IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 23 August 2013 CASE NUMBER: AR20130004529 ___________________________________________________________________________ Board Determination and Directed Action After carefully examining the applicant's record of service during the period of enlistment under review and considering the Discussion and Recommendation which follows, the Board determined the discharge was both proper and equitable and voted to deny relief. Presiding Officer I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Department of the Army Discharge Review Board in this case. THE APPLICANT’S REQUEST AND STATEMENT: 1. The applicant requests an upgrade of his discharge from general, under honorable conditions to honorable. 2. He states, in effect, he was discharged for the sole reason the Army was downsizing, whereas any other time he would have just received nonjudicial punishment. He never received a negative counseling statement, never failed a physical training (PT) test and always maintained his proficiency. He was told the urinalysis test was not conducted properly. An upgrade would help him improve and work for greater accomplishments. He desires to receive VA benefits. He also desires to return to the Army as an officer. DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION: a. Application Receipt Date: 4 March 2013 b. Discharge Received: General, Under Honorable Conditions c. Date of Discharge: 30 March 2012 d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE: Misconduct (Serious Offense), AR 635-200 Chapter 14, paragraph 14-12c, JKQ, RE-3 e. Unit of assignment: HHC, 705th Military Police Battalion, Fort Leavenworth, KS f. Current Enlistment Date/Term: 29 May 2010, 4 years g. Current Enlistment Service: 1 years, 10 months, 2 days h. Total Service: 4 years, 10 months, 14 days i. Lost time: None j. Previous Discharges: RA-(070517-090114)/HD RA-(090114-100528)/HD k. Highest Grade Achieved: E-4 l. Military Occupational Specialty: 92Y10, Unit Supply Specialist m. GT Score: NIF n. Education: GED Certificate o. Overseas Service: Southwest Asia p. Combat Service: Iraq (090820-100726) q. Decorations/Awards: ARCOM-2, AAM, AGCM, NDSM, GWOTEM, ASR MUC r. Administrative Separation Board: No s. Performance Ratings: No t. Counseling Statements: No u. Prior Board Review: No SUMMARY OF SERVICE: The applicant's record shows he enlisted in the Regular Army on 17 May 2007; he was 17 years old at the time of entry and had a GED Certificate. He was trained in and awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 92Y10, Unit Supply Specialist. His last reenlistment was on 29 May 2010, for a period of 4 years at the time he was 20 years old. His record also shows that he served a combat tour and earned several awards including two ARCOMs, an AAM and an AGCM. He was serving at Fort Leavenworth, KS when his discharge was initiated and he achieved the rank of SPC/E-4. SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES: 1. The applicant’s record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to the discharge from the Army. However, the record contains a properly constituted DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), which was authenticated by the applicant’s digital signature. 2. The DD Form 214 indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 14, AR 635-200, paragraph 14-12c, for misconduct (serious offense), with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions. The DD Form 214 shows a Separation Program Designator (SPD) code of JKQ and a reentry (RE) code of 3. 3. The applicant’s available record does not show any recorded actions under the UCMJ, unauthorized absences or time lost. However, he was separated as a PFC/E-3 and the action that caused his reduction is not contained in the service record. 4. On 7 March 2012, DA, US Army Combined Arms Center and Fort Leavenworth, Fort Leavenworth, KS, Orders Number 067-0004, discharged the applicant from the Regular Army effective 30 March 2012. EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD: The record of evidence does not contain any other relevant information. EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT: The applicant provided a DD Form 293, DD Form 214, and Discharge Orders 067-0004. POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: The applicant did not provide any with the application. REGULATORY AUTHORITY: 1. Army Regulation 635-200 sets forth the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel. Chapter 14 establishes policy and prescribes procedures for separating members for misconduct. Specific categories include minor disciplinary infractions, a pattern of misconduct, and commission of a serious offense, to include abuse of illegal drugs, convictions by civil authorities and desertion or being absent without leave. Action will be taken to separate a member for misconduct when it is clearly established that rehabilitation is impractical or unlikely to succeed. Army policy states that an under other than honorable conditions discharge is normally considered appropriate; however, a general, under honorable conditions or an honorable discharge may be granted. 2. Army Regulation 635-200, paragraph 3-7a, provides that an honorable discharge is a separation with honor and entitles the recipient to benefits provided by law. The honorable characterization is appropriate when the quality of the member’s service generally has met the standards of acceptable conduct and performance of duty for Army personnel, or is otherwise so meritorious that any other characterization would be clearly inappropriate. Whenever there is doubt, it is to be resolved in favor of the individual. 