PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            12 September 2002
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002070079

	I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings 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. John N. Slone		Chairperson	
	Mr. Donald P. Hupman, Jr.		Member	
	Mr. William D. Powers		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

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

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests, in effect, that his discharge from the United States Army Reserve (USAR) be voided and that he be transferred to the Retired Reserve. 

3.  The applicant states, in effect, that he thought he had been transferred to the Retired Reserve and has since discovered that he was discharged instead as a result of an administrative error made by his supervisory staff administrator (SSA).  He goes on to state that he is being deprived of benefits that he would otherwise be entitled to receive had the error not occurred.

4.  The applicant’s military records show that he served in the Marine Corps from September 1969 until he was honorably released from active duty on 6 October 1972 and was transferred to the Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR).  He served in the USMCR until he was honorably discharged on 10 May 1974, for the purpose of joining the USAR.  He enlisted in the USAR on 11 May 1974 and continued to serve through a series of continuous extensions and reenlistments.  He was promoted to the pay grade of E-7 on 21 May 1987.

5.  On 17 December 1991, a first endorsement was prepared by Headquarters, First United States Army at Fort Meade, Maryland, which informed the applicant’s commander that a request had been dispatched to the Army Reserve Personnel Center (ARPERCEN) requesting that a Notification of Retirement Pay Eligibility 20-Year Certification be issued to the applicant.  The applicant’s expiration of term of service (ETS) at that time was 17 March 1992.  The applicant was born on 4 March 1950.

6.  The applicant’s records show that on 4 January 1992, he was issued a Retired identification card with an expiration of 4 March 2010, the date he turns 60 years of age.

7.  On 17 March 1992, orders were published by Headquarters, First United States Army, which discharged the applicant from the USAR on his ETS.

8.  In the processing of this case a staff member of the Board contacted officials at the Army Reserve Personnel Command (ARPERSCOM) to ascertain if a 20-year letter was ever issued to the applicant.  Officials at the ARPERSCOM indicated that the applicant was discharged in March 1992 and that it was not until 1 March 1993 that his 20-year letter was issued.

9.  Army Regulation 140-10, in effect at the time, set forth the basic authority for the assignment, attachment, detail, and transfer of USAR soldiers.  Chapter 7 of that regulation relates to the removal of soldiers from active status and states, in pertinent part, that soldiers removed from an active status will be discharged or, if qualified and if they so request, will be transferred to the Retired Reserve. 
10.  Army Regulation 135-178, in effect at the time, established the policies, standards, and procedures governing the administrative procedures governing the administrative separation of enlisted soldiers from the Reserve Components. Paragraph 1-3 states, in pertinent part, that orders discharging a soldier would not be revoked or the effective date changed after the effective date of discharge unless there was a manifest error or fraud.  After the effective date of discharge, orders could not be amended by the separation authority only to correct manifest errors such as the wrong character of service or correct administrative errors such as errors concerning rank, social security number, or misspelled name.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  In the absence of evidence to the contrary, it must be presumed that the applicant’s discharge was accomplished in accordance with law and regulations applicable at the time.  

2.  However, it appears that he was not afforded the opportunity to be transferred to the Retired Reserve.  It is also reasonable to presume that given his qualifying years of creditable service for retired pay purposes and the fact that he was issued a Retired Identification Card on 4 January 1992, he was led to believe that he had been transferred to the Retired Reserve.

3.  Inasmuch as the applicant meets eligibility requirements for assignment to the Retired Reserve, it would be equitable and just to correct his military records by voiding his discharge of 17 March 1992 and assigning him to the Retired Reserve effective 4 January 1992, the date his Retired Identification Card was issued.

4.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:  That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by voiding the 17 March 1992 discharge from the USAR of the individual concerned; and by showing that he was transferred to the Retired Reserve effective 4 January 1992.

BOARD VOTE:  

___dh___  __js ____  ___wdp__  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		_____John N. Slone_______
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002070079	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2002/09/12	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	GRANT	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  189	110.0000/VOID DISCH	
2.  341	136.0300/TR TO RET RES	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.