MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:      

	BOARD DATE:           2 October 2003                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2003084618

	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. G. E. Vandenberg		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Kathleen A. Newman		Chairperson	
	Mr. Lester Echols		Member	
	Mr. John T. Meixell		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 be upgraded.

APPLICANT STATES:  That he was and is suffering from a mental condition, which impaired his ability to serve and to properly defend himself at his court-martial.  He states that he received nonjudicial punishment (NJP) under Article 15, Uniform Code of Military Justice that was also used in his court-martial.  He states that his records are incorrect as copies of unspecified items were deleted and that his Social Security Number (SSN) was falsified. 

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

The applicant entered active duty on 19 January 1983.  He completed training and served as an infantryman.

On 16 January 1984 a special court-martial found him guilty of failure to go to his appointed place of duty, failure to obey a lawful order, unlawful assault on a noncommissioned officer (NCO), and of being drunk and disorderly.  His sentence was to be reduced to pay grade E-1, forfeiture of $397.00 pay per month for three months, confinement for three months and to be discharged with a bad conduct discharge.

The sentence was approved with the exception that the forfeiture and confinement periods being reduced to two months.  

He served in confinement from 8 December 1983 through 26 January 1984, and on 7 February 1984 he was placed on involuntary excess leave.

The Army Court of Military Review affirmed the court-martial findings and sentence on 20 April 1984.

There is no evidence that he appealed to the Court of Military Appeals.

There is no evidence of any NJP in the record.

He was discharged with a bad conduct discharge on 13 December 1984.  His DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) shows he had 1 year, 9 months, and 5 days of creditable service with 50 days lost.  

The first indication of record of any mental condition is a 1999 statement submitted in concert with the applicant’s ADRB application.  This statement indicated that the applicant was suffering from paranoia, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder.  In concert with the ADRB application he also indicates that he had developed a drug and alcohol problem in service although though no evidence of these conditions was submitted.

On 12 March 1999, the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) denied the applicant's request to upgrade his discharge.

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

1.  Trial by court-martial was warranted by the gravity of the offenses charged.  Conviction and discharge were effected in accordance with applicable law and regulations, and the discharge appropriately characterizes the misconduct for which the applicant was convicted.

2.  The applicant's contentions relating to evidentiary and procedural matters were finally and conclusively adjudicated in the court-martial appellate process and furnish no basis for recharacterization of the discharge.

3.  There is insufficient evidence to show that he was suffering from a mental condition at the time of his court-martial, that he was unable to adequately defend himself, or that he if he was suffering from a mental condition that he was so impaired as to be unable to tell right from wrong or to adhere to the right.  

4.  The Board finds no evidence of any falsification of his SSN.

5.  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.

6.  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

__KAN __  ____LE _  ___JTM _  DENY APPLICATION

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

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003084618	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20031002	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	DENY	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	144	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.