1. Applicant's Name: a. Application Date: 12 September 2016 b. Date Received: 16 September 2016 c. Representative: 2. REQUEST, ISSUES, BOARD TYPE, AND DECISION: The applicant requests an upgrade of his general (under honorable conditions) discharge to honorable. The applicant seeks relief contending, in pertinent part and in effect, he accepted his punishment for the first and only time he smoked marijuana. He was led to believe his conduct, before and after his discharge proceedings began, would determine the character of his discharge. Based on being deemed an "experimenter" for the one-time use, he believed he could learn from his mistake and not have it haunt him many years later, was actually indicated in his counseling session (17 March 2014). He was advised his services were needed with accomplishing JRTC Training rotation at Fort Polk due to shortage of personnel and he was the only Soldier who previously deployed was familiar with the training requirements. His Brigade Commander agreed to the tasking. After completing the tasking, positive comments such as: through everything he had endured, his military bearing had not faltered; he remained respectful to his chain of command; there were never any issues with his conduct on/off post; he performed very well at JRTC at Fort Polk; and he was commended for volunteering to attend JRTC. The final assessments were that he was able to successfully recover from his surgery prior to departing for JRTC, he was able to fully prepare for the rotation, his packing list was complete, and he fully participated and provided proper feedback, which was helpful for the paratroopers. His actions at JRTC are fair bases for an upgrade. He readily admits he made mistakes and accepts full responsibility. Although he was punished for his actions, he never felt he was treated poorly and accepted any punishments as just and fair under the circumstances. However, in this situation, the commander had options to give him an honorable discharge or allow him to remain in the Army, which was his most fervent desire. Despite the support of both colleagues and superiors, and the laudatory actions for his unit at JRTC trainings, the commander felt he did not deserve even a slight benefit of the doubt as to his character. This, in his opinion, was the one time he was unjustifiably treated. Per the Board's Medical Officer, based on the information available for review at the time the applicant has a VA 70%SC for PTSD. In summary, there is a nexus between the behavioral health condition and misconduct. In a records review conducted at Arlington, VA on 26 November 2017, and by a 5-0 vote, the Board determined the discharge is inequitable based on the applicant's length and quality of service, to include combat service, the circumstances surrounding the discharge (i.e. post- service diagnosis of PTSD), and post-service accomplishments. Therefore, the board voted to grant relief in the form of an upgrade of the characterization of service to honorable and changed to the separation authority to AR 635-200, Chapter 14-12a, the narrative reason for separation to Misconduct (Minor Infractions), the separation code to JKN, and the reentry code to RE-3. (Board member names available upon request) 3. DISCHARGE DETAILS: a. Reason / Authority / Codes / Characterization: Misconduct (Drug Abuse) / AR 635- 200, Paragraph 14-12c(2) / JKK / RE-4 / General (Under Honorable Conditions) b. Date of Discharge: 12 June 2014 c. Separation Facts: (1) Date of Notification of Intent to Separate: 21 February 2014 (2) Basis for Separation: The applicant tested positive for the use of marijuana. (3) Recommended Characterization: General (Under Honorable Conditions) (4) Legal Consultation Date: 3 March 2014 (5) Administrative Separation Board: NA (6) Separation Decision Date / Characterization: 15 May 2014 / General (Under Honorable Conditions) 4. SERVICE DETAILS: a. Date / Period of Enlistment: 22 March 2011 / 3 years, 23 weeks b. Age at Enlistment / Education / GT Score: 21 / HS Graduate / 105 c. Highest Grade Achieved / MOS / Total Service: E-4 / 13R19P, FA Firefinder Radar Operator / 3 years 1 months, 21 days d. Prior Service / Characterizations: None / NA e. Overseas Service / Combat Service: Alaska, SWA / Afghanistan (5 December 2011 to 4 October 2012) f. Awards and Decorations: ARCOM; AAM; NDSM; ACM-CS; GWOTSM; NCOPDR; ASR; OSR-2; NATO MDL g. Performance Ratings: NA h. Disciplinary Action(s) / Evidentiary Record: Electronic copy of the DD Form 2624, dated 9 January 2014, shows the applicant tested positive for marijuana during an Inspection, Random (IR) urinalysis testing conducted on 18 December 2013. Report of Mental Status Evaluation, dated 27 January 2014, cleared the applicant for administrative proceedings under AR 635-200, chapter 14. Numerous counseling statements in the record reflected on the applicant's satisfactory performance. i. Lost Time / Mode of Return: None / NA j. Diagnosed PTSD / TBI / Behavioral Health: None 5. APPLICANT-PROVIDED EVIDENCE: DD Form 293 (Application for the Review of Discharge), dated 12 September 2016; DD Form 214; three counseling statements; enlistment documents; six character reference statements; and list of signatures attesting to work ethics and character. 6. POST SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS: None provided with the application. 