IN THE CASE OF:  	

      BOARD DATE:  	24 April 2013

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20120016044
___________________________________________________________________________

Board Determination and Directed Action

After carefully examining the applicant's record of service during the period of enlistment under review, and considering the Discussion and Recommendation which follows, the Board determined the discharge was both proper and equitable and voted to deny relief.




      
      
      Presiding Officer
      
I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Department of the Army Discharge Review Board in this case.

THE APPLICANT’S REQUEST AND STATEMENT:

1.  The applicant requests his under other than honorable conditions discharge be upgraded to general, under honorable conditions and his narrative reason for separation changed.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he is requesting a change of his discharge because he is attempting to reenlist into the Army, and continue with his military career.  He feels he has overcome any issues he may have had when he was previously on active duty with the help of counseling and support from his family.  

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:			21 August 2012
b. Discharge Received:			Under Other Than Honorable Conditions
c. Date of Discharge:				5 October 2011
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:	  	In Lieu of Trial by Court-Martial, AR 635-200 								Chapter 10, KFS, RE-4
e. Unit of assignment:				HHC, 3rd IN Rgt, Fort Myer, VA 
f. Enlistment Date/Term:			19 October 2009, 3 years, 23 weeks
g. Current Enlistment Service:		1 year, 11 months, 17 days
h. Total Service:				1 year, 11 months, 17 days
i. Time Lost:					None 
j. Previous Discharges:			None
k. Highest Grade Achieved:			E-3
l. Military Occupational Specialty:		92Y10, Unit Supply Specialist
m. GT Score:					None
n. Education:					HS Graduate
o. Overseas Service:				None
p. Combat Service:				None
q. Decorations/Awards:			NDSM, GWOTSM, ASR
r. Administrative Separation Board: 		No
s. Performance Ratings:			None
t. Counseling Statements:			None
u. Prior Board Review:				No
SUMMARY OF SERVICE:		
	
The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 19 October 2009 for a period of 3 years and 23 weeks.  He was 19 years old at the time of entry and a high school graduate.  He served in Fort Myer, VA.  He earned an NDSM, GWOTSM, ASR, and completed 1 year, 11 months, and 17 days of active duty service.



SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES:

1.  The applicant’s record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to the discharge from the Army.  However, the record contains a properly constituted DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), which was authenticated by the applicant’s signature.  

2.  The DD Form 214 indicates that on 5 October 2011, the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 10, AR 635-200, for the good of the Service in lieu of trial by court-martial with a characterization of service of under other than honorable conditions.  Further, the DD Form 214 shows a Separation Code of KFS (in lieu of trial by court-martial) with a reentry eligibility (RE) code of 4.

3.  The applicant’s available record does not show any record of actions under the UCMJ, unauthorized absences, or time lost.

4.  On 28 September 2011, HQDA Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Arlington, VA, Orders 271-0001, discharged the applicant from the Army effective 5 October 2011.  

5.  The DD Form 214 (Report of Separation from Active Duty) he was issued shows he completed 1 year, 11 months and 17 days of creditable active military service.  There is no time lost recorded on the applicant’s DD Form 214.  

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

There are no negative counselings or actions under the Uniform Code of Military Justice in the available record.

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant did not provide any supporting documents with his application.

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

None were provided with the application.  

REGULATORY AUTHORITY:

1.  Army Regulation 635-200 (Personnel Separations) sets forth the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel.  Chapter 10 provides that a member who has committed an offense or offenses for which the authorized punishment includes a punitive discharge may submit a request for discharge for the good of the service in lieu of trial by court-martial.  The request may be submitted at any time after charges have been preferred and must include the individual's admission of guilt.  Although an honorable or general discharge is authorized, a discharge UOTHC is normally considered appropriate.

2.  Paragraph 3-7a provides that an honorable discharge is a separation with honor and entitles the recipient to benefits provided by law.  The honorable characterization is appropriate when the quality of the member's service generally has met the standards of acceptable conduct and performance of duty for Army personnel or is otherwise so meritorious that any other characterization would be clearly inappropriate.

3.  Paragraph 3-7b provides that a general discharge is a separation from the Army under honorable conditions.  When authorized, it is issued to a Soldier whose military record is satisfactory but not sufficiently meritorious to warrant an honorable discharge.  

4.  Army Regulation 635-5-1 (Separation Program Designator (SPD) Codes) provides the specific authorities (regulatory or directive), reasons for separating Soldiers from active duty, and the SPD codes to be entered on the DD Form 214.  It identifies the SPD code of "KFS" as the appropriate code to assign enlisted Soldiers who are discharged under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, chapter 10, in lieu of trial by court-martial.

5.  The SPD Code/RE Code Cross Reference Table shows that a Soldier assigned an SPD Code of "KFS" will be assigned a RE Code of 4.

DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The applicant’s request for an upgrade of the characterization of his discharge was carefully considered.  However, after examining the applicant’s available military records, the issues and documents submitted with the application, there are insufficient mitigating factors to merit an upgrade of the applicant's discharge.  

2.  The applicant’s record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to his discharge from the Army.  However, the record contains a properly constituted DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), which was authenticated by the applicant's signature.  This document identifies the reason and characterization of the discharge.  Barring evidence to the contrary, it appears all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process.  

3.  The applicant's contentions that he has overcome his previous issues were carefully considered.  However, there is insufficient evidence available in the official record to make a determination upon the applicant's quality of service.  Moreover, there is a presumption of regularity in the conduct of governmental affairs.  This presumption is applied in all Army discharge reviews unless there is substantial credible evidence to rebut the presumption.  There is no evidence in the record, nor has the applicant produced any evidence, to support a change to the characterization of service granted.  The applicant’s statements alone do not overcome the presumption of government regularity in this case and the application contains no documentation or further evidence in support of this request for an upgrade of the discharge.  

4.  If the applicant desires a personal appearance, it is his responsibility to meet the burden of proof since the evidence is not available in the official record.  The applicant will need to provide the appropriate documents or other evidence (i.e., discharge packet) sufficient to explain the facts, circumstances, and reasons underlying the separation action, for the Board's consideration.

5.  Therefore, based on the available evidence and the presumption of government regularity, it appears the reason for discharge and the characterization of service are both proper and equitable, thus recommend the Board deny relief. 

SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING:

Type of Hearing: Records Review   Date:  24 April 2013  Location: Washington, DC

Board Vote:
Character Change:  0	No Change:  5
Reason Change:	0	No Change:  5
(Board member names available upon request)

Board Action Directed:
Issue a new DD Form 214:			No
Change Characterization to: 		No Change	
Change Reason to:				No Change
Change Authority for Separation: 		No Change
Change RE Code to: 			No Change	
Grade Restoration to: 			NA	
Other: 					NA














Legend:
AMHRR - Army Military Human Resource Record	FG - Field Grade	IADT – Initial Active Duty Training	 	RE - Reentry
AWOL - Absent Without Leave	GD - General Discharge	NA - Not applicable	SCM- Summary Court Martial
BCD - Bad Conduct Discharge	HS - High School	NIF - Not in File	SPCM - Special Court Martial
CG - Company Grade Article 15	HD - Honorable Discharge	OAD - Ordered to Active Duty	UNC - Uncharacterized Discharge  
CID - Criminal investigation Department	MP – Military Police	OMPF - Official Military Personnel File	UOTHC - Under Other Than                           			               Honorable Conditions




ADRB Case Report and Directive (cont)		AR20120016044



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ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



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