1. Applicant's Name: a. Application Date: 31 January 2019 b. Date Received: 4 February 2019 c. Counsel: None 2. REQUEST, ISSUES, BOARD TYPE, AND DECISION: The current characterization of service for the period under review is under other than honorable conditions. The applicant requests an upgrade to honorable. The applicant seeks relief contending, in effect, that her discharge was inequitable because it was based on a civilian conviction and incidents prior to her enlistment in the United States Army Reserves. In a records review conducted at on 9 July 2021, and by a 5-0 vote, the Board denied the request upon finding the separation was both proper and equitable Please see Section 9 of this document for more detail regarding the Board's decision. (Board member names available upon request) 3. DISCHARGE DETAILS: a. Reason / Authority / Codes / Characterization: NIF / AR 135-175 / NIF / NIF / NIF / Under Other Than Honorable Conditions b. Date of Discharge: 6 December 2018 c. Separation Facts: (1) Date of Notification of Intent to Separate: NIF (2) Basis for Separation: The applicant was informed of the following reasons: NIF (3) Recommended Characterization: NIF (4) Legal Consultation Date: NIF (5) Administrative Separation Board: NIF (6) Separation Decision Date / Characterization: NIF 4. SERVICE DETAILS: a. Date / Period of Enlistment: 22 August 2012 (Cadet) / 8 years b. Age at Enlistment / Education / GT Score: 21 / 14yrs / NA c. Highest Grade Achieved / MOS / Total Service: 02 / (88M10, Motor Transport Operator (while serving as an enlisted Soldier)) / 7 years, 3 months, 7 days d. Prior Service / Characterizations: USAR, 30 August 2011 to 2 January 2012 / NA ADT, 3 January 2012 to 4 May 2012 / HD USAR, 5 May 2012 to 21 August 2012 / HD CADET, 22 August 2012 to 22 May 2014 / NA USAR Officer Appointment (23 May 2014) (Concurrent Service) e. Overseas Service / Combat Service: None f. Awards and Decorations: NDSM, ASR g. Performance Ratings: 20 September 2015 to 18 September 2016, Highly Qualified h. Disciplinary Action(s) / Evidentiary Record: General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand, dated 21 May 2016, indicating on 6 February 2016, the applicant was arrested under warrant and charged with a felony for violation of Tennessee Code 39-11-43, Criminal Responsibility for Facilitation of a Felony. Specifically, she knowingly allowed a Registered Sex Offender to stay at her premises to wit: Appalachian Commons, the Greenbrier Women's apartments which was then known to her to be a restricted are for a Registered Sex Offender. She further lied to the police during their investigation. On 9 March 2016, the applicant was charged with the criminal offense of driving while her license was revoked. In accordance with Army Regulation 27-10, paragraph 3-3b, she was reprimanded. i. Lost Time / Mode of Return: None j. Diagnosed PTSD / TBI / Behavioral Health: NIF 5. APPLICANT-PROVIDED EVIDENCE: DD Form 293; educational achievements; character references; employment reports; and appeal statement. 6. POST SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS: None submitted with her application. 7. STATUTORY, REGULATORY AND POLICY REFERENCE(S): a. Section 1553, Title 10, United States Code (Review of Discharge or Dismissal) provides for the creation, composition, and scope of review conducted by a Discharge Review Board(s) within established governing standards. As amended by Sections 521 and 525 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, 10 USC 1553 provides specific guidance to the Military Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records and Discharge Review Boards when considering discharge upgrade requests by Veterans claiming Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), sexual trauma, intimate partner violence (IPV), or spousal abuse, as a basis for discharge review. The amended guidance provides that Boards will include, as a voting board member, a physician trained in mental health disorders, a clinical psychologist, or a psychiatrist when the discharge upgrade claim asserts a mental health condition, including PTSD, TBI, sexual trauma, IPV, or spousal abuse, as a basis for the discharge. Further, the guidance provides that Military Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records and Discharge Review Boards will develop and provide specialized training specific to sexual trauma, IPV, spousal abuse, as well as the various responses of individuals to trauma. b. Multiple Department of Defense Policy Guidance Memoranda published between 2014 and 2018. The documents are commonly referred to by the signatory authorities' last names (2014 Secretary of Defense Guidance [Hagel memo], 2016 Acting Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness [Carson memo], 2017 Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness [Kurta memo], and 2018 Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness [Wilkie memo]. (1) Individually and collectively, these documents provide further clarification to the Military Discharge Review Boards and Boards for Correction of Military/Naval Records when considering