1. Applicant's Name: a. Application Date: 29 January 2019 b. Date Received: 5 February 2019 c. Counsel: None 2. REQUEST, ISSUES, BOARD TYPE, AND DECISION: The current characterization of service for the period under review is general (under honorable conditions). The applicant requests an upgrade to honorable. The applicant seeks relief contending, in effect, since he was enlisted for longer than 180 days, he was supposed to have received an honorable discharge unless informed of the specific reasons otherwise by his chain of command. The applicant states, he was never told he would be receiving a general discharge and was advised to file for an upgrade. In a records review conducted on 2 June 2021, and by a 4-1 vote, the Board determined that the characterization of service was inequitable based on the applicant's length of service, chain of command's letter indicating no misconduct, and ARBA legal opine regarding compliance with Chapter 5 of AR 635-200. Accordingly, the Board voted to grant relief in the form of an upgrade to the characterization of service to Honorable. The Board determined the narrative reason, SPD code and RE code were proper and equitable and voted not to change them. 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: Condition, Not a Disability / AR 635- 200, Chapter 5-13 or 5-17 / JFV / RE-3 / General (Under Honorable Conditions) b. Date of Discharge: 17 October 2018 c. Separation Facts: (1) Date of Notification of Intent to Separate: 3 October 2018 (2) Basis for Separation: The applicant was informed of the following reasons: He had been diagnosed by the Richard Wilson Army Medical Home with left foot pain. Due to this, he was unable to complete Advanced Individual Training (AIT). (3) Recommended Characterization: General (Under Honorable Conditions) (4) Legal Consultation Date: On 9 October 2018, the applicant waived his rights to consult with a JAG officer. (5) Administrative Separation Board: NA (6) Separation Decision Date / Characterization: 12 October 2018 / General (Under Honorable Conditions) 4. SERVICE DETAILS: a. Date / Period of Enlistment: 17 January 2018 / 4 years, 22 weeks b. Age at Enlistment / Education / GT Score: 21 / HS Graduate / 116 c. Highest Grade Achieved / MOS / Total Service: E-1 / None / 9 months, 1 day d. Prior Service / Characterizations: None e. Overseas Service / Combat Service: None f. Awards and Decorations: None g. Performance Ratings: NA h. Disciplinary Action(s) / Evidentiary Record: Physical Profile Record, reflects the applicant had ankle/foot injury/pain (left) and was recommended for separation UP Chapter 5- 17, AR 635-200. The applicant had a medical condition that would significantly delay his return to training. His injury would require potentially 2-4 months of recovery prior to returning to normal physical activity. The applicant's condition did not meet requirements for 5-11 or MEB recommendation. The applicant should immediately be removed from all training and physical activity prohibited by the profile. i. Lost Time / Mode of Return: None j. Diagnosed PTSD / TBI / Behavioral Health: None 5. APPLICANT-PROVIDED EVIDENCE: DD Form 214; DD Form 293. 6. POST SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS: None submitted with the 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 Servicemember discharged from active military service within 15 years of the Servicemember'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 635-40 governs the evaluation for physical fitness of Soldiers who may be unfit to perform their military duties because of a physical disability, and provides for disposition of the Soldier according to applicable laws and regulations. (1) Chapter 5 provides for separation of an enlisted Soldier for non-service aggravated existed prior to service (EPTS) conditions when a Soldier requests waiver of referral to a PEB. However, the case must meet the conditions, set forth follows: Soldier is eligible for referral into the disability system (see Chapter 4, Section I); the Soldier does not meet medical retention standards as determined by the MEB; the disqualifying defect or condition existed prior to entry on current period of duty and has not been aggravated by such duty; the Soldier is mentally competent; knowledge of information about his or her medical condition would not be harmful to the Soldier's wellbeing; further hospitalization or institutional care is not required; after being advised of the right to a full and fair hearing, the Soldier still desires to waive PEB action; Soldier has been advised that a PEB evaluation is required for receipt of Army disability benefits, but waiver of the PEB will not prevent applying for VA benefits. (2) The characterization of service for Soldiers separated under the provisions of Chapter 5, AR 635-40 will normally be honorable unless the Soldier is in entry-level status. The service of Soldiers in entry-level status will be uncharacterized. A Soldier is in an entry-level status if the Soldier has not completed more than 180 days of creditable continuous active duty prior to the initiation of separation action. e. 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 "KFN" as the appropriate code to assign enlisted Soldiers who are discharged under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 5, Disability, Existed Prior to Service-Medical Board. The SPD Code/RE Code Cross Reference Table shows that a Soldier assigned an SPD Code of "KFN" will be assigned an RE Code of "3." 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's record of service, the issues and documents submitted with the application were carefully reviewed. The applicant contends not being informed of the specific reasons for receiving a general (under honorable conditions). The applicant was discharged under the provisions of Chapter 5-17, AR 635-200, by reason of a condition, not a disability, with a general (under honorable conditions) discharge. Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 5, paragraph 5-17, states the service of a Soldier separated per this paragraph will be characterized as honorable unless an entry-level separation is required under Chapter 3. The record indicates the applicant was not notified of any specific factors which would warrant a general (under honorable conditions) characterization of service. The records show the proper discharge and separation procedures were not followed in this case. 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. As this was not a punitive discharge, liberal consideration does not apply. (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. The applicant contends not being informed of the specific reasons for receiving a general (under honorable conditions). The Board determined that this contention was valid; and, barring any additional evidence, the proper procedures were not followed, thus warranting an upgrade of the characterization of service. c. The Board determined that the characterization of service was inequitable based on the applicant's length of service, chain of command's letter indicating no misconduct, and ARBA legal opine regarding compliance with Chapter 5 of AR 635-200. d. Rationale for Decision: (1) The Board voted to change the applicant's characterization of service to Honorable because there was no proof of misconduct and the applicant was not informed of a reason for a GD. Thus the prior characterization is no longer appropriate. (2) The Board voted not to change the applicant's reason for discharge or accompanying SPD code, as the reason the applicant was discharged was both proper and equitable. (3) The RE code will not change, as the current code is consistent with the procedural and substantive requirements of the regulation. 10. BOARD ACTION DIRECTED: a. Issue a New DD-214: Yes b. Change Characterization to: Honorable c. Change Reason / SPD Code to: No Change d. Change RE Code to: No Change e. 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 AR20190003009 1