IN THE CASE OF:  	Mr. 

      BOARD DATE:  	23 June 2014

      CASE NUMBER:  	AR20130021776
___________________________________________________________________________

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 under other than honorable conditions discharge to honorable or general, under honorable conditions.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, he was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress disorder (PTSD) prior to his discharge and his unit refused to send him to the VA to be treated.  His PTSD was viewed as misconduct by his commanding officer because he did not believe that he suffered from this medical condition.  The commander’s belief affected his judgment as it pertained to his discharge. 
 
DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION:

a. Application Receipt Date:			29 November 2013
b. Discharge Received:			Under Other Than Honorable Conditions
c. Date of Discharge:				21 November 2012
d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code:		AR 135-178, Chapter NIF
e. Unit of assignment:				Co B, 403rd CA Bn, Utica, NY	
f. Current Enlistment Date/Term:		14 April 2008, 8 years
g. Current Enlistment Service:		4 years, 7 months, 8 days
h. Total Service:				4 years, 7 months, 8 days
i. Time Lost:					None
j. Previous Discharges:			IADT/080515-081023/HD
k. Highest Grade Achieved:			E-2
l. Military Occupational Specialty:		38B10, Civil Affairs Specialist 
m. Education:					HS Graduate
n. Overseas Service:				None
o. Combat Service:				NIF
p. Decorations/Awards:			ASR
q. Administrative Separation Board: 		No
r. Performance Ratings:			None
s. Counseling Statements:			No
t. Prior Board Review:				No

SUMMARY OF SERVICE:		
	
On 14 April 2008, the applicant joined the Army Reserve for a period of 8 years.  He was 18 years old at the time and a high school graduate.  He served a total of 4 years, 7 months and 
8 days in the US Army Reserve.  His record does not contain any significant awards or acts of valor.



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 13 November 2012, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 99th Regional support Command, fort Dix, NJ, Orders 12-318-00022, discharged the applicant from the United States Army Reserve, effective 21 November 2012, 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:

Discharge Order reflecting the applicant’s effective date of discharge and his reduction from PV2 to PV1, with an effective date of 13 November 2012.  The reason for the reduction in rank is NIF. 

EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT:

The applicant provided DD Form 293, dated 26 November 2013; a discharge order, 
dated 13 November 2012; and a copy of his mental health diagnosis.   

POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: 

None provided with the application

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 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 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 was diagnosed with PTSD prior to his discharge and his unit refused to provide him with the needed attention.  However, there is insufficient evidence available in the official record to make a determination upon the applicant's quality of service.  Moreover, there is a presumption of regularity in the conduct of governmental affairs which is applied in all Army discharge reviews unless there is substantial credible evidence to rebut the presumption.  There is no evidence in the record, nor has the applicant produced any evidence, to support a change to the characterization of service granted.  The applicant’s statements alone do not overcome the presumption of government regularity and the application contains no documentation or further evidence in support of this request for an upgrade of the discharge.  The applicant provided limited evidence of his post diagnoses of PTSD; from the St. Mary’s Healthcare, Comprehensive Mental Health and Alcoholism Services dated 7 October 2012; however, in the absence of the facts and circumstances concerning the applicant’s discharge, government regularity is presumed.

6.  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.

7.  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:  23 June 2014        Location: Washington, DC

Did the Applicant Testify?  No

Counsel:  None

Witnesses/Observers:  No

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)		AR20130021776



Page 5 of 5 pages


ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB)

CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE



1