IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 4 January 2022 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20210007525 APPLICANT REQUESTS: Correction of her DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to show her U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) service and update of her records to show her current legal last name (L__ vice R___). APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * DD Form 4 (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document Armed Forces of the United States) * DD Form 214 for the period 3 October 1995 to 14 February 1995 (partially legible) * Retirement Points Accounting System Summary Points Inquiry/Update * Verification of Military Experience and Training * Final Judgment of Name Change * DA Form 638 (Recommendation for Award) FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the three-year time frame provided in Title 10, United States Code, section 1552(b); 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 DD Form 214 only shows her basic combat and military occupational specialty training. She attended monthly drills and two weeks of annual training every year but this service is not shown on her DD Form 214. 3. The applicant enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) on 29 June 1995. Her DD Form 4 (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document) shows her last name as R__. All allied documents listed this last name. 4. The applicant's DA Form 2-1 (Personnel Qualification Record – Part II) shows her last name as R__. It also shows she entered initial active duty for training (IADT) on 3 October 1995 and that she was released from IADT and transferred to her USAR unit of assignment on 15 March 1996. Her DD Form 214 shows in: * Block 1 (Name - Last, First - Middle) her last name as R__ * Block 12c (Net Active Service This Period) she was credited with 5 months and 13 days of active service. 5. Orders issued on 1 July 2003 directed the applicant's discharge from the USAR effective 1 July 2003. Her USAR discharge order listed her last name as Ran___. 6. There is no evidence in the applicant's available records indicating she performed continuous active duty service in excess of 90 days after her release from IADT on 15 March 1996. There is also no evidence she used the last name L___ during her military service. 7. The documents provided by the applicant do not show she performed continuous active duty service in excess of 90 days after her release from IADT. 8. She provides an Electronically Certified Court Record, dated 25 August 2020 that shows by a Final Judgment of Change of Name (Adult), the court ordered on 25 August 2020 that her name is changed from last name R__ to L___. 9. By regulation (AR 635-5), the DD Form 214 is a summary of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of all current active, prior active, and prior inactive duty service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. The information entered thereon reflects the conditions as they existed at the time of separation. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application, all supporting documents, and the evidence found within the military record, the Board found that relief was not warranted. The applicant’s contentions, the military record, and regulatory guidance were carefully considered. The DD Form 214 is a record of active service and reflects the conditions at the time it was prepared (at time of separation). Her Reserve service is inactive service and her name change occurred after her release from active duty. As a side note, although the applicant did not specifically ask for a change to the character of her service, Board members noted that she completed training and was awarded an MOS. Board members voted to change the character of service shown on the DD Form 214 from uncharacterized to honorable. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : : : GRANT FULL RELIEF X: X: X: GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : : : DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: 1. The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for partial relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by changing the character of service shown on her DD Form 214 from uncharacterized to honorable. 2. The Board further determined the evidence presented is insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief. As a result, the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to correcting her DD Form 214 to show her U.S. Army Reserve service or to show her post discharge last name. 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, United States Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within three 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 three-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. 2. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), in effect at the time, prescribed the separation documents that must be prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active duty service or control of the Active Army. It established standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214. The DD Form 214 is a summary of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of all current active, prior active, and prior inactive duty service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. The information entered thereon reflects the conditions as they existed at the time of separation. The general instructions stated all available records would be used as a basis for preparation of the DD Form 214. The specific instructions for item 1 (Last Name – First Name – Middle Name) stated to enter the last name, first name, and full middle name or names, if any. 3. Army Regulation 635-8 (Separation Processing and Documents) states the DD Form 214 is a summary of the Soldier’s most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of all current active, prior active, and prior inactive duty service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. It further states a DD Form 214 will be prepared for Reserve Components Soldiers completing 90 days or more of continuous active duty service. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20210007525 4 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1