IN THE CASE OF:  	

      BOARD DATE:  	25 September 2013

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20130005391
___________________________________________________________________________

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 his characterization of service from general, under honorable conditions to fully honorable.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he was discharged under faulty circumstances.  It is his opinion that his acting commander did not desire his presence in the unit.  This lead to multiple misunderstandings; which some of them was his fault for not maintaining his military bearing.  After several incidents and altercations with officers in his unit, he was recommended to receive an Article 15.  He had civilian charges filed on him in 2009, which sparked the fuel that would ignite their undying agony and hatred towards him even though the charges were later dropped.  He requested on several occasions to be transferred to another unit, but all were denied.   While at work some of the higher ranking NCOs would taunt him and one day he decided he had enough and retaliated against an E-5.  He was given an Article 15 for posing a threat even though he did not touch him.  He was a frustrated, weary, and tired Soldier who had just been diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety disorder and depression.  His life was in shambles and he just wanted to be done with the military, so he settled for the general, under honorable conditions discharge.  His battalion commander allowed him to leave without any complications.  Now that he is a veteran and served his country well, he is asking for an upgrade so that he can attend college and better himself for his family.

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:		15 March 2013
b. Discharge Received:		General, Under Honorable Conditions 
c. Date of Discharge:			6 September 2012
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE:		Pattern of Misconduct, AR 635-200, Chapter 14-12b 						JKA, RE-3
e. Unit of assignment:			A Company, 57th Expeditionary Signal Battalion, 11th 					Signal Brigade, Fort Hood, TX
f. Current Enlistment Date/Term:	5 October 2010, NIF
g. Current Enlistment Service:	1 year, 11 months, 2 days
h. Total Service:			5 years, 9 months, 23 days
i. Time Lost:				None
j. Previous Discharges:		RA (061114-101004), HD
k. Highest Grade Achieved:		E-4
l. Military Occupational Specialty:	91B10, Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic
m. GT Score:				91
n. Education:				GED
o. Overseas Service:			SWA
p. Combat Service:			Afghanistan (090727-100520)
q. Decorations/Awards:		ARCOM, AGCM, NDSM, ACM-w/CS-2, GWOTSM 						ASR, OSR-2, NMDL
r. Administrative Separation Board: 	No																						
s. Performance Ratings:		None
t. Counseling Statements:		Yes	
u. Prior Board Review:			No

SUMMARY OF SERVICE:		
	
The applicant's record shows he enlisted in the Regular Army on 14 November 2006, for a period of 3 years and 26 weeks.  He was 18 years old at the time and had a high school equivalency (GED).  He reenlisted on 5 October 2010, for an unknown period.  He was serving at Fort Hood, TX, when his discharge was initiated.  He was awarded an ARCOM and AGCM.

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 shows the separation authority waived further rehabilitation and directed the applicant’s discharge with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.  Further, 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 the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 14, AR 635-200, paragraph 14-12b, for pattern of misconduct, with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.  The DD Form 214 shows a Separation Program Designator (SPD) code of JKA and a reentry (RE) code of 3.  

3.  The applicant was separated under Orders 250-0116, HQS, III Corps, Fort Hood, TX, with an effective date of 11 September 2012.  

4.  The applicant was separated on 6 September 2012, under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 14-12b for a Pattern of Misconduct, with a general, under honorable conditions discharge, an SPD code of JKA and an RE code of 3.

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

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD

There are no counseling statements or UCMJ actions in the record.  

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT 

The applicant provided an online application and his DD Form 214.

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

None provided with the application
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 his discharge was carefully considered.  However, after examining the applicant’s 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 complete facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to his discharge from the Army.  However, the applicant’s record does contain 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 and the presumption of government regularity shall prevail in the discharge process.  

3.  The DD Form 214 indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 14, AR 635-200, paragraph 14-12b by reason of pattern of misconduct, with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.  Barring evidence to the contrary, it appears that all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process.  

4.  The applicant's contentions were carefully considered.  However, it is not possible to determine if these contentions have merit because the facts and circumstances leading to the discharge are unknown.  The burden of proof remains with the applicant 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.  If the applicant desires a personal appearance hearing, it will be his responsibility to meet this burden of proof since the evidence is not available in the official record.

5.  The applicant has expressed his desire to have better job opportunities and the benefits of the GI Bill.  However, the Board does not grant relief for the purpose of gaining employment or enhancing employment opportunities.  Further, 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.

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



SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING:

Type of Hearing:  Records Review    Date: 25 September 2013	Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  No

Counsel: None

Board Vote:
Character  	Change: 1 	No Change:  4
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 RE Code to:			No Change
Grade Restoration to:			NA
Change Authority for Separation:		No Change
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)		AR20130005391



Page 6 of 6 pages


ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



1