3. Army Regulation 635-200, paragraph 3-7b, provides that a general discharge is a separation from the Army under honorable conditions. When authorized, it is issued to a Soldier whose military record is satisfactory but not sufficiently meritorious to warrant an honorable discharge. A characterization of under honorable conditions may be issued only when the reason for the Soldier’s separation specifically allows such characterization. DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION: 1 The applicant’s request for an upgrade of the characterization of his discharge was carefully considered. However, after examining the applicant’s record of service, his available military records, the documents and the issues submitted with the application, there are insufficient mitigating factors to merit an upgrade of the applicant's discharge. 2. The applicant’s record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to his discharge from the Army. However, the record contains a properly constituted DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), which was authenticated by the applicant's digital signature. This document identifies the reason and characterization of the discharge and government regularity is presumed in the discharge process. 3. The DD Form 214 also indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 14, AR 635-200, paragraph 14-12c by reason of misconduct (serious offense), with a characterization of service of general, under honorable conditions. Barring evidence to the contrary, the presumption of government regularity prevails as it appears that all the requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process. 4. The applicant contentions were carefully considered. However, there is insufficient evidence available in the official record to make a determination upon the applicant's quality of service. Moreover, there is a presumption of regularity in the conduct of governmental affairs which is applied in all Army discharge reviews unless there is substantial credible evidence to rebut the presumption. There is no evidence in the record, nor has the applicant produced any evidence to support the contention that he was unjustly discharged. 5. Furthermore, the record does not contain any indication or evidence of arbitrary or capricious actions by the command and all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process. 6. The states that an upgrade of his discharge would help him improve and work for greater accomplishments. However, the Board does not grant relief for the purpose of gaining employment or enhancing employment opportunities. 7. The applicant desires to receive VA benefits to attend college. Eligibility for veteran's benefits to include educational benefits under the Post-9/11 or Montgomery GI Bill does not fall within the purview of the Army Discharge Review Board. Accordingly, the applicant should contact a local office of the Department of Veterans Affairs for further assistance. 8. The applicant also desires to return to the Army as an officer. Soldiers being processed for separation are assigned reentry codes based on their service records or the reason for discharge. Based on Army Regulation 635-5-1 and the SPD Code/RE Code Cross Reference Table the applicant was appropriately assigned an RE code of 3. An RE Code of 3 indicates the applicant requires a waiver prior to being allowed to reenlist. If reenlistment is desired, the applicant should contact a local recruiter to determine eligibility to reenlist. Recruiters can best advise a former service member as to the needs of the Army at the time, and are required to process waivers of reentry eligibility (RE) codes if appropriate. 9. If the applicant desires a personal appearance hearing, it will be his responsibility to meet the burden of proof and provide the appropriate documents (i.e., the discharge packet) or other evidence sufficient to explain the facts, circumstances, and reasons underlying the separation action, for the Board’s consideration because they are not available in the official record. 10. Therefore, based on the available evidence and the presumption of government regularity, it appears the reason for discharge and the characterization of service were both proper and equitable, thus recommend the Board deny relief. SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING: Type of Hearing: Records Review Date: 23 August 2013 Location: Washington, DC Did the Applicant Testify: No Counsel: No Board Vote: Character Change:0 No Change: 5 Reason Change: 0 No Change: 5 (Board member names available upon request) Board Action Directed: Issue a new DD Form 214: No Change Characterization to: No Change Change Reason to: No Change Change RE Code to: No Change Grade Restoration to: NA Change Authority for Separation: No Change Other: NA Legend: AMHRR - Army Military Human Resource Record FG - Field Grade IADT – Initial Active Duty Training RE - Reentry AWOL - Absent Without Leave GD - General Discharge NA - Not applicable SCM- Summary Court Martial BCD - Bad Conduct Discharge HS - High School NIF - Not in File SPCM - Special Court Martial CG - Company Grade Article 15 HD - Honorable Discharge OAD - Ordered to Active Duty UNC - Uncharacterized Discharge CID - Criminal investigation Department MP – Military Police OMPF - Official Military Personnel File UOTHC - Under Other Than Honorable Conditions ADRB Case Report and Directive (cont) AR20130004529 Page 2 of 6 pages ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB) CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE 1