1. Applicant's Name: a. Application Date: 12 July 2017 b. Date Received: 27 July 2017 c. Counsel: 2. REQUEST, ISSUES, BOARD TYPE, AND DECISION: The applicant requests to upgrade an under other than honorable conditions discharge to honorable and to change the narrative reason for discharge, including its corresponding separation code and restoration of rank to E-6/SSG. The counsel on behalf of the applicant seeks relief contending, in pertinent part and in effect, the applicant's request is based on reasons of propriety and equity. The applicant's chain of command made a material error of discretion regarding discharge. When the applicant enlisted in the USAR for a period of six years, the applicant completed that enlistment in 2008, prior to the last deployment. When the applicant took a civilian job as a Department of Defense contractor in Honduras, the applicant was well outside the 50-100 mile radius of the unit in Missouri, and therefore, should have been transferred to the IRR. The counsel asserts the applicant provided numerous explanations to administrative personnel of the employment in Honduras. Despite, requesting on multiple occasions to have required documents mailed to the applicant in Honduras, the reserve unit continually sent notifications of missed drills to an old address in New York, although the mailing address has always been listed in Missouri. The applicant was never counseled or provided any warnings about being administratively separated, until it occurred. As matters of equity, the Army did not fully consider the quality of the applicant's nearly 14 years of combined active and reserve service. The applicant volunteered for active service and served honorably in three deployments; twice to Honduras and once to Qatar. (The counsel listed the numerous awards the applicant earned.) The evidence shows the applicant's service was honorable during 14 years of combined active and reserve service; thus meriting an honorable discharge. Specific consideration include that the applicant's selected reserve unit should have transferred the applicant to the IRR upon repeated notifications to them that the applicant had been hired as a DoD contractor in Honduras according to 32 CFR 100.5(b)(4). Per the Board's Medical Officer, a voting member, based on the information available for review at the time in the service record, the Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application (AHLTA), and Joint Legacy Viewer (JLV), notes contain no documentation of BH contact while on active duty. VA records indicate the applicant is 70% service-connected for PTSD. In summary, although the applicant had a BH diagnosis, it is not mitigating for the misconduct which led to separation from the Army. In a records review conducted at Arlington, VA on 15 March 2019, and by a 5-0 vote, the Board denied the request upon finding the separation was both proper and equitable. (Board member names available upon request) 3. DISCHARGE DETAILS: a. Reason / Authority / Codes / Characterization: NA / AR 135-178 / NA / Under Other Than Honorable Conditions b. Date of Discharge: 23 March 2012 c. Separation Facts: (1) Date of Notification of Intent to Separate: NIF (2) Basis for Separation: NIF (3) Recommended Characterization: NIF (4) Legal Consultation Date: NIF (5) Administrative Separation Board: NIF (6) Separation Decision Date / Characterization: NIF / Under Other Than Honorable Conditions 4. SERVICE DETAILS: a. Date / Period of Enlistment: 30 August 2009 / Continuous USAR service, although there is no record of any reenlistments or extensions of enlistment, since 6 May 2002) b. Age at Enlistment / Education / GT Score: 39 / HS Graduate / NIF c. Highest Grade Achieved / MOS / Total Service: E-6 / 92A10, Automated Logistical Specialist / 17 years, 10 month, 18 days d. Prior Service / Characterizations: RA (20 February 1991 to 21 February 1993) / HD Reenlistment and DD 214 RA (22 February 1993 to 21 February 1995) / HD (until 8-year MSO fulfilled) USAR (22 February 1995 to 3 February 1999) / NA Break-in-Service (4 February 1999 to 5 May 2002) (Enlisted USAR for 6 years on 6 May 2002) USAR (6 May 2002 to 22 April 2004) / NA DD 214 (OEF MOB) USAR (23 April 2004 to 9 June 2006) / HD USAR (10 June 2006 to 13 October 2006) / NA DD 214 (OIF MOB) USAR (14 October 2006 to 22 July 2007) / HD USAR (23 July 2007 to 22 February 2008) / NA DD 214 (OEF MOB) USAR (23 February 2008 to 7 August 2008) / HD USAR (8 August 2008 to 13 March 2009) / NA DD 214 USAR (14 March 2009 to 29 August 2009) / HD USAR (30 August 2009 - Continuous Service) e. Overseas Service / Combat Service: Germany, SWA / Honduras (21 October 2006 to 4 April 2007), (10 March 2008 to 4 August 2008), Qatar (17 March 2009 to 10 August 2009) f. Awards and Decorations: JSCOM; ARCOM-2; JSAM; AAM-6; ARCAM; AGCM; NDSM-2; ICM-CS; GWOTEM; GWOTSM; SWASM-BSS; NCOPDR; ASR; KLM(K); AFRM-M DEV-4; OSR-3; JMUA; MOVSM g. Performance Ratings: Two NCOERs rendered during period of service under current review or since his last active duty discharge on 29 August 2009, according to DD Form 214): 8 August 2009 thru 7 August 2010, Fully Capable (at a unit with Michigan zip code) 8 August 2010 thru 7 August 2011, Fully Capable (at a unit with Michigan zip code) h. Disciplinary Action(s) / Evidentiary Record: Orders indicating the applicant's last transfer, entitled as "transfer among Army Reserve Components, Control Groups or Unit (USAR, ARNG)": Orders 10-061-00003, dated 2 March 2010, indicates the applicant was released from his current assignment (978 QM Co, 3rd Platoon (WSS0A4), Richmond, VA 23224-4999), reason as "TPU to TPU outside the command," and assigned to "USARE EUCOM JAC DET 3 (W8YA04), Building 326, Mount Clemens, MI 48045-4915" and effective date of 2 March 2010. Discharge Orders, dated 16 March 2012 i. Lost Time / Mode of Return: NIF / NIF j. Diagnosed PTSD / TBI / Behavioral Health: None 5. APPLICANT-PROVIDED EVIDENCE: DD Form 293 (Application for the Review of Discharge), dated 12 July 2017; attorney-authored brief; Enlistment Document (RA on 20 February 2004); Orders (MOS P76V10), dated 7 May 1991; Enlistment Document (RA on 22 February 1993); PCS Orders, dated 11 May 1993; ETS Orders (21 February 1995), dated 10 November 1994; USAR Reassignment Orders, dated 18 April 1995; two NCOERs; Statement of Understanding- Army Policy, dated 6 May 2002; list of civil infractions, dated 18 April 2002; Police Record Check request, dated 28 March 2002; DD Form 214 (7 August 2008); DD Form 214 (22 July 2007); DD Form 214 (29 August 2009); two Service School Academic Evaluation Reports; discharge orders; and Student Loan Repayment Program Addendum, dated 6 May 2002. 