The Army Administrative Discharge System.

This study attempts to determine if there is a need for change in the Army administrative discharge system. The study examines the administrative discharge system and contrasts it with the punitive discharge system. The examination focuses primarily on the perceptions of agencies and individuals from both government and public sectors and emphasizes the impact of the Vietnam War and its aftermath upon those perceptions. Investigation reveals that the administrative discharge system has deficiencies which have resulted in the inequitable treatment of soldiers. Although contentions of inequity may be rejected by proponents of the current system, the Army Discharge Review Board and the federal courts have validated many of these contentions. Moreover, recent Congressional legislation has affected the discharge review process as it is conducted by the military services of the Department of Defense thus creating an expensive, time-consuming workload and raising doubts concerning the practicality of the administrative discharge system in its present form. This study concludes that there is a need for change in the Army administrative discharge system. The proposed changes attempt to eliminate the causes of inequity and render the system compatible with the changing discharge review process. Author