IN THE CASE OF:	Mr. 

      BOARD DATE:	23 April 2014

      CASE NUMBER:	AR20130013161
___________________________________________________________________________

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.  Although the applicant requested to change his discharge to uncharacterized, the Army Discharge Review Board would consider the applicant for a possible upgrade as instructed in pertinent part by Department of Defense Instruction 1332.28, which stipulates that a request for review from an applicant without an honorable discharge shall be treated as a request for a change to an honorable discharge.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, he would like to join the service again, but instead of joining the US Army, he is trying to join the US Air Force.

DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

	a.	Application Receipt Date:	16 July 2013
	b.	Discharge Received:	Uncharacterized
	c.	Date of Discharge:	16 October 2012
	d.	Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:	Failed Medical/Physical/Procurement Standards, AR 
			635-200, Paragraph 5-11, JFW, RE-3
	e.	Unit of assignment:	C Co, 1st Bn, 46th IN REGT, Fort Benning, GA
	f.	Current Enlistment Date/Term:	16 July 2012, 6 years
	g.	Current Enlistment Service:	0 years, 3 months, 1 day
	h.	Total Service:	0 years, 10 months, 3 days
	i.	Time Lost:	None
	j.	Previous Discharges:	USAR (111214-120715) / NA
	k.	Highest Grade Achieved:	E-2
	l.	Military Occupational Specialty:	88H
	m.	GT Score:	99
	n.	Education:	GED
	o.	Overseas Service:	None
	p.	Combat Service:	None
	q.	Decorations/Awards:	None
	r.	Administrative Separation Board: 	No
	s.	Performance Ratings:	None
	t.	Counseling Statements:	Yes
	u.	Prior Board Review:	No

SUMMARY OF SERVICE:  

On 14 December 2011, the applicant enlisted in the US Army Reserve for a period of 8 years of which 6 years were to be served in a TPU.  He was 18 years old at the time and had a high school equivalency (GED).  He served a total of 10 months and 3 days on active duty and in the US Army Reserve.  His record does not contain any significant awards or acts of valor.  


SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES:

1.  On 25 September 2012, an Entrance Physical Standards Board (EPSB) convened and determined the applicant’s medical condition of right inguinal hernia (550.90) existed prior to entry into the Army.  The applicant reviewed and concurred with the findings of the EPSB, requested discharge without delay and did not submit any statement on his behalf.  

2.  On 9 October 2012, the unit commander recommended separation from the service under the provisions of Chapter 5, paragraph 5-11, AR 635-200, by reason of failure to meet procurement medical fitness standards with an uncharacterized discharge.  

3.  On 9 October 2012, the separation authority directed the applicant’s discharge with a characterization of service listed as uncharacterized.

4.  The applicant was discharged from the Army on 16 October 2012, with a characterization of service listed as uncharacterized.

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

EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD:

1.  DA Form 4707, Entrance Physical Standards Board (EPSBD) Proceedings, dated 18 September 2012, is self-explanatory.

2.  Two counseling statements dated 18 and 19 September 2012, for EPTS due to a preexisting medical condition and referral to the Army Reserve Liaison for counseling.

3.  DA Form 2697, Report of Medical Assessment, dated 18 September 2012, indicates the applicant was diagnosed with right inguinal hernia as EPTS.

4.  Memorandum for Record, dated 4 October 2012, subject: Waiver of Rights to Legal Counsel, rendered by the applicant, indicates he waived his right to seek legal counsel and elected that he did not want to remain on active duty.  

5.  DD Form 2808, Report of Medical Examination, dated 21 June 2011, indicates that on 21 June 2011, the examiner determined and box-checked the block that the applicant was not qualified for service.  On 21 July 2011, the applicant confirmed that he was advised of his disqualification condition with his signature.

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant provided none.



POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

The applicant provided none. 

REGULATORY AUTHORITY:

1.  Army Regulation 635-200 provides the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel.  Paragraph 5-11 specifically provides that Soldiers who were not medically qualified under procurement medical fitness standards, when accepted for enlistment, or who became medically disqualified under these standards prior to entry on active duty or active duty training or initial entry training will be separated.  A medical proceeding, regardless of the date completed, must establish that a medical condition was identified by appropriate medical authority within six months of the Soldier’s initial entrance on active duty, that the condition would have permanently or temporarily disqualified the Soldier for entry into the military service had it been detected at that time, and the medical condition does not disqualify the Soldier from retention in the service under the provisions of Army Regulation 40-501, Chapter 3.  

2.  The characterization of service for Soldiers separated under this provision of the regulation will normally be honorable.  However for Soldiers in entry-level status, it will be uncharacterized.  

3.  Army Regulation 635-200 states that a Soldier is in an entry-level status if the Soldier has not completed more than 180 days of creditable continuous active duty prior to the initiation of separation action.

DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION:

1.  It is determined that the applicant did not properly annotate the enclosed application requesting possible discharge upgrade but requested to change his discharge to uncharacterized.  Accordingly, the Army Discharge Review Board would considered the applicant for a possible upgrade as instructed in pertinent part by Department of Defense Instruction 1332.28, which stipulates that a request for review from an applicant without an honorable discharge shall be treated as a request for a change to an honorable discharge unless the applicant requests a specific change to another character of discharge.  In the applicant’s case, it is possible he erroneously requested the aforementioned change, although his discharge under current review indicates he received an uncharacterized discharge.

2.  The applicant’s request for an upgrade of the characterization of his discharge was carefully considered.  However, after a careful review of all the applicant’s military records, and the issue submitted with the application, there are insufficient mitigating factors to merit an upgrade of the applicant's discharge.  

3.  The proceedings of the Entrance Physical Standards Board (EPSB) revealed the applicant had a medical condition which was disqualifying for enlistment and that it existed prior to entry on active duty.  Subsequently, these findings were approved by competent medical authority.  The applicant agreed with these findings and the proposed action for administrative separation from the Army.    

4.  A Soldier is in entry-level status (ELS) for the first 180 days of continuous active duty.  The purpose of the entry-level status is to provide the Soldier a probationary period.  Army Regulation 635-200 also provides, except in cases of serious misconduct, that a Soldier’s service will be uncharacterized when his separation is initiated while the Soldier is in entry level status.  Further, a general, under honorable conditions discharge is not authorized under ELS conditions and an honorable discharge may be granted only in cases which are clearly warranted by unusual circumstances involving outstanding personal conduct and/or performance of duty.  The applicant’s record confirms that no such unusual circumstances were present and his service did not warrant an honorable discharge.  

5.  The applicant desires to rejoin the military service, specifically the US Air Force.  However, Soldiers being processed for separation are assigned reentry codes based on their service records or the reason for discharge.  Based on Army Regulation 635-5-1 and the SPD Code/RE Code Cross Reference Table the applicant was appropriately assigned an RE code of 3.  There is no basis upon which to grant a change to the reason or to the RE code.  An RE Code of 3 indicates the applicant requires a waiver prior to being allowed to reenlist.  If reenlistment is desired, the applicant should contact a local recruiter to determine eligibility to reenlist.  Recruiters 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 if appropriate.

6.  All the requirements of law and regulation were met and that the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process.  

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



SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING:

Type of Hearing:  Records Review       Date:  23 April 2014       Location:  Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  NA 

Counsel:  None

Witnesses/Observers:  NA 

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:	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)		AR20130013161

Page 6 of 6 pages


ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



1