ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS BOARD DATE: 24 April 2020 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20170004563 APPLICANT REQUESTS: correction of item 24 (Character of Service) of his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) for the period ending 8 February 1991 to show his service characterization as honorable. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record under the Provisions of Title 10, U.S. Code, Section 1552) * DD Form 214 for the period ending 8 February 1991 * DD Form 293 (Application for the Review of Discharge from the Armed Forces of the United States), dated 16 March 2017 REFERENCES: 1. Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. This provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. 2. Army Regulation 635-200 (Personnel Separations – Enlisted Personnel), in effect at the time, set policies, standards, and procedures to insure the readiness and competency of the force while providing the orderly administrative separation of Soldiers for a variety of reasons. a. Chapter 5 (Separation for the Convenience of the Government) stated unless the reason for separation requires a specific characterization, a Soldier being separated for the convenience of the Government will be awarded a character of service of honorable, under honorable conditions, or an uncharacterized description of service if in an entry- level status. b. Paragraph 5-11 (Separation of Personnel Who Did Not Meet Procurement Medical Fitness Standards) stated Soldiers who were not medically qualified under procurement medical fitness standards when accepted for enlistment or who became medically disqualified under these standards prior to entry on active duty will be separated. Medical proceedings, regardless of the date completed, must establish that a medical condition was identified by appropriate military medical authority within 6 months of the Soldier's initial entrance on active duty which would have permanently or temporarily disqualified him or her for entry into the military service or entry on active duty had it been detected at that time. c. The glossary defined entry-level status as the first 180 days of continuous active duty or the first 180 days of continuous active duty following a break of more than 92 days of active military service. 3. On 25 July 2018, the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness issued guidance to Military Discharge Review Boards and Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records (BCM/NRs) regarding equity, injustice, or clemency determinations. Clemency generally refers to relief specifically granted from a criminal sentence. BCM/NRs may grant clemency regardless of the court-martial forum. However, the guidance applies to more than clemency from a sentencing in a court- martial; it also applies to any other corrections, including changes in a discharge, which may be warranted on equity or relief from injustice grounds. This guidance does not mandate relief, but rather provides standards and principles to guide BCM/NRs in application of their equitable relief authority. In determining whether to grant relief on the basis of equity, injustice, or clemency grounds, BCM/NRs shall consider the prospect for rehabilitation, external evidence, sworn testimony, policy changes, relative severity of misconduct, mental and behavioral health conditions, official governmental acknowledgement that a relevant error or injustice was committed, and uniformity of punishment. Changes to the narrative reason for discharge and/or an upgraded character of service granted solely on equity, injustice, or clemency grounds normally should not result in separation pay, retroactive promotions, and payment of past medical expenses or similar benefits that might have been received if the original discharge had been for the revised reason or had the upgraded service characterization. FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the 3-year time frame as provided in Title 10, U.S Code, section 1552(b); however, the ABCMR conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 2. The applicant states: a. He believes his service should be characterized as honorable. He previously completed 4 years of active service and received an honorable discharge. He was ordered to active duty in support of the Persian Gulf War. In 1991, he had a panic attack, which was diagnosed as an anxiety disorder, and he was released from active duty by the military doctor. The military didn't know what to do to release him at that time, so they must have had to enter his service as uncharacterized. b. He needs his DD Form 214 to show his service characterization as honorable so the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles can issue him veterans' license plates for his vehicle. c. He still has anxiety problems and takes medication for it. d. He lost his copy of his DD Form 214 from 1990. If he had his DD Form 214 from 1990 showing his service characterization as honorable, he would be eligible for veterans' license plates. 3. The applicant's military records prior to the period under review are not available. A search for his records by the National Records and Archives Administration determined his records were signed out to the U.S. Army Reserve Personnel Center in 1992 and are now presumed lost. However, there were sufficient documents remaining to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case. 4. He was ordered to active duty as a member of the U.S. Army Reserve in support of Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm on 31 January 1991. 5. He was discharged on 8 February 1991 under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, chapter 5. He completed 8 days of net active service during this period. His DD Form 214 shows in: * item 12d (Total Prior Active Service) – 4 years * item 24 (Character of Service) – Uncharacterized * item 28 (Narrative Reason for Separation) – Did Not Meet Procurement Medical Fitness Standards – No Disability 6. On 22 May 1992, he was issued a DD Form 215 (Correction to DD Form 214) for the period ending 8 February 1991 showing he was ordered to active duty in support of Operation Desert Shield/Storm in accordance with Title 10, U.S. Code, section 673. 7. A search of the Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application, a global Electronic Health Record System used by the Department of Defense, revealed no records for the applicant. BOARD DISCUSSION: 1. The Board carefully considered the applicant’s request, supporting documents, evidence in the records and published DoD guidance for consideration of discharge upgrade requests. The Board considered the applicant’s statement, the absence of his service record, his orders to active duty, the length of his service and the reason for his separation. The Board found that the applicant’s DD Form 214 shows in item 12.d. 4 years of total prior active service, but did not have previous DD Form 214 available for review. Based on a preponderance of evidence, the Board found insufficient evidence to determine that his character of service upon separation from active duty on 8 February 1991 was in error or unjust. 2. The Board recommends the applicant pursue his records to include his previous DD Form 214 by following the instructions at: https://www.va.gov/records/get-military- service-records/ or https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records 3. After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found that relief was not warranted. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : : : GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : X :X :X DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned. I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE(S): An uncharacterized discharge is not meant to be a negative reflection of a Soldier's military service. It merely means the Soldier has not served on active duty long enough for his or her character of service to be rated. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20170004563 2 1