IN THE CASE OF:  Mr. 

      BOARD DATE:  	2 October 2013

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20130007037
___________________________________________________________________________

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 discharge from general under honorable conditions to honorable and requests to have the one day AWOL removed from the DD Form 214.  

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he began to suffer from an anxiety disorder in 2001 and the VA gave him a disability rating of 50% for this condition.  He has two forms of the anxiety disorder which are general and social.  Both cause excessive and unrealistic worry that goes on every day.  He has maintained all the conditions that have an effect on all parts of his life.  His unit mistreated and bullied him.  He does not believe he was given a correct discharge.  He did not receive a disability of any kind from the Army until he received the rating from the VA.  His unit reported him AWOL after he informed them that he was in the hospital for this medical condition.

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:		8 April 2013
b. Discharge received:			General, Under Honorable Conditions
c. Date of Discharge:			28 December 2001
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE:		Physical Condition, Not a Disability, AR 635-200, 						Chapter 5-17, JFV, RE-3
e. Unit of assignment:			C Co, 5th Eng Bn, Fort Leonard Wood, MO 
f. Current Enlistment Date/Term:	3 January 2001, 3 years	
g. Current Enlistment Service:	0 years, 11months, 25 days
h. Total Service:			2 years, 11 months, 26 days
i. Time Lost:				1 day (AWOL 010918-010918)
j. Previous Discharges:		ARNG (990103-010102), NIF									IADT (990505-990910), UNC
k. Highest Grade Achieved:		E-3
l.  Military Occupational Specialty:	62J10, General Construction Equipment Operator
m. GT Score:				NIF
n. Education:				HS Graduate
o. Overseas Service:			None
p. Combat Service:			None
q. Decorations/Awards:		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 3 January 2001 for a period of 3 years.  He was 19 years old at the time of entry and was a high school graduate.  His record shows that he previously served in the Army National Guard between 3 January 1999 and 2 January 2001.  His record does not show any acts of valor or significant achievements.  At the time of his discharge he was serving at Fort Leonard Wood, MO.  

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.  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.  He was discharged as a PFC/E-3.  

2.  The DD Form 214 indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of AR 635-200, paragraph 5-17, for a physical condition which was not a disability with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions.  The DD Form 214 shows a Separation Program Designator (SPD) code of JFV and a reentry (RE) code of 3.  

3.  The applicant’s available record contains one day of unauthorized absence or time lost (AWOL 010918-010918).  He returned to military control.  

4.  The applicant was separated under Orders 347-0351, HQ’s US Army Maneuver Support Center and Fort Leonard Wood, MO, dated 13 December 2001 with an effective dated of 28 December 2001.  

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

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

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant provided an online application, a copy of a DD Form 214, and an award letter from the VA, dated 29 March 2013.

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

None provided with the application.

REGULATORY AUTHORITY:

1.  Army Regulation (AR) 635-200 provides the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel.  Paragraph 5-17 specifically provides that a Soldier may be separated for other physical or mental conditions not amounting to a disability, which interferes with assignment to or performance of duty and requires that the diagnosis be so severe that the Soldier’s ability to function in the military environment is significantly impaired.  

2.  AR 635-200, paragraph 5-1, states that a Soldier being separated under this paragraph will be awarded a characterization of service of honorable, under honorable conditions, or an uncharacterized description of service if in entry-level status.

3.  A general, under honorable conditions discharge is normally inappropriate for individuals separated under the provisions of Chapter 5-17 unless properly notified of the specific factors in the service that warrant 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, his military records and the issues 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 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 AR 635-200, paragraph 5-17, for a physical condition which was not a disability, 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 her responsibility to meet this burden of proof since the evidence is not available in the official record.

5.  The fact the Veterans Administration has granted the applicant service connection for medical conditions the applicant suffered while on active duty does not support a conclusion that these conditions rendered the applicant unfit for further service at the time of his discharge processing.  The available medical evidence in the record is void of any indication that the applicant was suffering from a disabling medical or mental condition during his discharge processing that would have warranted his separation processing through medical channels.  


6.  Therefore, the reason for discharge and the characterization of service being both proper and equitable, recommend the Board deny relief. 

SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING:

Type of Hearing:  Records Review     Date:  2 October 2013      Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  No 

Counsel: None

Witnesses/Observers:  NA 

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 Authority for Separation:	NA
Change RE Code to:		NA
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)		AR20130007037

Page 5 of 5 pages


ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



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