RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2011-04319 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His General (Under Honorable Conditions) discharge be upgraded to Honorable and his RE Code of 2B (Discharge Under General or Other Than Honorable Conditions) be changed accordingly. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: He was young and did not see that he could have obtained the proper help that would have prevented his discharge. He is now much older and wiser. He graduated from college. He particularly feels his discharge should be upgraded because he served in the Army National Guard for nine years and had a great career. He even deployed in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM following the events of 11 Sep 01. His nine years of Honorable service to the U.S. military after his separation from the Air Force should make up for his youthful mistakes. In support of his request, the applicant provides a copy of his DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, from the Army National Guard. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant entered active duty on 8 Dec 89. On 1 Mar 93, the applicant’s commander notified him he was recommending he be discharged from the Air Force with a General discharge for a pattern of misconduct--dishonorable failure to pay just debts. The applicant received three Letters of Reprimand, a Letter of Counseling, and numerous letters from a local company for failure to pay debts. The reasons for the action were: 1) On or about 19 Feb 93, failure to pay $136.07; the amount due for payment on a court-ordered judgment. 2) On or about 11 Feb 93, purchasing a leather jacket in the amount $100.00 after being directed to coordinate all personal finances through the financial counselor. 3) On or about 4 Dec 92, failure to pay just debts in the amount of $300.00 to a local proprietor for a set of drums the applicant had been renting. 4) On or about 2 Oct 92, failure to pay just debts in the amount of $400.00 to a rental car company, $566.24 to an Auto Center, and $52.15 to a grocery store. 5) On or about 17 Sep 91, failure to meet scheduled appointments with the assigned financial counselor to set up payments to his creditors. On 3 Mar 93, the case was found to be legally sufficient and, on 4 Mar 93, and the discharge authority concurred with the commander’s recommendation and ordered the applicant’s discharge. On 5 Mar 93, the applicant was furnished a General (Under Honorable Conditions) discharge and was credited with serving 3 years, 2 months, and 28 days of active service. According to information provided by the applicant, on 1 Feb 02, during a subsequent period of service with the Army National Guard (ARNG), he was ordered to active duty in accordance with 10 USC 12302 (Partial Mobilization) in support of Operation ENDURING FREEDOM. On 1 Oct 02, he demobilized and released from active duty with an honorable character of service, presumably to revert to his status as a traditional (part-time) member of the ARNG. Pursuant to the Board’s request, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) provided a copy of an Investigative Report indicating they were unable to locate an arrest record on the basis of the information provided. On 10 Feb 12, a copy of the FBI Investigative Report and a request for post-service information was forwarded to the applicant for review and comment within 30 days. As of this date, no response has been received by this office (Exhibit C). ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was not timely filed; however, it is in the interest of justice to excuse the failure to timely file. 3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice. We took notice of the applicant’s complete submission in judging the merits of the case; however, we find no evidence of an error or injustice that occurred in the discharge process. Based on the available evidence of record, it appears the applicant’s General (Under Honorable Conditions) discharge for Misconduct—Pattern of Dishonorable Failure to Pay Just Debts was consistent with the substantive requirements of the discharge regulation and within the discharge authority’s discretion. The applicant has provided no evidence which would lead us to believe his General (Under Honorable Conditions) discharge was improper or contrary to the provisions of the governing directive, or the RE code issued in conjunction with his discharge was erroneous or inappropriately assigned. In the interest of justice, we considered upgrading the discharge on the basis of clemency; however, we do not find the evidence presented is sufficient for us to recommend granting the relief sought on that basis at this time. In view of the foregoing, and in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we conclude that no basis exists to upgrade the applicant’s General (Under Honorable Conditions) discharge or change his RE code. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; the application was denied without a personal appearance; and the application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2011-04319 in Executive Session on 3 May 12, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 26 Oct 11, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 10 Feb 12, w/atch.