requests by Veterans for modification of their discharge due to mental health conditions, including PTSD; TBI; sexual assault; or sexual harassment. Liberal consideration will be given to Veterans petitioning for discharge relief when the application for relief is based in whole or in part on matters relating to mental health conditions, including PTSD; TBI; sexual assault; or sexual harassment. Special consideration will be given to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) determinations that document a mental health condition, including PTSD; TBI; or sexual assault/harassment potentially contributed to the circumstances resulting in a less than honorable discharge characterization. Special consideration will also be given in cases where a civilian provider confers diagnoses of a mental health condition, including PTSD; TBI; or sexual assault/harassment if the case records contain narratives supporting symptomatology at the time of service or when any other evidence which may reasonably indicate that a mental health condition, including PTSD; TBI; or sexual assault/harassment existed at the time of discharge might have mitigated the misconduct that caused a discharge of lesser characterization. (2) Conditions documented in the service record that can reasonably be determined to have existed at the time of discharge will be considered to have existed at the time of discharge. In cases in which a mental health condition, including PTSD; TBI; or sexual assault/harassment may be reasonably determined to have existed at the time of discharge, those conditions will be considered potential mitigating factors in the misconduct that caused the characterization of service in question. All Boards will exercise caution in weighing evidence of mitigation in cases in which serious misconduct precipitated a discharge with a less than Honorable characterization of service. Potentially mitigating evidence of the existence of undiagnosed combat related PTSD, PTSD-related conditions due to TBI or sexual assault/harassment as causative factors in the misconduct resulting in discharge will be carefully weighed against the severity of the misconduct. PTSD is not a likely cause of premeditated misconduct. Caution shall be exercised in weighing evidence of mitigation in all cases of misconduct by carefully considering the likely causal relationship of symptoms to the misconduct. c. Army Regulation 15-180 (Army Discharge Review Board), dated 25 September 2019, sets forth the policies and procedures under which the Army Discharge Review Board is authorized to review the character, reason, and authority of any Service-member discharged from active military service within 15 years of the Service-member's date of discharge. Additionally, it prescribes actions and composition of the Army Discharge Review Board under Public Law 95-126; Section 1553, Title 10 United States Code; and Department of Defense Directive 1332.41 and Instruction 1332.28. d. Army Regulation 135-175, Separation of Officers, provides policy, criteria, and procedures for the separation of officers of the Army National Guard of the United States and the U.S. Army Reserve, except for officers serving on active duty or active duty for training exceeding 90 days (1) Paragraph 2-1 prescribes the criteria and procedures governing the involuntary separation of Reserve officers of the Army when their retention is not in the best interest of the service. Section II states the retention of officers substandard in performance of duty or conduct, deficient in character, or otherwise unsuited for military service cannot be justified in time of peace or war. The same standards of efficiency and conduct apply to all officers, regardless of component. (2) Paragraph 2-10, prescribes that unless successfully rebutted, authorizes involuntary separation of an officer due to substandard performance of duty. Officers discharged under this provision will be furnished an Honorable Discharge Certificate. (3) Paragraph 2-11, prescribes that unless successfully rebutted, authorizes involuntary separation of an officer due to moral or professional dereliction. Officers discharged under this provision will be furnished an honorable or general discharge certificate, or other than honorable conditions discharge. 8. DISCUSSION OF FACT(S): The Army Discharge Review Board considers applications for upgrade as instructed by Department of Defense Instruction 1332.28. The applicant requests an upgrade to honorable. The applicant's record of service, the issues and documents submitted with the application were carefully reviewed. The AMHRR is void of the specific facts and circumstances concerning the events which led to the applicant's discharge from the United States Army Reserve. The applicant's AMHRR record does contain a properly constituted discharge order: Orders 18-310-00018, dated 6 November 2018. The order indicates the applicant was discharged under the provisions of AR 135-175, with a characterization of service of Under Other Than Honorable Conditions. The applicant seeks relief contending that her discharge was inequitable because