MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            11 June 2002
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002068203

	I certify that hereinafter is recorded the record of consideration of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual.

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mr. Jessie B. Strickland		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Fred N. Eichorn		Chairperson	
	Mr. Roger W. Able		Member	
	Mr. Harry B. Oberg		Member	

	The Board, established pursuant to authority contained in 10 U.S.C. 1552, convened at the call of the Chairperson on the above date.  In accordance with Army Regulation 15-185, the application and the available military records pertinent to the corrective action requested were reviewed to determine whether to authorize a formal hearing, recommend that the records be corrected without a formal hearing, or to deny the application without a formal hearing if it is determined that insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.

	The applicant requests correction of military records as stated in the application to the Board and as restated herein.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
            records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

APPLICANT REQUESTS:  In effect, that his discharge from the United States Army Reserve (USAR) be voided and that he be reinstated as a captain in the Civil Affairs (CA) Branch.

APPLICANT STATES:  In effect, that he was unjustly passed over for promotion because of a series of mistakes made by officials at the Army Reserve Personnel Command (ARPERSCOM).  He further states that in October 1999, he found a Troop Program Unit vacancy in a CA battalion and requested an assignment to the unit as a CA officer.  His request for return to the active Reserve took about 6 months and he immediately enrolled in the CA Officer Advanced Course (CAOAC).  Unfortunately, because the CAOAC was being mismanaged by the Army, he was delayed for almost a year in completing the course and transferring from the Medical Services Corps (MSC) Branch to the CA Branch.  Meanwhile, he was being considered for promotion as a MSC officer and because he had not completed the MSC advanced course, he was not selected for promotion.  He goes on to state that he requested an appointment as a CA officer and his request was granted, however, on the same day, the appointment was revoked without explanation.  He also states that throughout the numerous administrative errors that were occurring in his case, he did not receive his notifications of non-selection until it was too late to do anything about them and believes that he should be afforded the opportunity to serve as a CA officer.  In support of his application he submits copies of his CAOAC completion documents, copies of his records, copies of letters he submitted to promotion selection boards, his application for appointment as a CA officer and release from the MSC Branch, and a copy of his appointment as a CA officer.

EVIDENCE OF RECORD:  The applicant's military records show:

He was commissioned as a USAR second lieutenant on 3 May 1987 and was ordered to active duty on 21 October 1987, for a period of 3 years.  He was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant on 21 October 1989 and remained on active duty until he was honorably released from active duty (REFRAD) on 20 October 1990, due to the expiration of his term of service.  He had served 3 years of total active service and was transferred to the USAR Control Group (Reinforcement).  He was promoted to the rank of captain on 20 October 1993.

The applicant dispatched a letter to the ARPERSCOM on 30 December 1999, indicating that he had received several notifications of an upcoming promotion selection board and that none of the notification pertained to him.  He also indicated that he was pursuing correspondence courses to make himself eligible for promotion and that if he was eligible, he desired a packet be sent to him.  He further indicated that his renewed interest in furthering his Army education was directly related to his assignment to a local Reserve unit.

On 18 April 2000, the applicant was transferred to a USAR Troop Program Unit (Civil Affairs Detachment) in Knoxville, Tennessee.

On 24 July 2000, the ARPERSCOM dispatched a memorandum to the applicant informing him that he had been nonselected for promotion because he did not meet the mandatory education requirements by the time the promotion board had convened.  The memorandum also explained that if he remained eligible, he would be considered for promotion the next year.  The memorandum was mailed to the same address as is on his application to the Board.

On 23 August 2001, the ARPERSCOM dispatched a memorandum to the applicant informing him that he had again been nonselected for promotion by the 26 March 2001 board and was required by law to be removed from the USAR no later than 1 February 2002, unless he was eligible and requested transfer to the Retired Reserve. 

The applicant completed the CAOAC on 27 July 2001.

On 31 August 2001, the ARPERSCOM, Office of Reserve Component Promotions, granted the applicant a waiver for the military educational requirement for promotion to major under the 2001 criteria.

On 15 October 2001, the applicant submitted a request for release from the MSC Branch and reassignment to the CA Branch.  His request was approved on 7 January 2002 and for reasons not explained in the available records, the appointment was revoked the same day.

On 1 February 2002, the applicant was honorably discharged from the USAR due to being twice nonselected for promotion.

Army Regulation 135-155 prescribes the policies and procedures used in the selection and promotion of commissioned officers of the USAR.  It provides, in pertinent part, that a USAR captain will be considered for promotion to the rank of major once they have 7 years time in grade as a captain or 12 years of commissioned service.  To qualify for selection, captains must have completed any officer advance course and must be in an active Reserve status.

Title 10, United States Code, section 14505, provides, in pertinent part, that a Reserve captain on the Reserve active status list of the Army, who has failed selection for promotion to the next higher grade for the second time, shall be separated in accordance with section 14513 of this title, no later than the first day of the seventh month after the month in which the President approves the report of the board which considered the officer for the second time.

DISCUSSION:  Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together with the evidence of record, applicable law and regulations, it is concluded:

1.  Although it is unfortunate that the applicant was led to believe that he could transfer to the CA Branch, once he had been twice nonselected for promotion to the rank of major, he was required by law to be removed from the USAR.

2.  While there may have been extenuating circumstances that caused delays in his completing his CAOAC, the fact remains that once he entered an active USAR status (18 April 2000), he was immediately eligible for promotion consideration. 

3.  There is no evidence in the available records which shows that the applicant made any attempts to become qualified for promotion as an MSC officer during the 10 years he spent in the USAR Control Group (Reinforcement), of which 7 years were in the rank of captain.  Accordingly, it appears that he simply waited too late to begin becoming qualified and was properly separated in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations in effect at the time.

4.  The Board understands the applicant’s frustrations regarding the processing of his request for a branch transfer that was approved and simultaneously revoked.  However, it is reasonable to presume that the office that was processing his request was unaware of his being twice nonselected for promotion and once it was discovered, the appropriate action was taken to revoke the appointment.  

5.  The Board also notes that the applicant notified the promotion selection board that he was scheduled to complete the CAOAC, however, the regulatory requirements require completion of the course prior to the convening of the selection board, which in this case was in March 2001.  The applicant did not complete his advance course until July 2001 and thus was ineligible for promotion.  In actuality, any actions that occurred after March 2001, when he was twice nonselected for promotion, were of no consequence or effect to his mandatory release date of February 2002. 

6.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must show to the satisfaction of the Board, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.

7.  In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.

DETERMINATION:  The applicant has failed to submit sufficient relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

____fe __  ___ra ___  ___hbo__  DENY APPLICATION

		    Carl W. S. Chun
		    Director, Army Board for Correction
    of Military Records

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002068203	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2002/06/11	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	HD	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	2002/02/01	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR140-10	
DISCHARGE REASON	2XX NONSELECT FOR PROMOTION	
BOARD DECISION	DENY	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  335	135.0300/CHG STATUS	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.