RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            15 JANUARY 2004                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2003090496

	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	
	Ms. Deborah L. Brantley		Senior Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Margaret K. Patterson		Chairperson	
	Mr. Allen L. Raub		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).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:  

1.  The applicant requests, in effect, disability retirement or separation.

2.  The applicant states that he would like to have a medical discharge so that he can receive care.  He states that he was found by his battalion surgeon to have suffered from previous head-trauma, which was not “the fact.”

3.  The applicant provides no evidence in support of his request.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 

1.  Records available to the Board indicate that the applicant enlisted in the Regular Army and entered active duty on 26 February 2001.  His entrance physical examination is silent regarding any previous head traumas or a bout of meningitis as a toddler.

2.  He was trained in an infantry specialty and was awarded a Parachutist Badge in July 2001.

3.  The applicant was counseled on several occasions for his poor performance and being late for work.  On several counseling statements the individual doing the counseling noted the applicant’s medical problems, including his headaches.

4.  In March 2002 the applicant’s commander initiated action to administratively separate the applicant under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 7, for erroneous enlistment.  The commander specifically cited the absence of medical information from the applicant’s enlistment physical examination, which if revealed, would have likely excluded him from military service, as the basis for the recommendation.  He noted that the applicant had multiple prior episodes of minor to moderate head trauma prior to entering military service, including a motor vehicle accident and football injuries prior to enlisting.  He also noted that the applicant suffered from meningitis at age 2.  The commander stated that the applicant is susceptible to ongoing problems and headaches.

5.  Medical information contained in the applicant’s file notes that he had been referred for care following a head injury during an airborne operation in Airborne Training.  It was ultimately determined that he was suffering from post concussion syndrome and chronic headaches.  Medical personnel concluded, after reviewing the applicant’s prior medical history, provided by the applicant 

and his father, that the applicant had suffered multiple prior episodes of minor to moderate head trauma and a bout of meningitis, which may have contributed, or made him more susceptible to his current condition.

6.  The applicant indicated in his own handwriting that he had been involved in a motor vehicle accident and treated for lacerations to his head, and that he had also been treated for another laceration to his head in 1998, which required stitches.  He indicated that his parents told him that he had also suffered from meningitis in 1981 or 1982.  The applicant’s battalion surgeon indicated that because the applicant had failed to disclose this important information, his chain of command was “required to separate [the applicant] for erroneous enlistment.”

7.  The applicant acknowledged receipt of the proposed separation and made no statements in his own behalf.

8.  The commander’s recommendation was approved, and on 19 April 2002 he was honorably discharged under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 7.  He had 1 year, 1 month, and 24 days of creditable active Federal service at the time of his discharge.

9.  Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 7, states that Soldiers may be separated on the basis of an erroneous enlistment if the enlistment would not have occurred had the relevant facts been known by the Government, the enlistment was not the result of fraudulent conduct on the part of the Soldier, and the defect is unchanged in material respects.  

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant was discharged for failing to provide medical information, which if known, may have precluded his enlistment in the Army.  As such, he was discharged as a result of an erroneous enlistment.

2.  The applicant’s contention that he did not suffer from multiple head traumas prior to his enlistment, and which served as the basis for his administrative discharge, is not supported by any evidence in available records or provided by the applicant.  The applicant, in his own handwriting, confirms the fact that he suffered from multiple head traumas prior to his enlistment.  He has provided no evidence that contradicts that information.

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

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__MKP__  __ALR __  __WDP__  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned.

		__Margaret K. Patterson___
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2003090496	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20040115	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR . . . . .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	DENY	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	108.00	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.