IN THE CASE OF:  	

      BOARD DATE:  	31 May 2013

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20130001353
___________________________________________________________________________

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 that his under other than honorable conditions discharge be upgraded to honorable.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, he was never informed by the MSG as to what to do about his attendance at battle assemblies when he first spoke with him about the issue he was facing at the time.  He would like to be reinstated in the United States Army as an active duty Soldier to complete his military obligation.  

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:			22 January 2013
b. Discharge Received:			Under Other Than Honorable Conditions
c. Date of Discharge:				12 December 2011
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:		AR 135-178
e. Unit of assignment:				877th QM CO, 4th PLT EQ, MNT SPT 
Albuquerque, NM
f. Current Enlistment Date/Term:		11 December 2006, 8 years
g. Current Enlistment Service:		5 years, 1 day
h. Total Service:				5 years, 1 day
i. Time Lost:					None
j. Previous Discharges:			USAR 061211-070130/NA
ADT    070131-070728/UNC
     (Concurrent Service)
k. Highest Grade Achieved:			E-4
l. Military Occupational Specialty:		63B10, Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic
m. GT Score:					NIF
n. Education:					HS Graduate
o. Overseas Service:				None
p. Combat Service:				None
q. Decorations/Awards:			NDSM, ASR, C/Ach
r. Administrative Separation Board: 		NIF
s. Performance Ratings:			NIF
t. Counseling Statements:			NIF
u. Prior Board Review:				No
SUMMARY OF SERVICE:		
	
The applicant enlisted in the Army Reserve on 11 December 2006, for a period of 8 years.  He was 19 years old at the time of entry and a high school graduate.  The available record shows he had no special awards or meritorious achievements and completed a total of 5 years and 1 day of military service. 
SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES:

1.  The applicant’s service record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to his discharge from the Army Reserve.  

2.  The available evidence in the record indicates that on 6 December 2011, DA HQS, 63rd Regional Support Command, Mountain View, CA, Orders number 11-340-00046, discharged the applicant from the Army Reserve, effective 12 December 2011, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  

3.  The record contains a properly constituted order which indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of AR 135-178, with a characterization of service of under other than honorable conditions.   

4.  The applicant’s available service record does not contain any evidence of unauthorized absences or time lost.  

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

1.  A separation Order number 11-340-00046 which discharged the applicant from the Army Reserve with an under other than honorable conditions discharge dated 6 December 2011.

2.  Enlistment/Reenlistment Document/Armed Forces of the United States Contract (DD Form 4/1) with an enlistment date of 11 December 2006.  

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant provided a record of phone calls from May thru July; various Certificates of Appreciation, Achievement and Training, DD Form 214, Enlistment Contract dated 11 December 2006. 

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

The applicant provided none with the application.  

REGULATORY AUTHORITY:

1.  Army Regulation 135-178 sets forth the policies, standards, and procedures to ensure the readiness and competency of the U.S. Army while providing for the orderly administrative separation of Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) enlisted Soldiers for a variety of reasons. The separation policies throughout the different Chapters in this regulation promote the readiness of the Army by providing an orderly means to judge the suitability of persons to serve on the basis of their conduct and their ability to meet required standards of duty performance and discipline.  Specific categories include minor disciplinary infractions, a pattern of misconduct, and commission of a serious offense, to include abuse of illegal drugs, and convictions by civil authorities.  
2.  The characterization is based upon the quality of the Soldier’s service, including the reason for separation and determined in accordance with standards of acceptable personal conduct and performance of duty as found in the UCMJ, Army Regulations, and the time-honored customs and traditions of the Army.  The reasons for separation, including the specific circumstances that form the basis for the discharge are considered on the issue of characterization. 

3.   Possible characterizations of service include an honorable, general, under honorable conditions, under other than honorable conditions, or uncharacterized if the Soldier is in entry-level status.  However, the permissible range of characterization varies based on the reason for separation

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 record of service, his 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 the former Soldier’s discharge from the Army Reserve.  However, the record shows that on 6 December 2011, DA HQS, 63rd Regional Support Command, Mountain View, CA, discharged the applicant from the Army Reserve, effective 12 December 2011, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  

3.  Barring evidence to the contrary, the presumption of government regularity shall prevail, 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.  

4.  The applicant's contention he was never informed by the MSG as to what to do about his attendance at battle assemblies when he first spoke with him about the issue he was facing at the time was carefully considered.  However, there is insufficient evidence available in the official record to make a determination upon the applicant's quality of service.  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 and the application contains no documentation or further evidence in support of this request for an upgrade of the discharge.  

5.  The applicant further contends he would like to be reinstated in the United States Army as an active duty Soldier to complete his military obligation.  However, the applicant’s request does not fall within the purview of this Board.  The applicant may apply to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR), using the enclosed DD Form 149 regarding this matter.  A DD Form 149 may also be obtained from a Veterans' Service Organization.  However, if the applicant desires to reenlist, he should contact the local recruiter to determine his eligibility to reenlist.  Those individuals can best advise a former service member as to the needs of the Army at the time, and are required to process waivers of reentry eligibility (RE) codes.

6.  If the applicant desires a personal appearance hearing, it will be his 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.

7.  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:  31 May 2013     Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  No 

Counsel: None

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)		AR20130001353

Page 5 of 5 pages


ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



1