AIR FORCE DISCHARG E REVI EW BOARD HEARING RECORD
NAM E OF SERV ICE MEMBER (LAST, FIRST M IDDLE INITIA L)	GRADE

(b) (6)
TYPE    OEN	I	PERSONA L APPEARAN CE	x	I	RECORD REVI EW
COliNSl!:L	NAME or COUNSEL ANO OR ORGANIZATION	o\OORESS ANO OR ORGo\N 17..ATION OF COUNSEL
YES	No
x
VOTE OFTifE BOARD
MEMBER SITTING	HON	GEN	UOTHC	OTHER	DENY
(b) (6)	x
x x x x
ISSUES	A93.23	INOF'.X NlJ\1RF.R	A66.00	EXHIBITS SUBMITIED TO THE BOARD
1 ORDER APPOINTTNG THE BOARD
2  APPLICATION FOR REVIEW OF DISCHARGE
3	LEITER OF NOTIFICATION
4	BRIEF Of PERSONN EL FILE COUNSEL'S RELEASE TO THE BOARD
ADDITIONAL EXHIBITS SUBMITTED AT TIME OF PERSONAL APPEARANCE
TAPE RECORDING OF PERSONAL APPEARANCE HEARING

HEARING DATE	CASE NUMBER

08 Jul 2016	FD-20 15-00435
APPLICANT'S ISSUE .\NOnJE 80ARO'S OllCISJONALRATIONALE ARE DISCUSSED ON THE ATIACHED AIR l'ORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD DECISIONAL RATIONAU

Case heard in Washington, D.C.

Advise applicant of the decision of the Board, the right to a personal appearance with/without counsel, and the right to submit an appl ication to the AFBCMR.

(b) (6)

lNDORSEMENT	DATE:   712012016
TO:	t·ROM:

SAl'/MRBR

SECRETARY Of THE AIR FORCE PERSONNEL COUNCii.
AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVlt;W BOARD
550 C STREET WEST, SU ITE 40	I SJS COMMAND OR. ££ WING.JRO FLOOR
RANDOLPH    AFB.TX  78150-4742	A>OREWS AfO. MO 20762-7001

AFHQ FORM 0-2077, .JAN 00	(EF-V2)	Previous

AIR FORCE DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD DECISIONAL RATIONALE	CASE NUMBER

FD-2015-00435	

GENERAL:  The applicant appeals for upgrade of discharge characterization to Honorable.

The applicant was offered a personal appearance before the Discharge Review Board (DRB) but declined and requests that the review be completed based on the available service record.

The attached brief contains available pertinent data on the applicant and the factors leading to the discharge .

Pursuant to I 0 USC I 553 this board included a member who is a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist, or a physician with training on mental health issues connected with post traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury and/or special training on mental health disorders.

FINDING : The Board finds insufficient evidence of an inequity or impropriety that would warrant a change to the applicant's discharge.

DISCUSSION: The applicant received a General discharge for Misconduct - Drug Abuse. The Air Force Discharge Review Board, under its responsibility to examine the propriety and equity of an applicant's discharge, is authorized to change the characterization of service and the reason for discharge if such change is warranted. In reviewing discharges, the Board presumes regularity in the conduct of governmental affairs unless there is substantial credible evidence to rebut the presumption, to include evidence submitted by the applicant. The Board completed a thorough review of the circumstances that led to the discharge and the discharge process to ensure the discharge met the pertinent standards of equity and propriety. The applicant's record of service included one Article 15 for wrongful use of marijuana.

The applicant contends that his use of marijuana did not warrant a General discharge.  He claims that after being the on-scene photographer for a Naval aircraft crash, his mental state led him to wrongfully use marijuana.  The Board opined that, although the applicant may have developed some mental health issues from his experiences, they found no correlation to his medical diagnosis and his acts of misconduct. The DRB found no evidence to indicate that the applicant was unaware of the Air Force policy of zero tolerance to drug use.  The Board found the negative aspects of the willful misconduct outweighed the positive aspects of the applicant's performance and concluded that the discharge was appropriate .

A discharge is upgraded only if it is established that an inequity or impropriety took place at the time of discharge. After a thorough review of the record and advice from the mental health special ist, the Board found no indication that any mental health issues had an impact on the applicant's misconduct or on his discharge.  Additionally, the Board found no evidence to justify an upgrade of the discharge characterization.

CONCLUSION: The Discharge Review Board concludes that the discharge was consistent with the procedural and substantive requirements of the discharge regulation, was within the discretion of the discharge authority, and that the applicant was provided full administrative due process.

In view of the foregoing findings, the Board further concludes that there exists no legal or equitable basis for upgrade of discharge and determines the discharge should remain unchanged.

Attachment: Examiner's Brief