MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:       

	BOARD DATE:            11 April 2002
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2001065711

	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. Jessie B. Strickland		Analyst	

The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Margaret K. Patterson		Chairperson	
	Mr. Elzey J. Arledge, Jr.		Member	
	Mr. Richard T. Dunbar		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:  That his discharge from the United States Army Reserve (USAR) be voided and that he be transferred to the USAR Control Group (Retired).

APPLICANT STATES:  That he should have been transferred to the USAR Control Group (Retired) instead of being discharged on his expiration of term of service (ETS), because at the time he was going through some changes and was not capable of taking care of his affairs.

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

He initially served on active duty for 10 years, 9 months and 26 days before he was honorably discharged in the pay grade of E-5 on 22 May 1986, under the Fiscal Year 1986 Early Release Program.  

On 5 June 1986, he enlisted in the USAR for assignment to a troop program unit (TPU) in Chicago, Illinois.  He was promoted to the pay grade of E-6 on 3 October 1991.

On 14 October 1998, the Army Reserve Personnel Command (ARPERSCOM) notified the applicant (20-year letter) that he had completed the required years of service to be eligible for Retired pay at age 60 (8 April 2015).  

A review of his records shows that in June 1998, December 1998, January 1999 and February 1999, the commander dispatched notices of unexcused absences to the applicant via Certified Mail.  His records also show that he was counseled on numerous occasions regarding other unexcused absences and in January 1999, while being counseled for missing four multiple unit training assemblies (MUTA), the applicant indicated that he had his 20-year letter and intended to submit his retirement papers on the 26th or 27th of January 1999.  He was informed at that time that he would still be required to attend all MUTA’s until his retirement orders were published.  

There is no indication that he ever submitted his request for transfer to the USAR Control Group (Retired).  However, his records do show that he continued to receive unexcused absences from the MUTA’s.

On 9 April 1999, orders were published which reduced the applicant from the pay grade of E-6 to E-5, due to inefficiency, under the provisions of Army Regulation 140-158, paragraph 7-10.1.

On 3 May 1999, the applicant was honorably discharged from the USAR in the pay grade of E-5, on his ETS.

Army Regulation 140-10, in effect at the time, set forth the basic authority for the assignment, attachment, detail, and transfer of USAR soldiers.  Chapter 7 of that regulation relates to the removal of soldiers from active status and states, in pertinent part, that soldiers removed from an active status will be discharged or, if qualified and if they so request, will be transferred to the Retired Reserve. 

Army Regulation 135-178, in effect at the time, established the policies, standards, and procedures governing the administrative procedures governing the administrative separation of enlisted soldiers from the Reserve Components. Paragraph 1-3 states, in pertinent part, that orders discharging a soldier would not be revoked or the effective date changed after the effective date of discharge unless there was a manifest error or fraud.  After the effective date of discharge, orders could not be amended by the separation authority only to correct manifest errors such as the wrong character of service or correct administrative errors such as errors concerning rank, social security number, or misspelled name.

Due to recent Departmental changes, certain benefits, such as commissary and post exchange privileges, accrue to Reservists with more than 20 years of qualifying service for retirement at age 60 and who have terminated their Reserve status.  Personnel in this category are required to present their 20-year letter to the nearest Identification Card facility to obtain a benefits card.

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.  The applicant’s honorable discharge from the USAR was accomplished in accordance with law and regulations applicable at the time.

2.  The applicant’s contentions have been noted by the Board; however, they are not supported by the evidence submitted with his application or the evidence of record.  The evidence of record suggests that the applicant clearly understood that in order to be transferred to the USAR Control Group (Retired), a voluntary request on his part was necessary.  However, there is no indication in the available records to show that the applicant took steps to request retirement prior to his discharge. 

3.  In addition to not applying for retirement, the applicant continued to ignore the instructions given him by his superiors, which resulted in his being reduced in grade prior to his discharge, due to ETS.  Accordingly, given his failure to fulfill his obligations while in an inactive status, the Board finds no basis to transfer him to the Retired Reserve as a potential mobilization asset.

4.  Although his discharge will have no effect on his right to apply for Retired Pay at age 60 or his entitlement to benefits, his failure to elect transfer to the Retired Reserve, vice discharge, has allowed him to not be subject to recall since his discharge.

5.  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 has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy this requirement.

6. 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

___rtd___  ___mkp _  ___eja___  DENY APPLICATION

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

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2001065711	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	2002/04/11	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	DENY	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.  333	135.0100/tran ret res	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.