the form would be populated with information obtained from official records at the time of separation.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicants contention that his month of birth on his WD AGO Form 53-55 should be corrected to show his month of birth as March instead of May has been noted and carefully considered. However, absent additional documents from his records that show otherwise, it must be presumed that he served under the date of birth (DOB) reflected on his WD AGO Form 53-55.
2. For historical purposes, the Army has an interest in maintaining the accuracy 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 a showing of material error or injustice, there is a reluctance to recommend that those records be changed. While it is understandable the applicant desires to now change his month of birth in his military records, there is not a sufficiently compelling reason for compromising the integrity of the Army's records at this late date.
4. The applicant is advised that a copy of this decisional document along with his application will be filed in his official military personnel file (OMPF). This should serve to clarify any questions or confusion in regard to the difference in the month of birth recorded in his military record and to satisfy his desire to have his correct month of birth documented in his OMPF. Accordingly, there is no basis for granting the applicant's requested relief.
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) AR20140003630
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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20140003630
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