6. POST SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS: None provided with the application. 7. REGULATORY CITATION(S): Army Regulation 135-178 sets forth the policies, standards, and procedures to ensure the readiness and competency of the U.S. Army while providing for the orderly administrative separation of Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) enlisted Soldiers for a variety of reasons. The separation policies throughout the different Chapters in this regulation promote the readiness of the Army by providing an orderly means to judge the suitability of persons to serve on the basis of their conduct and their ability to meet required standards of duty performance and discipline. Specific categories include minor disciplinary infractions, a pattern of misconduct, and commission of a serious offense, to include abuse of illegal drugs, and convictions by civil authorities. Chapter 13, in pertinent part, provides that individuals can be separated for being an unsatisfactory participant. Army Regulation 135-91 states that a member is an unsatisfactory participant when nine or more unexcused absences from scheduled drills acrue during a one- year period and attempts to have the Soldier respond or comply with orders or correspondence have resulted in the Soldier's refusal to comply with orders or correspondence; or a notice sent by certified mail was refused, unclaimed, or otherwise undeliverable; or verification that the Soldier has failed to notify the command of a change of address and reasonable attempts to contact the Soldier have failed. Discharge action may be taken when the Soldier cannot be located or is absent in the hands of civil authorities in accordance with the provisions of AR 135- 91, paragraph 2-18, and Chapter 3, section IV, of AR 135-178. Army policy states that an under other than honorable conditions discharge is normally considered appropriate; however, a general (under honorable conditions) discharge or an honorable discharge may be granted. 8. DISCUSSION OF FACT(S): The applicant requests to upgrade his under other than honorable conditions discharge to honorable and to change the narrative reason for his discharge, including its corresponding separation code and restoration of his rank to E-6/SSG. The applicant's available record of service, and the issues and documents submitted with his application were carefully reviewed. The evidence shows the applicant's service record is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events that led to his discharge from the Army. The record indicates that on 16 March 2012, Department of the Army, Headquarters, 88th Regional Support Command, Fort McCoy, WI, Orders 12-076-00024, discharged the applicant from the US Army Reserve, effective 23 March 2012, with an under other than honorable conditions characterization of service. Barring evidence to the contrary, it appears that all requirements of law and regulation were met and the rights of the applicant would have been protected throughout the separation process. The applicant provided no independent corroborating evidence demonstrating that either the command's action was erroneous or that the applicant's service mitigated the misconduct or poor duty performance, such that he should have been retained in the US Army Reserve. The applicant's numerous contentions about being unjustly discharged due to the applicant's chain of command making a material error of discretion by transferring him to the IRR upon his repeated notifications to them that he was employed as a DoD contractor in Honduras, that his honorable service during his 14 years of combined active and reserve service; wherein, he honorably served three deployments and the numerous awards he earned were not considered, and he was never informed about his imminent discharge, were carefully considered. However, there is insufficient evidence available in the official record to make a determination upon the merit of the applicant's issues, such as documentary evidence of his notifications to the command. Moreover, there is a presumption of regularity in the conduct of governmental affairs which is applied in all Army discharge reviews unless there is substantial credible evidence to rebut the presumption. There is no evidence in the record, nor has the applicant produced sufficient evidence, to support a change to the characterization of service granted. The applicant's statements alone do not overcome the presumption of government regularity and the application contains no documentation or further sufficient evidence in support of this request for an upgrade of the discharge. If the applicant desires a personal appearance hearing, it would be his responsibility to meet the burden of proof and provide the appropriate documents (i.e., the complete discharge packet) or other evidence sufficient to explain the facts, circumstances, and reasons underlying the separation action, for the Board's consideration because they are not available in the official record. In consideration of the applicant's service accomplishments and quality of his service prior to his discharge, 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 requests to change the narrative reason for his discharge. However, for a discharge from the Reserve component, separation orders dictate the discharge; therefore, there is no DD Form 214, unless the applicant is discharged from an active duty assignment. In the applicant's case, with discharge orders, there is no provision for a narrative reason or a corresponding separation code for his discharge, except the discharge authority is AR 135-178. The applicant requests that his rank be restored. The Army Discharge Review Board is not empowered to restore former Service member's grade, rate or rank. The Board may only change the characterization or reason for discharge. If an applicant believes there is an error or injustice in his discharge, he may make an application to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records, using DD Form 149, which can be obtained online or from a Veterans Service Organization. Based on the available 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 15 March 2019, and by a 5-0 vote, the Board denied the request upon finding the separation was both proper and equitable. 10. BOARD ACTION DIRECTED: a. Issue a New DD-214 / Issue a New Separation Order: No b. Change Characterization to: No Change c. Change Reason to: No Change d. Change Authority to: No Change e. Change SPD / RE Code 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 AR20170014514 1