BOARD DATE:	  12 February 2015

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20140010101


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 reconsideration of his previous request for removal of a noncommissioned officer (NCO) evaluation report (NCOER) covering the period November 1997 to July 1998 from his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF), promotion reconsideration to all grades above rank/pay grade staff sergeant (SSG)/E-6, and retirement in rank/pay grade sergeant first class (SFC)/E-7 as a minimum.

2.  The applicant states:

	a.  Many service members have been horribly wounded and have had terrible injuries that can be seen in the form of visible trauma, caused by bullets, burns, explosions, or a mixture of all.

	b.  Others, though they may or may not have been physically wounded, have received ghastly, irreparable damage to their psyche.

	c.  The sights and sounds of combat have wrought grim damage upon countless Soldiers producing the problems and symptoms which, if these Soldiers are lucky, eventually are identified as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or similar psychological disorders.

	d.  Far too often no effort is made to diagnose the symptoms, they are just labeled problematic Soldiers and often made rid with a general or less than honorable discharge.

	e.  He belongs to a very small percentage of Soldiers who suffered damages, not while deployed to a foreign country facing death and dismemberment by an armed enemy bent upon his destruction.

	f.  He obtained his wounds by a system that produced such mental anguish that during these same periods of time had a rate of suicide far surpassing the rate for those who were deployed overseas.

	g.  He was wounded that his wounds carry with them a great stigma.  He has been diagnosed with a service related mood disorder at a 50 percent rating, with an ongoing reevaluation which may cause his rating to increase to 70 percent.

	h.  His wounds were caused by the extreme conditions that he underwent while he was assigned as a recruiter from 2001 through 2005.

	i.  He did have a single incident of nonjudicial punishment (NJP) while he was serving as a recruiter and he was accused of a great many things, even threatened with incarceration.

	j.  His actions did not even seem severe enough for his removal from recruiting and exposure to the public at large as a representative of the Army.  The encounter clearly demonstrated the undue pressures brought to bear by the recruiting command and the effects of the pressures upon an individual.

	k.  Poor judgments and bad decisions made at that time were symptomatic of the psychological trauma that he underwent at that time.

	l.  It is his position that his psychological disorder hampered him from initially submitted his first request in a timely manner.  It also held him nearly paralyzed with doubts and fears concerning the submission of "this" new evidence.

3.  The applicant provides:

* The first page of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) decision notification letter dated 26 February 2013
* Notice of Disagreement dated 5 March 2013
* Spouse's letter is support of Notice of Disagreement dated 5 March 2013
* Coworker's letter in support of VA claim

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20120017464, on 2 April 2013.

2.  The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army (RA) on 17 February 1988.  He remained on active duty through continuous reenlistments.

3.  The applicant was honorably discharged on 27 July 1998, upon completion of his required active service.

4.  On 30 July 1998, a change of rater NCOER was completed on the applicant for the period November 1997 through July 1998.  He was evaluated in the rank/pay grade staff sergeant (SSG)/E-6 as an operations platoon sergeant in a rapid deployment direct support military intelligence company at Fort Hood, TX.

5.  In Part IVa (Values/NCO Responsibilities), he was rated "NO" in "Places Dedication and Commitment to the Goals and Missions of the Army and Nation Above Personal Welfare."  In the bullet comments, his rater stated "family problem has interfered with the ability of this NCO to perform the mission."  In Part IVd (Leadership), he was rated "Needs Improvement – Some."  The rater stated that the applicant counseled Soldiers only when repeatedly directed and he failed to provide a well thought-out training plan in accordance with the platoon leader's guidance.

6.  In Part V (Overall Performance And Potential), his senior rater stated "the strain of an insurmountable family situation has handicapped his effectiveness as a platoon sergeant" and "until this rating period, a stellar performer."

7.  The applicant enlisted in the RA again on 17 March 1999 and he was assigned to Fort Stewart, GA.  He was assigned as a field recruiter in Louisiana in 2001.

8.  He accepted NJP on 17 March 2005, for transporting unauthorized personnel in a government vehicle for unofficial business.  He was released from recruiting duty and he was assigned to the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, LA, as an observer controller.

9.  The applicant was selected for promotion to pay grade E-7.  His name was removed from the selection list on 1 April 2008, due to having an approved request for retirement.

10.  He retired on 31 October 2008.  He was placed on the Retired List in the pay grade of E-6 effective 1 November 2008.

11.  As new evidence the applicant provides VA Regional Office letter dated 26 February 2013 showing the following service-connected rated conditions:

* Mood disorder, not otherwise specified (also claimed as anxiety) with an old rating of 30 percent and a new rating of 50 percent, effective 30 April 2012
* Left cubital tunnel syndrome, olecranon spur, left elbow, left carpal tunnel syndrome with an old rating of 10 percent and a new rating of 20 percent, effective 30 April 2012
* Right carpal tunnel syndrome with an old rating of 0 percent and a new rating of 10 percent, effective 30 April 2012
* Right shoulder bursitis with an old rating of 0 percent and a new rating of 10 percent, effective 30 April 2012

12.  He also provides a copy of his Notice of Disagreement to the decision made by the VA and letters from his spouse and coworker in support of his VA claim.

13.  Army Regulation 623-3 (Evaluation Reporting System) prescribes the policy for completing evaluation reports and associated support forms that are the basis for the Army's Evaluation Reporting System.

	a.  Paragraph 3-36 states an evaluation report accepted by HQDA and included in the official record of a rated Soldier is presumed to be administratively correct, have been prepared by the properly designated rating officials who meet the minimum time and grade qualifications, and represent the considered opinions and objective judgment of the rating officials at the time of preparation.

	b.  Paragraph 4-11 states the burden of proof in an appeal of an NCOER rests with the applicant.  Accordingly, to justify deletion or amendment of a report, the applicant must produce evidence that establishes clearly and convincingly that the presumption of regularity should not be applied to the report under consideration and that action is warranted to correct a material error, inaccuracy, or injustice.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant's contentions have been noted.  His supporting evidence has been considered.

2.  However, he has provided insufficient evidence and argument to support his contention that the NCOER should be removed from his OMPF, that he should be retired in a pay grade higher than E-6, or that his records should be considered by a STAB.
3.  The available evidence shows that he received an NCOER covering the period November 1997 through July 1998.  Although not the best, the NCOER he received did not hinder him from reentering the RA on 17 March 1999.  Neither did any claims of mood or physiological disorders which he now contends hampered him from appealing the NCOER in a timely manner.  He was also selected for promotion to E-7 prior to his retirement from the RA and his name was removed from the promotion selection list because he had an approved request for retirement and not because he had any personnel action(s) taken against him.

4.  The applicant has provided insufficient evidence to show that the information contained in the NCOER is erroneous or untrue.  In accordance with the applicable regulation, an NCOER accepted for inclusion in the official record of a Soldier is presumed to be administratively correct, to have been prepared by the proper rating officials, and to represent the considered opinion and objective judgment of the rating officials at the time of preparation.

5.  Although the applicant now submits evidence from the VA awarding him a 50 percent service-connected disability rating for a mood disorder, it is insufficient justification for granting the requested relief.

6.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant's request should be denied.

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 to amend the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number AR20120017464, dated 2 April 2013.



      __________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)                                         AR20140010101



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20140010101



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