Opinion ID: 706912
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Dennis Dickson

Text: 6 Dickson voluntarily enlisted in the Army in 1964, and after approximately nine months of service he was granted a two-week leave. Dickson was five days late in returning from leave, and was convicted by court-martial for this absence. After his release from the stockade, Dickson began to drink heavily. He was absent without leave on two more occasions, for which he was again convicted by court-martial. After these events, the Army began proceedings to discharge Dickson for inability to adapt to military life, leading to his discharge, in 1965, under other than honorable conditions. 7 Nearly 20 years later, in 1984, Dickson applied to the Board for an upgrade of his discharge classification. He claimed that his discharge had been unjust because he was not counseled before signing the discharge papers. In addition, he claimed that the discharge was unduly harsh because his offenses were mitigated by personal and family problems, and that under current Army standards he would have received a more favorable discharge. 8 The Board denied Dickson's application. In its decision, the Board noted Dickson's contention that he would have received a more favorable discharge under today's standards, and recited some of the facts Dickson had alleged about his situation. The Board then stated that the alleged error or injustice was, or with reasonable diligence should have been, discovered on the date of his discharge. The Board's conclusion read: 9 The subject application was not submitted within the time required. The applicant has not submitted, nor do the records contain, sufficient justification to establish that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse the failure to file within the time prescribed by law.