IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 17 January 2020 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20190005380 APPLICANT REQUESTS: The applicant requests correction of her DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to show an honorable character of service. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * National Personnel Records Center letter * Two copies of her DD Form 214 * U.S. Army Reserve Honorable Discharge Order * DD Form 4 (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document – Armed Forces of the United States) FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the 3-year time frame provided in Title 10 (Armed Forces), United States Code (USC), section 1552 (b) (Correction of Military Records: Claims Incident Thereto). However, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (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 her uncharacterized character of service should be replaced with honorable to reflect her actual discharge status. She served the full term of her contract and provides documents that support her claim. 3. On 21 October 1988, the applicant enlisted into the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) for 8 years. Her service record provides evidence showing she entered active duty to complete initial entry training (IET) on 11 July 1989 and was awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 91A (Medical Specialist). Her DD Form 214 reflects she was released from active on 30 November 1989, per a MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) Self-Terminating Order, with an uncharacterized character of service. 4. In regard to the applicant's DD Form 214, received upon completion of IET: a. At the time the applicant separated, regulatory guidance stated an uncharacterized character of service was given to separating Soldiers in an entry-level status; Soldiers remained in an entry-level status until they had completed more than 180 days of continuous active duty. However, the current separation regulation states Reserve Component (RC) Soldiers will receive an honorable character of service (unless directed otherwise by the separation approval authority) after they have completed IET, been awarded an MOS, and the RC Soldier then reports for duty at a follow-on unit of assignment. b. The available evidence shows the applicant was ordered to IADT/IET and awarded an MOS; following her release from active duty, she returned to her USAR unit. BOARD DISCUSSION: The Board noted that the applicant successfully completed MOS training in 1989 and was released from active duty to return to her USAR unit. Under current regulatory guidance, her service would have been characterized as honorable. Based on a preponderance of the evidence, the Board determined that, as a matter of equity, it would be appropriate to correct the applicant's DD Form 214 to show her service was characterized as honorable. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 :X :X :X GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : : : DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by reissuing her DD Form 214 for the period ending 30 November 1989 to show her service was characterized as honorable. 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. REFERENCES: 1. Title 10, USC, 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 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 states a separation will be described as an entry level separation with service uncharacterized if processing is initiated while a Soldier is in entry level status, except under specific circumstances. For Army National Guard (ARNG) and USAR Soldiers, entry level status begins upon enlistment in the Army National Guard or U.S. Army Reserve and terminates for Soldiers ordered to IADT for one continuous period-180 days after beginning training or Soldiers ordered to IADT for the split or alternate training option-90 days after beginning Phase II (advanced individual training). (Soldiers completing Phase I (basic training or basic combat training) remain in entry level status until 90 days after beginning Phase II. 3. Army Regulation 635-8 (Separation Processing and Documents), currently in effect, prescribes the transition processing function of the military personnel system. It states a DD Form 214 will be prepared for Reserve Component (RC) Soldiers awarded an MOS even if active duty is less than 90 days. RC Soldiers completing active duty that results in the award of a military occupational specialty (MOS), even when the active duty period was less than 90 days (for example, completion of the advanced individual training component of the Army National Guard of the United States (ARNGUS) Alternate Training Program or USAR Split Training Program). When a RC Soldier successfully completes initial active duty training the character of service is Honorable unless directed otherwise by the separation approval authority. 4. Title 10, USC, section 651 (Members: Required Service) states persons who become members of an armed force, other than those who have been deferred under the Military Selective Service Act, shall serve in the armed forces for a total initial period of not less than six and no more than eight years. Any part of such service that is not active duty or that is active duty for training shall be performed in a reserve component. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20190005380 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1