it was based on a civilian conviction and incidents prior to her enlistment in the United States Army Reserves. Evidence in the record (i.e. General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand, dated 21 May 2016), indicates the applicant was arrested under warrant and charged with a felony for violation of Tennessee Code 39-11-43, Criminal Responsibility for Facilitation of a Felony. Specifically, she knowingly allowed a Registered Sex Offender to stay at her premises to wit: Appalachian Commons, the Greenbrier Women's apartments which was then known to her to be a restricted area for Registered Sex Offenders. She further lied to the police during their investigation. On 9 March 2016, the applicant was charged with the criminal offense of driving while her license was revoked. In accordance with Army Regulation 27-10, paragraph 3-3b, she was reprimanded. 9. BOARD DISCUSSION AND DETERMINATION: a. As directed by the 2017 memo signed by A.M. Kurta, the board considered the following factors: (1) Did the applicant have a condition or experience that may excuse or mitigate the discharge? (NO) The Board's BH Doctor reviewed all available medical records and found no BH diagnoses on the applicant. The applicant provided no documents that, when applying liberal consideration, convinced the Board of a possible mitigating BH condition. (2) Did the condition exist or experience occur during military service? (N/A) (3) Does the condition or experience actually excuse or mitigate the discharge? (N/A) (4) Does the condition or experience outweigh the discharge? (N/A) b. Response to Contention - the applicant seeks relief contending that the discharge was inequitable because it was based on a civilian conviction and incidents prior to enlistment in the United States Army Reserves. Evidence in the record (i.e. General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand, dated 21 May 2016), indicates the applicant was arrested under warrant and charged with a felony for violation of Tennessee Code 39-11-43, Criminal Responsibility for Facilitation of a Felony. Specifically, she knowingly allowed a Registered Sex Offender to stay at her premises to wit: Appalachian Commons, the Greenbrier Women's apartments which was then known to her to be a restricted area for Registered Sex Offenders. She further lied to the police during their investigation. On 9 March 2016, the applicant was charged with the criminal offense of driving while her license was revoked. In accordance with Army Regulation 27-10, paragraph 3-3b, she was reprimanded. c. The ADRB determined that the applicant's characterization of service was proper and equitable and voted not to change it because the reason for discharge is supported by the documentation available and there were no medical conditions which mitigated the misconduct which led to the applicant's separation from the Army. However, the applicant may request a personal appearance hearing to address the issues before the Board. The applicant is responsible for satisfying the burden of proof and providing documents or other evidence sufficient to support the applicant's contention(s) that the discharge was improper or inequitable. d. Rationale for Decision: (1) The Board voted not to change the applicant's characterization of service because, despite applying liberal consideration, there were no BH diagnoses which mitigated the misconduct (knowingly allowed a Registered Sex Offender to stay at her premises) and 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. (2) The Board voted not to change the applicant's reason for discharge because, despite applying liberal consideration, there were no BH diagnoses which mitigated the misconduct and the reason the applicant was discharged was both proper and equitable. (3) Because the characterization and reason were not changed, the SPD/RE codes will not change, as the current codes are consistent with the procedural and substantive requirements of the regulation. 10. BOARD ACTION DIRECTED: a. Issue a New Separation Order: No Change b. Change Characterization to: No Change c. Change Authority to: No Change Authenticating Official: Legend: AWOL - Absent Without Leave AMHRR - Army Military Human Resource Record BCD - Bad Conduct Discharge BH - Behavioral Health CG - Company Grade Article 15 CID - Criminal Investigation Division ELS - Entry Level Status FG - Field Grade Article 15 GD - General Discharge HS - High School HD - Honorable Discharge IADT - Initial Active Duty Training MP - Military Police MST - Military Sexual Trauma NA - Not applicable NCO - Noncommissioned Officer NIF - Not in File NOS - Not Otherwise Specified OAD - Ordered to Active Duty OMPF - Official Military Personnel File PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder RE - Reentry SCM - Summary Court Martial SPCM - Special Court Martial SPD - Separation Program Designator TBI - Traumatic Brain Injury UNC - Uncharacterized Discharge UOTHC - Under Other Than Honorable Conditions VA - Department of Veterans Affairs ARMY DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD CASE REPORT AND DIRECTIVE AR20190002017 1