MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:   

	BOARD DATE:           15 May 2003                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2003085531

	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. Luis Almodova		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Arthur A. Omartian		Chairperson	
	Mr. Thomas A. Pagan		Member	
	Mr. Roger W. Able		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, correction of his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to show that he qualified as an expert marksman.

APPLICANT STATES:  In effect, that he hit 38 out of 40 rounds and the 50-meter target was not visible due to recent excavating in his lane.  He explained this to his drill sergeant and was told that he could requalify the next day.  The next day the ground was improved but he was not allowed to requalify.  The applicant further states that he should have had an expert listing to begin with in his records.  He believes that to qualify expert, the number of hits was 36 and up.  He had 38 with 2 unspent rounds.

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

That he enlisted in the Army Reserve for 6 years on 8 July 1983 in the rank and pay grade of Private, E-1.  On 24 August 1983 he was ordered to active duty for training and underwent both basic combat and advanced individual training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.  He was awarded the military occupational specialty (MOS) 12B (Combat Engineer).  

Penciled entries on his DA Form 2-1 (Personnel Qualification Record) show that he qualified as a sharpshooter with the M-16 rifle on 23 September 1983 and as an expert in the hand grenade throw on 4 October 1983, during basic combat training.  There are no other weapons qualification entries in his personnel qualification record.  There are no orders on file in his service personnel records awarding the applicant an Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar.

On 1 December 1983, the applicant was honorably released from active duty, at the completion of his active duty for training, under the provisions of Paragraph 16-9a, Army Regulation 635-200.

Block 13 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Citations and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) of his DD Form 214 shows that he was entitled to the Army Service Ribbon, the Sharpshooter Qualification Badge M-16, and the Expert Qualification Badge with Hand Grenade Bar.

Army Regulation 600-8-22, in pertinent part, sets forth requirements for award of basic marksmanship qualification badges.  The qualification badge is awarded to indicate the degree in which an individual has qualified in a prescribed record 

course, and an appropriate bar is furnished to denote each weapon with which the individual has qualified.  The qualification badges are in three classes:  Expert, Sharpshooter, and Marksman.  

The DD Form 214, submitted by the applicant as evidence of his service, was signed by him on his release from active duty for training.  The applicant's signature on this document indicates that he reviewed the form and accepted the information as being correct to the best of his knowledge.  In effect, the applicant admitted that he had qualified as sharpshooter during marksmanship qualification training.

To qualify, soldiers are required to detect and engage targets at distances ranging from 50 meters to 300 meters.  Soldier will fire two twenty round magazines.  The first will be fired from the foxhole-supported position and the second will be fired from the prone unsupported position.  The following standards are applicable:  Expert: 36-40 hits; Sharpshooter: 30–35 hits; Marksman: 23-29 hits; unqualified: 22-Below. 

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.  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, in this case, has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.

2.  It is apparent from the level of the marksmanship qualification badge that was awarded the applicant that he did not score more than 36 hits while on the rifle qualification range.  There is no evidence that the applicant did or didn't bring the perceived problem with his firing lane to the attention of his drill sergeant as he alleges.

3.  If a report were made, as the applicant alleges, in the absence of action by the drill sergeant, the applicant could have availed himself of the open door policy and could have sought the first sergeant's assistance in resolving the issue.  The Board noted that the applicant remained in the unit for an additional 69 days [from 23 September until 1 December 1983] after undergoing weapons qualification.  The Board also noted that the applicant did not seek to resolve the issue until more than 19 years after he qualified sharpshooter with his rifle.

4.  The evidence of record fails to show that the applicant was entitled to award of the Expert Qualification Badge for the M-16 Rifle.  His records only show qualification at the sharpshooter level.  Thus his record correctly shows entitlement to the Sharpshooter Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar.

5.  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

__aao___  __tap___  __rwa___  DENY APPLICATION

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

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003085531	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20030515	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	DENY	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	107.0000	
2.	107.0108	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.