IN THE CASE OF: Mr. BOARD DATE: 13 March 2015 CASE NUMBER: AR20140005694 ___________________________________________________________________________ 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 under other than honorable conditions discharge to honorable. 2. The applicant states, in effect, he was unaware of being discharged from his unit. The applicant contends an upgrade of his discharge will allow him to be placed back in to the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) and rejoin the military. DISCHARGE UNDER REVIEW INFORMATION: a. Application Receipt Date: 1 April 2014 b. Discharge Received: Under Other Than Honorable Conditions c. Date of Discharge: 13 August 2010 d. Reason/Authority/SPD/RE Code: NIF, AR 135-178, NIF, NIF e. Unit of assignment: 1st Battalion, 329th Regiment, Bloomington, IN f. Current Enlistment Date/Term: 22 November 2008/NIF g. Current Enlistment Service: 1 year, 8 months, 23 days h. Total Service: 4 years, 8 months, 23 days i. Time Lost: None j. Previous Discharges: RA, 051122-081121, HD k. Highest Grade Achieved: E-4 l. Military Occupational Specialty: 14T10, Patriot Operator/Maintainer m. GT Score: 98 n. Education: HS Graduate o. Overseas Service: Korea p. Combat Service: None q. Decorations/Awards: AAM, NDSM, KDSM, ASR, OSR r. Administrative Separation Board: N/A s. Performance Ratings: N/A t. Counseling Statements: No u. Prior Board Review: No SUMMARY OF SERVICE: The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 22 November 2005, for a period of 3 years. He was 24 years old at the time of entry and a high school graduate. Upon completion of his active duty service obligation, he was transferred in to the Army Reserve on 22 November 2008. He served in Korea, earned an AAM, and completed 4 years, 8 months, and 23 days of creditable military service. When his discharge proceedings were initiated, he was serving at Bloomington, Indiana. SEPARATION FACTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES: 1. The available evidence shows the applicant’s record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events that led to his discharge from the United States Army Reserve. 2. The record indicates that on 13 August 2010, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 88th Regional Support Command, Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, Orders 10-225-00024, discharged the applicant from the United States Army Reserve, effective 13 August 2010, with an under other than honorable conditions discharge. The “additional instructions” paragraph of the said order states the “Soldier is concurrently reduced to E-1 pursuant to discharge characterization of service as an under other than honorable conditions.” 3. The applicant’s service record does not contain any evidence of unauthorized absences or time lost. EVIDENCE OBTAINED FROM THE APPLICANT'S RECORD: 1. Discharge Order Number 184-0123, dated 2 July 2008, Headquarters, III Corps and Fort Hood, Texas 76544, reflects applicant was discharged from the Regular Army, with an effective date of 21 November 2008. 2. Amendment Order Number 191-0121, dated 9 July 2008, Headquarters, III Corps and Fort Hood, Texas 76544, reflects applicant’s orders were amended to read “assigned to: 1BN (IN OSUT0 (-) 329 (W73W01), 520 S. Woodcrest Dr, Bloomington, IN 47401. 3. Reduction Order Number 10-225-00023, dated 13 August 2010, Headquarters, 88th Regional Support Command, Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, reflects applicant was reduced in rank from SPC to PV1, with a date of rank of 13 August 2010, citing the authority of AR 600-8-19, paragraphs 10-16, 10-17, 10-18 (a,c,d,e,g,h). EVIDENCE SUBMITTED BY THE APPLICANT: 1. The applicant provided a DD Form 293, dated 22 March 2014, and a copy of his discharge orders. 2. Self-authored statement, undated, outlines the applicant’s military service from basic training until his honorable discharge for the Regular Army in November 2008. The applicant further details his initial integration into his reserve unit, his enjoyment, and his inquiry about collecting his bonus. According to the applicant, it was not until this time he was confronted by the sergeant major about his pay issues. The applicant explained his pay situation to the sergeant major, but was told to get out. The applicant sought out legal advice regarding his bonus payment. The applicant did not want to have a break in service; therefore, he was advised to find a unit to transfer to. According to the applicant, his current unit was unwilling to sign release paperwork for him and it was not until three years later, he discovered he was discharged from the military. The applicant states he would like to be placed in the IRR, with a different reenlistment code in order for him to rejoin the service. POST-SERVICE ACTIVITY: None were provided with the application. REGULATORY AUTHORITY: 1. Army Regulation 135-178 sets forth the policies, standards, and procedures to ensure the readiness and competency of the U.S. Army while providing for the orderly administrative separation of Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) enlisted Soldiers for a variety of reasons. The separation policies throughout the different Chapters in this regulation promote the readiness of the Army by providing an orderly means to judge the suitability of persons to serve on the basis of their conduct and their ability to meet required standards of duty performance and discipline. Specific categories include minor disciplinary infractions, a pattern of misconduct, and commission of a serious offense, to include abuse of illegal drugs, and convictions by civil authorities. 2. The characterization is based upon the quality of the Soldier’s service, including the reason for separation and determined in accordance with standards of acceptable personal conduct and performance of duty as found in the UCMJ, Army Regulations, and the time-honored customs and traditions of the Army. The reasons for separation, including the specific circumstances that form the basis for the discharge are considered on the issue of characterization. 3. Possible characterizations of service include an honorable, general, under honorable conditions, under other than honorable conditions, or uncharacterized if the Soldier is in entry-level status. However, the permissible range of characterization varies based on the reason for separation. 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, the documents and the issues submitted with the application, there are insufficient mitigating factors to merit an upgrade of the applicant's discharge. The service record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to his discharge from the Army Reserve. 2. The applicant’s record contains a properly constituted Order which was authenticated by the appropriate military authority. This document identifies the characterization of the discharge and the presumption of government regularity prevails in the discharge process. 3. Barring evidence to the contrary, it appears all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process. 4. The applicant provided no independent corroborating evidence demonstrating that either the command's action was erroneous or that his service mitigated the type of discharge he received from the US Army Reserve. 5. The applicant contends he was unaware that he was discharged from the IRR and would like to rejoin the service. His contentions were carefully considered; however, the facts and circumstances leading to the discharge are unknown. The burden of proof remains with the applicant to provide the appropriate documents such as the discharge packet or other evidence sufficient to explain the facts, circumstances, and reasons underlying the separation action, for the Board's consideration. If the applicant desires a personal appearance hearing, it will still be his responsibility to meet the burden of proof since the discharge packet is not available in the official record. 6. Therefore, based on the available evidence, it appears the reason for discharge and 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: 13 March 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) AR20140005694 Page 5 of 5 pages ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (ADRB) CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE 1