1. Applicant's Name: a. Application Date: 26 April 2021 b. Date Received: 26 April 2021 c. Counsel: None 2. REQUEST, ISSUES, BOARD TYPE, AND DECISION: a. Applicant's Requests and Issues: 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, while serving in Iraq, the applicant witnessed extensive carnage, death, and injuries of friends and comrades. The applicant was severely affected by PTSD. The applicant was at wits end when having attempted to commit suicide with medications. At the time, the applicant was experiencing extreme depression, suffering from anxiety, and felt hapless and helpless. The Army never tried to help the applicant cope with the PTSD. The Army's solution to the attempted suicide was to prosecute the applicant for malingering. The applicant contends not being treated fairly and the under other than honorable conditions discharge was not warranted. The VA recognizing the applicant was suffering from the form of PTSD, determined the issue was service-connected and diagnosed it as an "Adjustment Disorder with Depressive Mood." b. Board Type and Decision: In a records review conducted on 2 December 2022, and by a 5-0 vote, the Board determined the discharge is inequitable based on the applicant's PTSD outweighing the basis applicant's basis for separation - instances of intentional injury to self by ingesting pills. 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, paragraph 14-12a, the narrative reason for separation to Misconduct (Minor Infractions), with a corresponding separation code of JKN. The Board determined the reentry eligibility (RE) code was proper and equitable and voted not to change it. 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: Misconduct (Serious Offense) / AR 635-200, Chapter 14-12c / JKQ / RE-3 / General (Under Honorable Conditions) b. Date of Discharge: 25 January 2008 c. Separation Facts: (1) Date of Notification of Intent to Separate: 30 November 2007 (2) Basis for Separation: The applicant was informed of the following reasons: On 30 August 2007, the applicant intentionally caused injury to self by ingesting approximately 23 allergy pills, and on 23 August 2007, the applicant intentionally caused injury to self by ingesting approximately 24 pills of Benadryl. (3) Recommended Characterization: Under Other Than Honorable Conditions (4) Legal Consultation Date: 28 November 2007 (sic) (5) Administrative Separation Board: On 28 November 2007 (sic), the applicant unconditionally waived consideration of the case before an administrative separation board. On 7 December 2007, the separation authority approved the applicant's unconditional waiver. (6) Separation Decision Date / Characterization: 7 December 2007 / Under Other Than Honorable Conditions 4. SERVICE DETAILS: a. Date / Period of Enlistment: 8 July 2005 / 3 years per Commander's Report memorandum, dated 30 November 2007. ERB shows a BASD of 8 July 2008 with an ETS date of 18 September 2008. The AMHRR enlistment documents reflect an enlistment in the Regular Army on 24 July 2001 for 4 years. b. Age at Enlistment / Education / GT Score: 22 / HS Graduate / NIF c. Highest Grade Achieved / MOS / Total Service: E-4 / 11B10, Infantryman / 3 years, 4 months, 7 days d. Prior Service / Characterizations: RA, 24 July 2001 - 7 July 2005 / NIF e. Overseas Service / Combat Service: SWA / Iraq (NIF) f. Awards and Decorations: MUC, ICM g. Performance Ratings: NA h. Disciplinary Action(s) / Evidentiary Record: Three Developmental Counseling Forms for various acts of misconduct. Memorandum, dated 24 October 2007, indicates in the acceptance of the applicant's offer to plead guilty in a Summary Court-Martial to The Charge and its Specifications. In the offer, the applicant agreed, in pertinent part, to waive the right to an administrative separation board in the event of a separation action with an under other than honorable conditions discharge due to the misconduct referred for trial by a court-martial. Charge Sheet reflecting The Charge, in violation of the UCMJ, Article 134, was preferred and referred to trial by Summary Court-Martial on 2 November 2007, with the following specifications: Specification 1: on 23 August 2007, the applicant intentionally injured self by ingesting approximately 23 allergy pills; and, Specification 2: On 12 September 2007, the applicant intentionally injured self by ingesting approximately 24 pills of Benadryl. Report of Result of Trial and Record of Trial reflects the applicant was tried in a Summary Court-Martial on 9 November 2007. The applicant was charged with two specifications of the Charge. The summary of offenses, pleas, and findings were: Violation of the UCMJ, Article 134, two specifications