7. REGULATORY CITATION(S): Army Regulation 635-200 sets forth the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel. Chapter 14 establishes policy and prescribes procedures for separating members for misconduct. Specific categories include minor disciplinary infractions, a pattern of misconduct, and commission of a serious offense, to include abuse of illegal drugs, convictions by civil authorities and desertion or being absent without leave. Action will be taken to separate a member for misconduct when it is clearly established that rehabilitation is impractical or unlikely to succeed. Army policy states that an under other than honorable conditions discharge is normally considered appropriate; however, a general (under honorable conditions) or an honorable discharge may be granted. Paragraph 14-12c(2) terms abuse of illegal drugs as serious misconduct. It continues; however, by recognizing relevant facts may mitigate the nature of the offense. Therefore, a single drug abuse offense may be combined with one or more minor disciplinary infractions or incidents of other misconduct and processed for separation under paragraph 14-12a or 14-12b as appropriate. Army Regulation 635-5-1 (Separation Program Designator (SPD) Codes) provides the specific authorities (regulatory or directive), reasons for separating Soldiers from active duty, and the SPD codes to be entered on the DD Form 214. It identifies the SPD code of "JKK" as the appropriate code to assign enlisted Soldiers who are discharged under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 14, paragraph 14-12c(2), Misconduct (Drug Abuse). The SPD Code/RE Code Cross Reference Table shows that a Soldier assigned an SPD Code of "JKK" will be assigned an RE Code of 4. 8. DISCUSSION OF FACT(S): The applicant requests an upgrade of his general (under honorable conditions) discharge to honorable. The applicant's available record of service, and the issues and documents submitted with his application were carefully reviewed. The record confirms that the applicant's discharge was appropriate because the quality of his service was not consistent with the Army's standards for acceptable personal conduct and performance of duty by military personnel. It brought discredit on the Army, and was prejudicial to good order and discipline. The applicant, as a Soldier, had the duty to support and abide by the Army's drug policies. By abusing illegal drugs, the applicant knowingly risked a military career and marred the quality of his service. The applicant provided no independent corroborating evidence demonstrating that either the command's action was erroneous or sufficient evidence that his service mitigated the misconduct or poor duty performance, such that he should have been retained on Active Duty. In consideration of the applicant's service accomplishments, and quality of his service prior to and following the incident of misconduct, the Board can find that his complete period of service and accomplishments were or were not sufficiently mitigating to warrant an upgrade of his characterization of service. The applicant contends it was his most fervent desire to remain in the Army, perhaps a desire to rejoin the Military Service. However, Soldiers being processed for separation are assigned reentry codes based on their service records or the reason for discharge. Based on Army Regulation 635-5-1 and the SPD Code/RE Code Cross Reference Table, the applicant was appropriately assigned an RE code of 4. There are no basis upon which to grant a change to the reason or to the RE code. An RE Code of 4 cannot be waived and the applicant is no longer eligible for reenlistment. If reenlistment is desired, the applicant should contact a local recruiter to determine eligibility to reenlist. Recruiters can best advise a former service member as to the needs of the Army at the time, and are required to process waivers of reentry eligibility (RE) codes if appropriate. The third party statements provided with the application speak highly of the applicant's character and performance. However, the persons providing the character reference statements were not in a position to fully understand or appreciate the expectations of the applicant's chain of command. The record does not contain any indication or evidence of arbitrary or capricious actions by the command and all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant were fully protected throughout the separation process. The character of the applicant's discharge is commensurate with his overall service record. The discharge was consistent with the procedural and substantive requirements of the regulation, was within the discretion of the separation authority, and the applicant was provided full administrative due process. 9. BOARD DETERMINATION: In a records review conducted at Arlington, VA on 26 November 2017, and by a 5-0 vote, the Board determined the discharge is inequitable based on the applicant's length and quality of service, to include combat service, the circumstances surrounding the discharge (i.e. post-service diagnosis of PTSD), and post-service accomplishments. Therefore, the board voted to grant relief in the form of an upgrade of the characterization of service to honorable and changed to the separation authority to AR 635-200, Chapter 14-12a, the narrative reason for separation to Misconduct (Minor Infractions), the separation code to JKN, and the reentry code to RE-3. 10. BOARD ACTION DIRECTED: a. Issue a New DD-214: Yes b. Change Characterization to: Honorable c. Change Reason to: Misconduct (Minor Infractions) d. Change Authority to: AR 635-200, Chapter 14-12a e. Change SPD/RE Code to: Change SPD to JKN / Change to RE code to 3 f. Restore Grade to: No Change Authenticating Official: Legend: AWOL - Absent Without Leave GD - General Discharge NCO - Noncommissioned Officer SCM - Summary Court Martial BCD - Bad Conduct Discharge HS - High School NIF - Not in File SPCM - Special Court Martial BH - Behavioral Health HD - Honorable Discharge NOS - Not Otherwise Specified SPD - Separation Program Designator CG - Company Grade Article 15 IADT - Initial Active Duty Training OAD - Ordered to Active Duty TBI - Traumatic Brain Injury CID - Criminal Investigation Division MP - Military Police OMPF - Official Military Personnel File UNC - Uncharacterized Discharge ELS - Entry Level Status MST - Military Sexual Trauma PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder UOTHC - Under Other Than Honorable Conditions FG - Field Grade Article 15 NA - Not applicable RE - Reentry VA - Veterans Affairs ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE AR20160016095 1