IN THE CASE OF:  	

      BOARD DATE:  	1 May 2013

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20130000265
___________________________________________________________________________

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 an upgrade of her discharge from general, under honorable conditions to honorable.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, she desires to receive VA benefits to further her education.  She believes one young and foolish mistake more than ten years ago does not reflect who she is as adult or what she stands for in her community.  She is an upstanding citizen, understands and values her mistakes. 

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:		17 December 2012
b. Discharge Received:		General, Under Honorable Conditions
c. Date of Discharge:			29 May 2002
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:	Misconduct , AR 635-200, paragraph 4-12c(2) 		
      JKK, RE-3
e. Unit of assignment:			178th Military Police Team, Fort Hood, TX
f. Current Enlistment Date/Term:	15 September 1999, 5 years 
g. Current Enlistment Service:	2 years, 8 months, 15 days
h. Total Service:			2 years, 8 months, 15 days
i. Time Lost:				None
j. Previous Discharges:		None
k. Highest Grade Achieved:		E-4
l. Military Occupational Specialty:	95B10, Military Police
m. GT Score:				94
n. Education:				HS Graduate
o. Overseas Service:			Korea
p. Combat Service:			None
q. Decorations/Awards:		NDSM, ASR, OSR
r. Administrative Separation Board: 	No
s. Performance Ratings:		None
t. Counseling Statements:		Yes
u. Prior Board Review:			No

SUMMARY OF SERVICE:		
	
The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 15 September 1999, for a period of 5 years.  She was 18 years old at the time of entry and was a high school graduate.  She was serving at Fort Hood, TX, when her discharge was initiated.  She did not have any personally earned awards in her service record and did not have any combat service.  

SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES:

1.  The applicant’s record is void of the complete 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.  She was discharged as a PFC/E-3.

2.  The DD Form 214 indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 14, paragraph 14-12c(2), AR 635-200, for misconduct, with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.  The DD Form 214 shows a Separation Program Designator (SPD) code of JKK and a reentry (RE) code of 3.  

3.  There is no record of any UCMJ action, although the applicant was discharged as a   PFC/E-3.  The action that reduced her in rank is not in her record.

4.  On 1 May 2002, the separation authority waived further rehabilitation and directed the applicant’s discharge with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.

5.  The applicant’s available record does not show any record of unauthorized absences or lost time.

6.  The applicant was discharged from the Army on 29 May 2002, with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions, under the provisions of Chapter 14, paragraph 14-12c(2), AR 635-200, for misconduct, a Separation Program Designator code (SPD) of JKK and a RE code of 3.

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

1.   There are 28 negative/performance counseling statements that were done between
29 March 2001 through 3 April 2002, for initial/performance and integration counseling on divers occasions, declination to attend SGT promotion boards, and waiver of profile recovery time, professional growth.

2.  The available record does not contain any actions under Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant provided a DD Form 293, dated 10 December 2012; DD Form 214, dated        29 May 2002; photocopy of Healthcare/provider credentials; two (2) Employee Evaluations, dated 31 August 2012 and 31 August 2011; and a Letter, Department of Veterans Affairs, dated 30 March 2012.

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

The applicant provided a document which shows she is a Licensed Practical Nurse.


REGULATORY AUTHORITY:

1.  Army Regulation 635-200 sets forth the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel.  Chapter 14 establishes policy and prescribes procedures for separating members for misconduct.  Specific categories include minor disciplinary infractions, a pattern of misconduct, and commission of a serious offense, to include abuse of illegal drugs, convictions by civil authorities and desertion or being absent without leave.  Action will be taken to separate a member for misconduct when it is clearly established that rehabilitation is impractical or unlikely to succeed.  Army policy states that an under other than honorable conditions discharge is normally considered appropriate; however, a general, under honorable conditions or an honorable discharge may be granted.   

2.  Army Regulation 635-200, 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.  Whenever there is doubt, it is to be resolved in favor of the individual.

3.  Army Regulation 635-200, 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.  A characterization of under honorable conditions may be issued only when the reason for the Soldier’s separation specifically allows such characterization.

DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The applicant’s request for an upgrade of the characterization of her discharge was carefully considered.  However, after examining the applicant’s record of service, her 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 DD Form 214 indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 14, AR 635-200, paragraph 14-12c(2) by reason of misconduct, with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.  Barring evidence to the contrary, the presumption of government regularity prevails as it appears that all the requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process.  

3.  The applicant provided no independent corroborating evidence demonstrating that either the command's action was erroneous or that the applicant’s service mitigated the misconduct or poor duty performance.


4.  The applicant desires to receive VA benefits to further her education.  However, eligibility for veteran's benefits to include educational benefits under the Post-9/11 or Montgomery GI Bill does not fall within the purview of the Army Discharge Review Board.  Accordingly, the applicant should contact a local office of the Department of Veterans Affairs for further assistance.

5.  The applicant contends one young and foolish mistake more than ten years ago does not reflect who she is as an adult or what she stands for in her community.  The record shows the applicant met entrance qualification standards to include age.  There is no evidence to indicate the applicant was any less mature than other Soldiers of the same age who successfully completed military service.

6.  Further, in review of the applicant’s available service record and the reasons for the discharge, it appears that these accomplishments did not overcome the reason for discharge and characterization of service granted.

7.  The applicant also contends she is an upstanding citizen, understands and values her mistakes.  The applicant is to be commended for her effort.  However, this contention is not a matter upon which the Army Discharge Review Board grants a change in discharge because it raises no matter of fact, law, procedure, or discretion related to the discharge process, nor is it associated with the discharge at the time it was issued.  
  
8.  If the applicant desires a personal appearance hearing, it will be her responsibility to meet the burden of proof and provide the appropriate documents (i.e., the discharge packet) or other evidence sufficient to explain the facts, circumstances, and reasons underlying the separation action, for the Board’s consideration because they are not available in the official record.

9.  Therefore, based on the available evidence and the government presumption of 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:  1 May 2013          Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?   No 

Counsel: No

Witnesses/Observers: NA 


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)		AR20130000265



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ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



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