of self-injury without the intent to avoid service: On 23 August 2007 and 12 September 2007, the applicant was found guilty of the Charge and its specifications, consistent with the pleas. Sentence: Reduction to the Grade of Private (E-1), forfeiture of $867 pay and confinement for 30 days. i. Lost Time / Mode of Return: 3 years, 1 month, and 25 days or 1152 days (NIF, 6 April 2002 - 31 May 2005) / NIF (DD Form 214 reflecting net active service as 3 years, 4 months, 7 days, with lost time, equates to a BASD of 24 July 2001) j. Applicant Provided and/or AMHHR Listed PTSD / TBI / Other Behavioral Health Conditions: Report of Mental Status Evaluation, dated 21 September 2007, reflects while hospitalized for a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation, the applicant was cleared for any administrative actions deemed appropriate by the command. The applicant could understand the difference between right and wrong and could participate in the proceedings. The applicant was diagnosed with: Adjustment Disorder, Malingering; Personality Disorder; and Overdose with Benadryl. Report of Medical History, dated 11 October 2007, the examining medical physician noted in the comments section: Group session therapy at Behavioral Health, feeling hopeless and currently under therapy, attempted suicide on 22 August 2007 and September 2007, and admitted in a ward for two weeks. The applicant provided a copy of VA Progress Notes, dated 31 January 2014, which reflected psychology notes of 26 April 2011, and further reflecting a diagnosis of "Axis I: Alcohol Abuse, PTSD, Depression NOS." 5. APPLICANT-PROVIDED EVIDENCE: DD Form 293; DD Form 214; VA Progress Notes; and case separation packet. 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), 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 635-200 provides the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel. (1) Chapter 3, Section II provides the authorized types of characterization of service or description of separation. (2) Paragraph 3-7a states an Honorable discharge is a separation with honor and is appropriate when the quality of the Soldier's service generally has met the standards of acceptable conduct and performance of duty for Army personnel or is otherwise so meritorious that any other characterization would be clearly inappropriate. (3) Paragraph 3-7b states a General discharge is a separation from the Army under honorable conditions and is issued to a Soldier whose military record is satisfactory but not sufficiently meritorious to warrant an honorable discharge. (4) 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. (5) Paragraph 14-3 prescribes a discharge under other than honorable conditions is normally appropriate for a Soldier discharged under this chapter. However, the separation authority may direct a general discharge if such is merited by the Soldier's overall record. (6) Paragraph 14-12c prescribes a Soldier is subject to action per this section for commission of a serious military or civilian offense, if the specific circumstances of the offense warrant separation and a punitive discharge is, or would be, authorized for the same or a closely related offense under the Manual for Courts-Martial. 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 "JKQ" as the appropriate code to assign enlisted Soldiers who are discharged under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Chapter 14, paragraph 12c, misconduct (serious offense). f. Army Regulation 601-210, Regular Army and Reserve Components Enlistment Program, governs eligibility criteria, policies, and procedures for enlistment and processing of persons into the Regular Army, the U.S. Army Reserve, and Army National Guard for enlistment per DODI 1304.26. It also prescribes the appointment, reassignment, management, and mobilization of Reserve Officers' Training Corps cadets under the Simultaneous Membership Program. Chapter 4 provides the criteria and procedures for waiverable and nonwaiverable separations. Table 3-1, defines reentry eligibility (RE) codes: RE-3 Applies to: Person who is not considered fully qualified for reentry or continuous service at time of separation, but disqualification is waiverable. Eligibility: Ineligible unless a waiver is granted. 