IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 8 June 2022 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20210014081 APPLICANT REQUESTS: correction of her records by: * upgrading her under other than honorable conditions (UOTHC) * restoring her rank back to specialist * showing a specific reason for her separation as she did not have a family care plan APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * Headquarters, 90th Regional Readiness Command Orders 06-179-00074 FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the three-year time frame provided in Title 10, United States Code (USC), 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 she enlisted in 1996, at which time she did not have any children. During her 9 years of service, she had three children but no one told her that she needed a family care plan until it was time for her to deploy. Had she known ahead of time that she needed a family care plan she would have one in place. She was not told until the last minute and was unable to find someone to care for her children on such short notice. Not only was she discharged but she was also reduced from specialist (SPC) to private 1 (PV1). The Department of Veterans Affairs requires a more specific reason for her type of discharge. 3. The applicant enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) for 8 years on 4 December 1996. She entered active duty for training on 9 April 1997 and successfully completed training and was awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 92A (Automated Logistical Specialist). a. On 19 August 1996 she was Released from Active Duty and returned to the control of her USAR unit. The DD Form 214 she was issued shows her service was uncharacterized, and the narrative reason for separation was "Completion of Required Active Service. b. Headquarters, 90th Regional Readiness Command Orders 06-179-00074, dated 28 June 2006, reduced the applicant from SPC to PV1, effective 27 June 2006, and discharged her with a UOTHC under Army Regulation 135-178 (Army National Guard and Reserve Enlisted Administrative Separations), effective 28 June 2006. The specific authority paragraph justifying the separation was not included on the orders, and the available records do not contain any documentation of her USAR service or reason for discharge. c. The available records are void of any documentation of the applicant's USAR service except for a transfer from her Louisiana unit to a unit in Arizona and her reduction/ separation orders. 4. The available evidence shows the applicant was called to active duty for training, successfully completed training and awarded an MOS. Although his DD Form 214 properly reflects his characterization of service as "uncharacterized" according to regulatory guidance in effect at the time of separation, effective 1 March 2014, regulatory guidance changed stating entry level soldiers who completed IADT and were awarded an MOS were to be given an honorable discharge, unless otherwise directed by the separation authority; based on this, and in the interest of equity, the characterization of service should read as honorable. 5. A review of the applicant’s service record contains sufficient evidence to support administrative corrections that are not annotated on her DD Form 214 for the period ending16 September 1997. This omission will be added to her DD Form 214 as administrative corrections and will not be considered by the Board, to show her characterization of service as honorable. 6. Clemency guidance to the Boards for Correction of Military/Navy Records (BCM/NR) does not mandate relief, but rather provides standards and principles to guide Boards in application of their equitable relief authority to ensure each case will be assessed on its own merits. In determining whether to grant relief 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. This includes consideration of changes in policy, whereby a service member under the same circumstances today would reasonably be expected to receive a more favorable outcome. 7. Published guidance to the BCM/NRs clearly indicates that the guidance is not intended to interfere or impede on the Board's statutory independence. The Board will determine the relative weight of the action that led to the discharge and whether it supports relief or not. In reaching its determination, the Board shall consider the applicant's petition, available records and/or submitted documents in support of the petition. BOARD DISCUSSION: 1. After reviewing the application, all supporting documents, and the evidence found within the military record, the Board found that relief was not warranted. The Board carefully considered the applicant's record of service, documents submitted in support of the petition and executed a comprehensive and standard review based on law, policy and regulation, and published Department of Defense guidance for liberal and clemency determinations requests for upgrade of his characterization of service. Upon review of the applicant’s petition and available military records, the Board determined the applicant did not have an approved family care and was not in compliance with the regulatory guidance regarding single parents. The found the applicant’s record was absence supporting documentation with the facts and circumstances that led to her discharge. The Board found insufficient evidence to warrant a discharge upgrade or restoring her rank back to specialist to include showing a specific reason for her separation as she did not have a family care plan. Therefore, the Board denied relief. 2. This board is not an investigative body. The Board determined despite the absence of the applicant’s separation records, they agreed the burden of proof rest on the applicant, however, she did not provide any supporting documentation and her service record has insufficient evidence to support the applicant contentions to include a discharge upgrade. 3. Prior to closing the case, the Board did note the analyst of record administrative notes below, and recommended the correction is completed to more accurately depict the military service of the applicant. 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: Except for the correction addressed in Administrative Note(s) below, the Board found 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): A review of the applicant’s records shows an omission of administrative corrections not annotated on her DD Form 214 for the period ending 16 September 1997. As a result, amend her DD Form 214 by showing her characterization of service as honorable. 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 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 635-200 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. Army Regulation 635-200 (Active Duty Enlisted Administrative Separations), effective 19 January 2004, sets forth the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel. It provides, in part: a. characterization under other than honorable conditions is authorized under the reason for separation and is warranted by the circumstances of the case; b. Paragraph 3-9a (Entry-level-status separation) provides that a separation will be described as entry-level, with service uncharacterized, if processing is initiated while a Soldier is in entry-level status, except when the Secretary of the Army, on a case-by- case basis, determines that an Honorable characterization of service is clearly warranted by the presence of unusual circumstances involving personal conduct and performance of duty; or the Soldier has less than 181 days of continuous active military service, has completed Initial Entry Training, has been awarded an MOS, and has reported for duty at a follow-on unit of assignment. 5. Army Regulation 135-178 establishes the policies, standards, and procedures governing the administrative separation of certain enlisted Soldiers of the Army National Guard/Army National Guard of the United States and the U.S. Army Reserve. 6. The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness issued guidance to Military Discharge Review Boards and Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records on 25 July 2018 [Wilkie Memorandum], 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. a. This guidance does not mandate relief, but rather provides standards and principles to guide Boards in application of their equitable relief authority. In determining whether to grant relief on the basis of equity, injustice, or clemency grounds, Boards 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. b. 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. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20210014081 1 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1