IN THE CASE OF: Mr. BOARD DATE: 7 January 2015 CASE NUMBER: AR20140002015 ___________________________________________________________________________ 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 to be 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 her discharge from uncharacterized to honorable. 2. The applicant states, in effect, she is unable to obtain VA benefits at the VAMC in Dallas, TX due to her discharge being uncharacterized. DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION: a. Application Receipt Date: 27 January 2014 b. Discharge received: Uncharacterized c. Date of Discharge: 16 April 2001 d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE: Entry Level Performance and Conduct, Chapter 11 AR 635-200, JGA, RE-3 e. Unit of assignment: FTU, 43rd Adjutant General Battalion, Fort Leonard Wood, MO f. Current Enlistment Date/Term: 17 November 2000, 3 years g. Current Enlistment Service: 5 months h. Total Service: 5 months i. Time Lost: None j. Previous Discharges: None k. Highest Grade Achieved: E-1 l. Military Occupational Specialty: None m. GT Score: NIF n. Education: GED o. Overseas Service: None p. Combat Service: None q. Decorations/Awards: None r. Administrative Separation Board: No s. Performance Ratings: None t. Counseling Statements: None u. Prior Board Review: No SUMMARY OF SERVICE: The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 17 November 2000, for a period of 3 years. She was 19 years old and had a GED certificate. She was attending basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, MO when her separation was initiated. Her record documents no acts of valor or significant achievement. 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 signature. 2. The DD Form 214 indicates on 16 April 2001, the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 11, AR 635-200, with the reason specified as entry level performance and conduct and the characterization of service described as uncharacterized. The DD Form 214 shows a Separation Program Designator (SPD) code of JGA and a reentry (RE) code of 3. 3. The applicant’s available record does not contain any evidence of any unauthorized absences or time lost. However, the applicant was placed on excess leave for 2.50 days from 2 January 2001 until 4 January 2001. EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD There are no counseling statements or UCMJ actions in the available record. EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT The applicant submitted a DD Form 149 dated 9 January 2014, in lieu of a DD Form 293. 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. Paragraph 3-9 contains guidance on entry level separations. It states a separation will be described as entry-level with service uncharacterized if, at the time separation action is initiated, the Soldier has less than 180 days of continuous active duty service. 2. Chapter 11 of Army Regulation 635-200 provides for the separation of personnel due to unsatisfactory performance, conduct, or both, while in an entry level status (ELS). An uncharacterized service description is normally granted to Soldiers separating under this chapter. 3. A general discharge (GD) under honorable conditions discharge is not authorized under ELS conditions and an honorable discharge (HD) is rarely ever granted. An HD may be given only in cases which are clearly warranted by unusual circumstances involving outstanding personal conduct and/or performance of duty. DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATION: 1. The applicant’s request for an upgrade of the characterization of her discharge was carefully considered. However, after examining the applicant’s available record of service and the issue 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 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 indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 11, AR 635-200, by reason of entry level performance and conduct, with a characterization of service described as uncharacterized. Barring evidence to the contrary, it appears that all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process. 4. The regulations stipulates that a separation will be described as entry-level with service uncharacterized if, at the time separation action is initiated, the Soldier has less than 180 days of continuous active duty service. An uncharacterized discharge is neither positive nor negative and it is not meant to be a negative reflection of a Soldier’s military service. It merely means that the Soldier has not been in the Army long enough for his or her character of service to be rated as honorable or otherwise. 5. The applicant's 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. This presumption 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 a change to the characterization of service granted. The applicant’s statements alone do not overcome the presumption of government regularity in this case and the application contains no documentation or further corroborating evidence in support of the request for an upgrade of the discharge. 6. 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. 7. Therefore, based on the available evidence and the presumption of government regularity, it appears the reason for discharge and the characterization of service are both proper and equitable, thus recommend the Board deny relief. SUMMARY OF ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD HEARING: Type of Hearing: Records Review Date: 7 January 2015 Location: Washington, DC Did the Applicant Testify? NA Counsel: None Witnesses/Observers: NA 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 Authority for Separation: NA Change RE Code to: NA Grade Restoration to: NA 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) AR 20140002015 Page 5 of 5 pages ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB) CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE 1