IN THE CASE OF:  	Mr. 

      BOARD DATE:  	10 March 2014

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20130008649
___________________________________________________________________________

Board Determination and Directed Action

After carefully examining the applicant’s record of service during the period of enlistment under review, hearing his testimony and notwithstanding the Discussion and Recommendation which follows, the Board determined that the characterization of service was too harsh based on the applicant’s quality of his service, to include the circumstances surrounding the discharge and his combat service, and as a result it is inequitable.  Accordingly, the Board voted to grant partial relief in the form of an upgrade of the characterization of service to general, under honorable conditions. The Board determined the reason for discharge was proper and equitable and voted not to change it.  This action entails restoration of grade to E-5/SGT.



      
      
      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 under other than honorable conditions discharge to honorable.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, he was just a year removed from his service in Iraq where he received an Army Commendation Medal for his actions.  Because of the character of his service on active duty he believes that he should not have been given an other than honorable discharge.  He did not receive notice that he was being considered for out processing from the Army Reserve and from the 560th TC in Springfield, MO.  He was in contact with the unit and had told them that he had lost his job and was unable to drive from Kansas City, MO to Springfield, MO which was a four hour trip for drill. 

3.  His address for his home of record was on the orders and he was staying at 8304 Harris Raytown, MO 64138 due to the poor health of his Grandmother which he had told the 560th.  He had implored the assistance from his former commander, LTC T, and he was not able to get any acknowledgement from the 560th TC on his repeated requests for a transfer to a unit closer to where he lived due to the loss of his job and having to take care of his Grandmother. 

4.  He tried to contact the unit and was met with silence as well.  The next thing he knew, he had been discharged from the Army with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  LTC L put him in touch with a recruiter that told him there were a number of soldiers that had been discharged wrongly.  He told him that there were discussions to get the orders rescinded and for them to be reinstated.  This went on for years until this recruiter was deployed and he never heard from him again.  

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:			3 May 2013
b. Discharge Received:			Under Other Than Honorable Conditions
c. Date of Discharge:				4 October 2005
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:		Unsatisfactory Participant, AR 135-178 
e. Unit of assignment:				560th Movement Control Team, Springfield, MO	
f. Current Enlistment Date/Term:		USAR, 15 June 2004, 6 years
g. Current Enlistment Service:		1 year, 3 months, 20 days
h. Total Service:				17 years, 7 months, 6 days
i. Time Lost:					None
j. Previous Discharges:			USAR 860401-860512/NA
RA     860513-870513/GD
USARCG 870514-890607/NA
USAR 890608-900515/NA
ARNG 900516-920130/NA
ADT 920131-920506/NA
ARNG 920507-921210/GD
USARCG (IRR) 921211-960712/HD
	(Break in Service)
USAR 980611-000511/HD
USAR 000512-030316/NA
ADT    030317-040614/HD
     (Concurrent Service)
k. Highest Grade Achieved:			E-5
l. Military Occupational Specialty:		88M10, Motor Transportation operator
m. GT Score:					116
n. Education:					HS Grad
o. Overseas Service:				Southwest Asia x 2, Honduras
p. Combat Service:				Iraq/Kuwait (030529-040503), (Prior Service)
q. Decorations/Awards:			MSM, ARCOM (4), AAM (4), GWOTS,
GWOTEM, AFRM w/M Device, ASR, OSR, CIB
r. Administrative Separation Board: 		NIF
s. Performance Ratings:			None
t. Counseling Statements:			Yes
u. Prior Board Review:				No
SUMMARY OF SERVICE:		
	
The applicant enlisted in the United States Army Reserve (USAR) on 1 April 1986, and applied for enlistment in the Army National Guard where he served from 16 May 1990 until 10 December 1992, and received a general discharge certificate.  He was assigned to the USARCG (IRR) from 11 June 1998 until 11 May 2000, and was issued an honorable discharge.  He reenlisted in the USAR on 12 May 2000, and was ordered to active duty from 17 March 2003 until 14 June 2004, and upon completion he was transferred to the USAR on 15 June 2004, to complete his reserve obligation term.  He was 19 years old at the time of his initial entry into the military and a high school graduate.  He served for a total of 17 years, 7 months, and 6 days of active and inactive military service and attained the rank of SGT/E-5.  His record contains several significant awards.  The applicant’s creditable service was based on the documents contained in his Army Military Human Resource Record (AMHRR) and Personnel Electronic Records Management System (IPERMS).  

SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES:

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

2.  The record shows that on 4 October 2005, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 89th Regional Readiness Command, Wichita, KS, Orders 05-277-00019, discharged the applicant from the United States Army Reserve, effective 4 October 2005, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  

3.  The applicant was separated on 4 October 2005, under Army Regulation 135-178, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

Separation orders issued on 4 October 2005, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 89th Regional Readiness Command, Wichita, KS, Orders 05-277-00019, discharging the applicant from the United States Army Reserve, effective 4 October 2005, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

Character reference letter dated 1 September 2012, DA Form 638, Recommendation for Award dated 9 November 2003, DA Form 1059 Service School Academic Evaluation Report dated 2 September 2000, Orders awarding the PMOS 88M200000 dated 8 March 2002, DA Form 2166 NCO Evaluation Report, rating the applicant successful covering the period from 2001/08 thru 2002/07, Orders 02-247-00015, dated 4 September 2002, DA Form 2-1, three Certificates for Academic Excellence, Completion of Training and Achievement, with various dates.

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

The applicant did not provide any with his application.

REGULATORY AUTHORITY:

1.  Army Regulation 135-178 governs procedures covering enlisted personnel management of the Army Reserve.  Chapter 13 provides in pertinent part, that individuals can be separated for being an unsatisfactory participant.  Army Regulation 135-91 states that a member is an unsatisfactory participant when nine or more unexcused absences from scheduled drills acrue during a 1 year period and attempts to have the Soldier respond or comply with orders or correspondence have resulted in— the Soldier’s refusal to comply with orders or correspondence; or a notice sent by certified mail was refused, unclaimed, or otherwise undeliverable; or verification that the Soldier has failed to notify the command of a change of address and reasonable attempts to contact the Soldier have failed.  Discharge action may be taken when the Soldier cannot be located or is absent in the hands of civil authorities in accordance with the provisions of AR 135-91, paragraph 2-18, and Chapter 3, section IV, of AR 135–178.   

2.  Army policy states that an under other than honorable conditions discharge is normally considered appropriate; however, a general discharge under honorable conditions or an honorable discharge may be granted.  



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 documents and the issues submitted with the application, there are insufficient mitigating factors to merit an upgrade of the applicant's discharge.  

2.  The record shows that on 4 October 2005, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 89th Regional Readiness Command, Wichita, KS, Orders 05-277-00019, discharged the applicant from the United States Army Reserve, effective 4 October 2005, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  

3.  The applicant was separated on 4 October 2005, under Army Regulation 135-178, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge.  He was reduced to the lowest grade/rank.

4.  The applicant's contentions were carefully considered.  However, a determination as to the merit of these contentions cannot be made because the facts and circumstances leading to the discharge are unknown.  The burden of proof remains with the applicant to provide the appropriate documents such as the discharge packet or other evidence sufficient to explain the facts, circumstances, and reasons underlying the separation action, for the Board's consideration.  

5.  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, and recommend the Board deny relief.  

SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING:

Type of Hearing:  Personal Appearance    Date: 10 March 2014     Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  Yes

Counsel: None

Witnesses/Observers: Yes – Professional advisor

DOCUMENTS/TESTIMONY PRESENTED DURING PERSONAL APPEARANCE:

1.  The applicant submitted the following additional documents:

	a.  Personal statement – 1 page

2.  The applicant presented the additional contention:

	a.  Change the narrative reason for separation to ‘Secretarial Authority’.
	b.  Change the reentry eligibility code to 1.
In addition to the evidence in the record, the Board carefully considered the additional documents and testimony presented by the applicant at the personal appearance hearing.

Board Vote:
Character Change:  3	No Change:  2
Reason Change:	0	No Change:  5
(Board member names available upon request)

Board Action Directed:
Issue a new DD Form 214:			No
Other: Issue a new Discharge Order:  	Yes
Change Characterization to:  		General, Under Honorable Conditions (GD)
Change Reason to:  			NA 
Change Authority to:  			NA
Change RE Code to:  			NA
Grade Restoration to:  			E-5/SGT
Other:  TO: ARBA Promulgation Team. Arlington, VA                        Date: 10 March 2014  

     The Army Discharge Review Board, under the provisions of Title 10, United States Code, Section 1553, in the case of the applicant named in page 1, directs the ARBA Promulgation Team, Arlington, VA to issue a new discharge order to the applicant which reflects the following directed changes:

           ( X  )	Change characterization of discharge to General, Under Honorable Conditions.
           ( X  )	Restoration of grade to E-5/SGT


















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)		AR20130008649

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ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



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