MEB vs Separation under Chp 14 AR 635-200 12c

D

DeeA1212

New Member
Registered Member
Good morning.
I am at the end of my MEB process and waiting for the Commanding General to make his decision on whether I MEB or separated. My first separation packet from the previous commander was recommended that I get separated with other than honorable conditions. The new commander pulled that separation packet and put in a new recommendation for me to get separated with general under honorable conditions. I am medboarding for PTSD and major depressive disorder and have been deemed unfit for duty. What are the chances of me getting this MEB granted and not the separation? My packet is still sitting at the battalion level and my MEB packet is already at the brigade JAG. any thoughts?
 
How long have you been in? What is your rank? What is your branch?
 
The ultimate disposition of your case either as a medical separation through the Disability Evaluation System or as an administrative separation, assuming your PTSD is determined to fail retention standards and is unfitting, will likely turn on the the severity of your diagnosis and its cause, or at least its trigger compared with the nature and severity of your misconduct weighed against your overall performance of duty, including length of service, EER's or NCOER's depending on your grade. The recommendations of your chain of command will carry great weight with the General Court Martial Convening Authority, likely your post commander or commanding general, who makes the final call on whether to proceed with a medical or administrative separation. I am assuming you are Army; if not, though, the standards each of the services use are similar. Here are the factors that Army Reg. 635-200, Enlisted Separations, paragraph 1-34.d.(2) require the GCMCA to consider: "The GCMCA’s written directive must address whether the Soldier’s medical condition is the direct or substantial contributing cause of the conduct that led to the recommendation for administrative separation, or whether other circumstances of the individual case warrant disability processing instead of further processing for administrative separation." As long as the GCMCA provides a written rationale for his or her decision consistent with this requirement, the GCMCA has nearly absolute discretion as the final decision maker and neither the Army Board for Correction of Military Records or a federal court is likely to find it erroneous. If you do receive a characterization of discharge under other than honorable conditions, however, you may still be able to obtain an upgrade at the Army Discharge Review Board given the various DoD memo's supporting leniency in that regard particularly for service members diagnosed with PTSD.
 
Provis said:
How long have you been in? What is your rank? What is your branch?
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Because of the misconduct, I went from an E-4 to and E-2, I am in the Army and I have only been in for 3 years. 4 years would be in April of 2025 and that is when my ETS is.
 
RetiredAtty said:
The ultimate disposition of your case either as a medical separation through the Disability Evaluation System or as an administrative separation, assuming your PTSD is determined to fail retention standards and is unfitting, will likely turn on the the severity of your diagnosis and its cause, or at least its trigger compared with the nature and severity of your misconduct weighed against your overall performance of duty, including length of service, EER's or NCOER's depending on your grade. The recommendations of your chain of command will carry great weight with the General Court Martial Convening Authority, likely your post commander or commanding general, who makes the final call on whether to proceed with a medical or administrative separation. I am assuming you are Army; if not, though, the standards each of the services use are similar. Here are the factors that Army Reg. 635-200, Enlisted Separations, paragraph 1-34.d.(2) require the GCMCA to consider: "The GCMCA’s written directive must address whether the Soldier’s medical condition is the direct or substantial contributing cause of the conduct that led to the recommendation for administrative separation, or whether other circumstances of the individual case warrant disability processing instead of further processing for administrative separation." As long as the GCMCA provides a written rationale for his or her decision consistent with this requirement, the GCMCA has nearly absolute discretion as the final decision maker and neither the Army Board for Correction of Military Records or a federal court is likely to find it erroneous. If you do receive a characterization of discharge under other than honorable conditions, however, you may still be able to obtain an upgrade at the Army Discharge Review Board given the various DoD memo's supporting leniency in that regard particularly for service members diagnosed with PTSD.
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In my MEB paperwork, it is severe to the point where I was deemed unfit since the PTSD stemmed from an MST last year, before the misconduct started. I was diagnosed 3 months after the MST and the misconduct started 6 to 7 months after the MST. I wasn't able to make proper decisions because of inadequate sleep, nightmares, etc. My MEB was initiated before my command team even thought of punishing me but once my chain found out, they finally went ahead and started initiating everything. My MEB was done and has been sitting for the past 3 months waiting for my chain of command to put in their recommendations for the separation packet. If everyone is recommending that I separate, does that mean the separation will go through? I would technically be getting punished twice and if I separate, and they don't allow me any ample time to get everything together, my daughter and I will be homeless.
 
When a general court-martial convening authority makes a decision like this, the input of the chain of command has great weight, although it is not necessarily dispositive. You should get with your Trial Defense Service counsel assigned to you in connection with the administrative separation and consider putting together a memo through your chain of command to the GCMCA explaining why your case warrants a medical separation consistent with the standard articulated in Army Reg. 635-200. In that memo, you can also make the GCMCA aware of any particulars regarding your PTSD and how specifically how it was the direct or substantial contributing cause of your misconduct. You can also present matters in extenuation and mitigation relating to the impact of a medical vs. admin separation such as your personal situation, your dependents, etc. Helping you with that sort of memo is what TDS counsel are supposed to do.
 
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