8. SUMMARY 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 Army Military Human Resource Record (AMHRR) of service, the issues and documents submitted with the application were carefully reviewed. The applicant contends having been severely affected by PTSD, the result of having served in Iraq. The applicant provided medical documents indicating a diagnosis of PTSD. The AMHRR shows the applicant underwent a mental status evaluation (MSE) on 21 September 2007, which indicates the applicant was mentally responsible and recognized right from wrong. The MSE indicated diagnoses of an Adjustment Disorder, Malingering; Personality Disorder; and Overdose with Benadryl any diagnosis. The MSE was considered by the separation authority. The applicant contends not being treated fairly, the under other than honorable conditions discharge was not warranted, and the Army never tried to help with the PTSD. The applicant's AMHRR does not contain any indication or evidence of arbitrary or capricious actions by the command. 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? Yes. The Board's Medical Advisor, a voting member, reviewed the applicant's DOD and VA health records, applicant's statement, and/or civilian provider documentation and found that the applicant has the following potentially-mitigating diagnoses/experiences: PTSD, Adjustment Disorder. (2) Did the condition exist or experience occur during military service? Yes. The Board's Medical Advisor found that the applicant's PTSD and Adjustment Disorder existed during military service. (3) Does the condition or experience actually excuse or mitigate the discharge? Partially. The Board's Medical Advisor applied liberal consideration and opined that given the nexus between PTSD and avoidance, the applicant's PTSD may have contributed to the applicant intentionally overdosing to avoid movement. (4) Does the condition or experience outweigh the discharge? Yes. The Board concurred with the opinion of the Board's Medical Advisor, a voting member. As a result, the ADRB applied liberal consideration and found that the applicant's PTSD outweighed the intentional injury to self by ingesting pills basis for separation. b. Response to Contention(s): (1) The applicant contends having been severely affected by PTSD, because of having served in Iraq. The ADRB is not bound by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) decisions. There is no law or regulation which requires that an unfavorable discharge must be upgraded based solely on the Board determination that there was a condition or experience that existed during the applicant's time in service. The Board must also articulate the nexus between that condition or experience and the basis for separation. Then, the Board must determine that the condition or experience outweighed the basis for separation. The criteria used by the VA in determining whether a former service member is eligible for benefits are different than that used by the ARBA when determining a member's discharge characterization. In this case, the Board considered this contention and determined that the applicant's PTSD outweighed the basis for separation. (2) The applicant contends not being treated fairly and the under other than honorable conditions discharge was not warranted, and the Army never tried to help with the PTSD. The Board considered this contention but ultimately did not address it due to an upgrade being granted based on the applicant's PTSD outweighing the applicant's basis for separation. c. The Board determined the discharge is inequitable based on the applicant's PTSD outweighing the basis applicant's basis for separation - instances of intentional injury to self by ingesting pills - thus warranting an upgrade. d. Rationale for Decision: (1) The Board voted to change the applicant's characterization of service to Honorable because the applicant's PTSD mitigated the applicant's misconduct intentional injury to self by ingesting pills. Thus the prior characterization is no longer appropriate. (2) The Board voted to change the reason for discharge to Misconduct (Minor Infractions) under the same pretexts, thus the reason for discharge is no longer appropriate. The SPD code associated with the new reason for discharge is JKN. (3) The RE code will not change, as the current code is consistent with the procedural and substantive requirements of the regulation and the applicant's PTSD, though mitigating, is service limiting. 10. BOARD ACTION DIRECTED: a. Issue a New DD-214: Yes b. Change Characterization to: Honorable c. Change Reason / SPD Code to: Misconduct (Minor Infractions)/JKN d. Change RE Code to: No Change e. Change Authority to: AR 635-200, paragraph 14-12a 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 N/A - Not applicable NCO - Noncommissioned Officer NIF - Not in File NOS - Not Otherwise Specified OAD - Ordered to Active Duty OBH (I) - Other Behavioral Health (Issues) OMPF - Official Military Personnel File PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder RE - Re-entry 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 AR20210002377 1