IN THE CASE OF:	 

      BOARD DATE:  	6 November 2013

      CASE NUMBER:	AR20130008563
___________________________________________________________________________

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 under other than honorable to general, under honorable conditions.  

2.  The applicant states, in effect, he is requesting a review of his discharge and an upgrade for future career.  He is enrolled in college and upon graduating; he will have an option for a career.  He believes a discharge that is anything less than general, under honorable conditions will hinder his chances of getting involved with a company.  He served honorably in Iraq from December 2004 to December 2005.  He earned an ARCOM, NDSM, ASR, AFRM-M Device, GWOTSM, and ICM.  He was the company commander’s gunner.  He manned the 249th Squad Automatic Weapon for thousands of miles of convoys.  He drove the recovery vehicle for other convoys.  Finally, he was kept on base to repair and maintain the company’s military vehicles. 

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

	a.	Application Receipt Date:	2 May 2013
	b.	Discharge Received:	Under Other Than Honorable Conditions 
	c.	Date of Discharge:	29 September 2006 
	d.	Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:	AR 135-178 
	e.	Unit of assignment:	Co C, 463rd Engr Bn, Parkersburg, WV
	f.	Current Enlistment Date/Term:	21 March 2003, 8 years
	g.	Current Enlistment Service:	3 years, 6 months, 9 days
	h.	Total Service:	3 years, 6 months, 9 days
	i.	Time Lost:	NIF
	j.	Previous Discharges:	USAR     (030321-030724) / NA
			IADT       (030725-031210) / UNC
			USAR     (031211-041007) / NA
			AD-MOB (041005-051228) / HD
	k.	Highest Grade Achieved:	E-4
	l.	Military Occupational Specialty:	63B10, Light Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic
	m.	GT Score:	NIF
	n.	Education:	GED
	o.	Overseas Service:	SWA
	p.	Combat Service:	Iraq (041203-051122)
	q.	Decorations/Awards:	ARCOM; NDSM; ICM-CS; GWOTSM; AFRM-M 
			Device; ASR
	r.	Administrative Separation Board: 	NIF
	s.	Performance Ratings:	None
	t.	Counseling Statements:	NIF
	u.	Prior Board Review:	No 

SUMMARY OF SERVICE:  

The applicant enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve on 21 March 2003, for a period of 8 years.  He was 17 years old at the time of entry and a high school graduate.  His served in Iraq.  He was trained in and awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 93S10, Heavy Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic; however, on 22 February 2006, he was awarded PMOS, 63B10, Light Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic.  He was awarded an ARCOM.  He completed 3 years, 6 months, and 9 days of credible active duty and reserve services.

SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES:

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

2.  The record indicates that on 29 September 2006, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 99th Regional Readiness Command, Coraopolis, PA, Orders 06-272-00031, discharged the applicant from the United States Army Reserve, effective 29 September 2006, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.

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

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

1.  There is no record of negative counseling statements or actions under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).

2.  Discharge orders.

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant provided of DD Form 214, dated 28 December 2005; ARCOM certificate; three statements of support rendered by MSG H, SSG W, and his former platoon sergeant.  

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

The applicant states, in effect, he is currently enrolled in college.  

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 record of service, and the issues and the documents submitted with the application, there are insufficient mitigating factors to merit an upgrade of the applicant's discharge.  The available record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to his discharge from the Army Reserve.  

2.  The applicant’s available record contains a properly constituted order which was authenticated by the appropriate military authority.  This document identifies the characterization of the discharge and the presumption of government regularity prevails in the discharge process.  

3.  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.  

4.  The applicant provided no independent corroborating evidence demonstrating that either the command's action was erroneous or that his service mitigated the type of discharge he received from the U.S. Army Reserve.   

5.  The applicant contends that he had good service which included serving in Iraq, and receiving anything less than general, under honorable conditions discharge would hinder his chances to obtain employment with a company.  The applicant’s service accomplishments and the quality of his service prior to the incidents that caused the initiation of discharge proceeding were carefully considered.  However, based on the available record, this service was determined not to be sufficiently mitigating to warrant an upgrade to the characterization of discharge as shown by the applicant receiving an under other than honorable conditions characterization of service.  Moreover, the Board does not grant relief for the purpose of gaining employment or enhancing employment opportunities.  

6.  The third party statements provided with the application speak highly of the applicant’s performance.  They all recognize his outstanding performance and good conduct after leaving the Army; however, the persons providing the character reference statements were not in a position to fully understand or appreciate the expectations of the applicant’s chain of command.  As such, none of these statements provide any evidence sufficiently compelling to overcome the presumption of government regularity.

7.  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.

8.  Therefore, based on the available evidence, 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:  6 November 2013      Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  No 

Counsel:  None

Board Vote:
Character Change:  2	No Change:  3
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)		AR20130008563

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ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



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